Help on Visit to Poland

[Stu Brandel]

I am an American with deep Polish roots. All of my wife's grandparent's came from Poland, as well as my own grandmother. Now my wife and I are gearing up to visit Poland in 2016, and need some advice. Our extended families are spread roughly from Krakow to Tarnov to Debica. We would like to stay in a place of natural beauty but within driving distance of our extended families. Any suggestions (places, hikes) would be welcome.

Also, we would spend some time in the Tatras too, so any suggestions there would be wonderful too.

I am a more heavy duty hiker and scrambler while my wife loves smaller walks and hikes.

Dziekuje Bardzo (my wife helped me here - but neither of us speaks Polish).

Stu

[damgaard]

Hi Stu

Scrambling in the Polish part of high Tatras might be a little difficult, since it is not allowed to leave the trails.
There is however a very well known path in the Polish part of the Tatras called Orla Perc (eagles path) following a mountains ridge. It has some simple scrambling while most difficult sections equipped with chains. Very nice views. There are easier trails and lakes in the vallyes on both sides. Access is from Zakopane.

For more info I suggest that try to drop an email or PM to Visentin. He is living in Poland and has made a lot of pages for summitpost of Polish mountains. He was very helpful last year, when I asked him for advice.
http://www.summitpost.org/users/visentin/41151

be Jesper

[Proterra]

Stay around my town - Nowy Targ, or possibly Rabka-Zdrój.

Highway to Kraków takes about 45-60 minutes by car, great access to Zakopane and the Tatry; buses leave every 20-30 minutes and from Kraków it's only a 45 minute shot down the freeway to Tarnów and a bit further to Dębica.
Nowy Targ has around 35K inhabitants and has all the amenities you would expect in a town that size. And because it's not touristy at all, prices are a hell of a lot lower than in either Zakopane or Kraków. Both Nowy Targ and Rabka-Zdrój are around the relatively low Gorce range, which western hills resemble the Cascade foothills. Gorce lies between 600 and 1,300 metres (2,000 to 4,500 ft) and is heavily forested with hiking trails connecting every village on its edge with its hills - it takes about 2 to 3 days to cross it west to east (Rabka-Zdrój to Krościenko nad Dunajcem) and a day to cross it north to south (Nowy Targ - Niedźwiedź).

[darinchadwick]

We just came back from my first visit to the area this summer. Zakopane is a dog IMHO. Way over-rated, and not the only good access point to the Tatra Mountains. I'd avoid and stay somewhere else. We also went to Nowy Targ, it's down in the flatlands, and a good general base for the South Poland area, but it would be tiring to commute everyday to the mountains from there. Don't overlook the Niedzica area either, there is a great mix of natural beauty and culturally interesting things there.