The Platan Hotel is set in a house built in 1890 and is situated in Chrzanów’s market square.
The town’s history dates back to the 13th century when the first records about the castellany of Chrzanów appear. Chrzanów was granted a town charter in the 14th century. A document drawn up by Piotr Ligęza, the then owner of the town, in 1500 confirms that the town was established earlier under German law.
Piotr Ligęza saw to the regulation of the town’s legal status and he supported commerce, which was facilitated by the system of routes. The route from Kraków forked in Chrzanów in a westerly direction towards Oświęcim and Bohemia and in a north-westerly direction towards Wrocław.
Saturday was market day in Chrzanów and there was an eight-day fair once a year on St Nicholas’s day, the patron of the town’s parish church. From 1581 the town was allowed to organize four additional fairs. At that time Chrzanów specialized in the cattle trade.
The 17th century, plagued by wars, left its mark on Chrzanów. Although the main hostilities did not take place in its vicinity, the town was severely affected by a general economic depression. The crisis was aggravated by epidemics and fires which consumed a large part of the wooden buildings, including the town hall.
From 1809 to 1815, Chrzanów was part of the Duchy of Warsaw, to which the town’s coat of arms refers. Following the decisions of the Congress of Vienna, it was included in the Republic of Kraków. The town was part of the province of Kraków in the interwar period. During the German occupation, Chrzanów together with Upper Silesia, situated to the west of the town, was incorporated into the Third Reich under the changed name of Krenau.
In post-war Poland, Chrzanów became the capital of a county in the province of Kraków. The county included the towns of Jaworzno, Trzebinia, Krzeszowice, Chełmek and the surrounding villages.