Zakopane and the Tatras: A Mountain Escape in Every Season
Two hours south of Kraków, the land folds up into the Tatra Mountains and Poland turns alpine. Zakopane is the base, and what you do there changes completely with the season.
Summer is for walking
From late spring through autumn, the Tatras are a hiker's playground. The classic walk is to Morskie Oko, a mountain lake so photogenic it barely looks real, reached by a long paved road you can walk or take a horse cart along. Go early, because the car park fills by mid morning and the trail gets busy.
For something tougher, the ridge walks above the tree line reward you with views into Slovakia. Check the weather and the trail markings before you set off, and treat the high routes with respect, as conditions turn fast up there.
Winter is for snow
In winter the whole region becomes a ski resort. Kasprowy Wierch offers the most serious runs, reached by cable car, while smaller slopes around town suit families and beginners. Even if you do not ski, the funicular up Gubałówka gives you a panoramic ridge of white peaks with almost no effort.
Book accommodation ahead over the Christmas and New Year weeks, when Zakopane fills with Polish holidaymakers and prices jump.
The town itself has a flavor
Zakopane has its own highlander culture, visible in the timber architecture and heard in the local dialect. Walk the main street, Krupówki, for grilled oscypek, a smoked sheep cheese served with cranberry jam, sold hot from little stalls.
It is touristy, no question, but the mountain air and the food make it a fair trade. Stay at least one night rather than rushing it as a day trip from Kraków.
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