American Express In the Orbis office (see Travel Agents, below).

Bike rental At the Zaczek student hostel, al. 3 Maja 5, for 3zl per hour. May-Sept.

Banks, money and exchange ATM machines are found in innumerable locations on and around Rynek GlA?wny. Bank Narodowy, ul. Basztowa 20, and PKO, Rynek GlA?wny 31, exchange travellers' cheques but it can be a very slow process. In addition, PKO do cash advances on the major international credit cards. Orbis (see Travel Agents, below), also changes cheques but charges a hefty commission. Cash transactions get a lower rate of exchange. Private kantor s, usually open during regular business hours, remain one of the best options for straight currency exchanges as they usually charge no commission.

Bus tickets Available in advance from Orbis (see Travel Agents, below). Buying international tickets in summer can involve hours of queueing. For international routes, try Orbis, Sinbad, inside the bus station tel 012/421 0240; or Jordan, ul. Slawkowska 12 tel 012/422 2033. Bus information is available on 9433 or tel 012/422 2021.

Car rental Ann Rent A Car, at the airport tel 012/639 3249; Avis, ul. Lubicz 23 tel 012/629 6108, ; Europcar, ul. Krowoderska 58 tel 012/633 7773, ; Hertz, at the Cracovia hotel, tel 012/429 6262. Airport delivery on request.

Consulates Denmark, ul. Florianska 37 tel 012/421 7120; Russia, ul. Westerplatte 11 tel 012/422 8388); Ukraine, ul. Krakowska 41 tel 012/656 2336; UK, ul. sw. Anny 9 tel 012/421 7030; USA, ul. Stolarska 9 tel 012/429 6655.

Emergencies Ambulance tel 999; police tel 997; fire tel 998. Don't expect to get an English speaker on any of these numbers.

Hospitals KrakA?w lacks a central general hospital - they're mostly geared to dealing with specific complaints - so ring the information line on 012/422 0511 to find which one you need, or call an ambulance on 999.

Internet access New places are opening up all the time: try Cyberland , ul. sw. Jana 6 (in the Ars cinema complex; 10am-midnight); , Sienna 14 (24hr); Garnet , Florianska 14 (24hr); Internet Club InterMark , Florianska 30 (daily 10am-midnight); or Looz , ul. Mikolajska 13 (Sun-Thurs 10am-midnight, Fri & Sat 10am-8am; ). Prices hover between 4 and 6zl per hour.

Laundry There's a laundry in the basement of the Piast student hostel. For dry cleaning go to Betty Clean, ul. Dluga 17.

Pharmacies Useful central pharmacies include Grodzka, ul. Grodzka 26 (Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat 9am-4pm, Sun 10am-5pm); and Pod Zlota Glowa, Rynek 13 (Mon-Fri 9am-9pm, Sat 9am-4pm). Pharmacies stay open 24hr according to a rota; check the information posted in their windows, or call 012/422 0511, to find out which one is on duty.

Phonecards Available from the Telekomunikacja Polska (TKP) main office, Rynek GlA?wny 17, along with a growing number of local shops.

Photographic supplies Digital Photo Express, Grodzka 38, will print your holiday snaps as well as offering the whole range of professional processing services. Sells all kinds of film.

Post offices and mail The main post office is at ul. Wielopole 2; has poste restante, phone and fax services (Mon-Fri 7.30am-10.30pm, Sat 8am-2pm, Sun 9-11am). The branch just outside the train station has one counter open 24hr. For express mail, try EMS, in the main post office tel 012/422 6696; DHL, ul. Balicka 79 tel 012/636 8994; or TNT, ul. Pleszowska 29 tel 012/415 6030.

Radio The local RMF station (70.06FM), eastern Europe's first independently owned radio setup, based inside the Pod Kopcem hotel, broadcasts throughout southern Poland: it has English-language news bulletins five times a day from Monday to Saturday (8.30am, 10.30am, 3.30pm, 5.30pm and 9pm), and BBC news at 9pm on Sundays.

Taxis There are plenty of companies to choose from. Dependable options include Wawel Taxi tel 9666; Radio Taxi tel 919; Euro Taxi tel 9664; or Metro Taxi tel 9667.

Train tickets are available from the Orbis office at Rynek GlA?wny 41 and in the train station. Expect queues at the international ticket desk. For train enquiries, call 9436 or tel 012/624 1436.

Travel agents Orbis, Rynek GlA?wny 41 (tel 012/422 9180) are good for bus and train tickets; Almatour, Grodzka 2 (tel 012/422 4668), specialize in youth travel and sell ISIC cards; Express Travel, ul. sw. Gertrudy 23 (tel 012/292 0525), operate bus tours to local attractions; as do Jordan, ul. Dluga 9 (tel 012/421 2125).