Old Market Square

The Stary Rynek is the centre of Poznan and one of the finest Renaissance squares in Poland. Arcaded merchant houses and painted facades surround it, with a row of small former market stalls and the grand town hall standing in the middle. It has been the city's marketplace and meeting point since the thirteenth century.

This is the anchor of the old centre and the stage for Poznan's best-loved daily ritual, the noon goats on the town hall. The square gathers the city's museums, restaurants and cafes in one place, and the lanes off each corner lead to churches, the castle and the river. It is free to walk and open at all hours, so it makes the natural first stop in the city.

Every day at noon a crowd gathers below the town hall tower to watch two mechanical billy goats emerge and butt their heads together twelve times. The ritual follows a local legend and has run for generations. It is brief and the city's most popular daily event, so arrive a few minutes early for a spot with a clear view of the clock.

The town hall was rebuilt in Renaissance form in the sixteenth century by the Italian architect Giovanni Battista di Quadro, and its loggia and painted facade are the showpiece of the square. Inside is a museum of the city's history. The town hall and its goats are the natural focus of any visit.

The rest of the square is lined with restaurants, cafes and merchant houses, several of them holding small museums. It makes a good base for the old centre on foot. The Stary Browar arts and shopping centre is a short walk south, and the churches and riverside sites lie a few minutes in each direction.

Poznan was one of the earliest centres of the Polish state, and the market square dates from the city's re-founding under German town law in 1253. Much of the square was damaged in 1945 and carefully rebuilt afterwards, which is why the facades mix restored originals with reconstruction. For the deeper origins of the city, cross to Cathedral Island.

Give the square twenty minutes on a first pass, and time it for the goats at noon. Add an hour or more if you go into the town hall museum or one of the smaller collections around the edge.

Late morning suits a first visit, so you catch the goats at midday. Evenings are good for the lit facades and the restaurant terraces. The square is busiest in summer and during the St John's Fair in June, when stalls fill the centre.

The square is in the middle of the old centre and closed to through traffic. From Poznan Glowny, the main station, it is about a twenty-five-minute walk or a short tram ride to the edge of the old town. For the rest of the city, see the Poznan guide.

The square is flat but cobbled, with uneven setts that can be awkward for wheelchairs and prams. The town hall museum and most restaurants are broadly accessible at ground level, though the tower and some upper floors are reached by stairs.

The square is the hub of the old centre:

• Cathedral Island, the birthplace of the city, about fifteen minutes east.
• The Brama Poznania heritage centre, across the river by the island.
• The Stary Browar, a former brewery turned arts and shopping centre, a short walk south.

Every day at noon. Two mechanical goats come out below the town hall clock and butt their heads twelve times. Gather in front of the town hall a few minutes before twelve for a clear view.

Rogal swietomarcinski is a protected Poznan pastry filled with white poppy seed paste. It is tied to St Martin's day on 11 November but sold in city bakeries through the year.

About twenty minutes for the square itself, timed for the goats at noon, or half a day if you add the town hall museum and the sights nearby.