What to Do in Zakopane: Our Highlights

The Kasprowy Wierch cable car

From Zakopane (departing from the Kuźnice district), a cable car takes you up to nearly 2,000 m, to one of the most iconic and popular peaks in the Tatras — direct access to a high-mountain panorama without a long hike. Online booking is compulsory (476 zł for the four of us) and you need to arrive an hour early: the departure station isn't reachable by car, you have to park on the edge of Zakopane and walk a good kilometre to the foot of the cable car — we cut it a bit fine and had to run the last stretch. Some taxis offer a shuttle between the car park and the station, but at a rate that struck us as steep; we preferred to walk.

True story: once there, we couldn't download our pre-booked tickets to scan them — no signal at that exact spot. Off to the ticket office, where they printed them for us in a couple of minutes; it was only once inside the boarding area that we discovered free Wi-Fi was available there. The ride up takes about fifteen to twenty minutes, with a cabin change halfway — dress warmly, it's cool up there even in high summer.

True story: from the top of Kasprowy Wierch you can spot, in the distance, the distinctive silhouette of Mount Giewont and its 15-metre iron cross — the visual symbol of Zakopane and the Polish Tatras, often mentioned in the same breath as Wrocław's gnomes or Poznań's goats in terms of fame. We saw it from Kasprowy Wierch, without ever climbing it.

The sky was overcast the evening we went, which was a bit of a letdown for the sunset, but an impromptu show of wild chamois high on the mountain more than made up for it. From the summit, you can literally step onto the Slovak border. Looking back, we wish we'd planned to walk back down: the trail looks very easy and the walk beautiful, but having set off quite late in the day, doing it in the dark was out of the question.

On the way back, most Polish mountain restaurants close early (often around 8pm, sometimes 9.30pm at best) — we eventually found a good pizzeria still open in Kuźnice, near the station: good quality, affordable, friendly service and a light beer.

Chochołowskie Termy

One of Poland's largest spa complexes, with 52 pools and over 4,500 m² of thermal water, both indoors and out, at varying temperatures. Entry and check-in were easy, with flexible packages depending on the number of people, their age and how long you're staying — a bit like Wawel Castle, the staff at the desk point you towards what you want to do, and speak English without any trouble. Parking, as almost everywhere in Poland, is paid. Up-to-date prices and opening hours are on the official Chochołowskie Termy website.

True story, July 2026: this is one of the very best memories of the trip — and the numbers back up our impression: with 4.6/5 over more than 80,000 Google reviews, it's the highest-rated place on our entire Polish route, across every destination.

Krupówki Street

True story, July 2026: Zakopane's main street, sloping and pedestrianised, felt exactly like a proper winter sports resort, lined with good restaurants in a chalet style. We had a hot waffle there, very welcome given the rainy, chilly weather during our visit, and bought an oscypek, the smoked sheep's cheese typical of the region, from one of the vendors set up along the street.

Our honest take: the Tripadvisor rating for this street is fairly mixed (3.8/5), and our own impression leans the same way — it's worth a visit to soak up the Polish ski-resort atmosphere, but under grey skies like ours, it wasn't the most memorable stroll of the trip. On the Sunday we went it was also fairly busy, and parking in town needs a careful eye: we paid a flat 50 zł rate for a car park that, in reality, was only paid until 7pm.

The village of Ciche: our base for exploring the area

Rather than staying in Zakopane itself, we chose Ciche, a small authentic Podhale village about twenty minutes' drive away — see our full article on Ciche and the Tatras.

The Gubałówka funicular: an alternative we didn't try

A note on transparency: we didn't try the Gubałówka funicular, an attraction separate from the Kasprowy Wierch cable car. Based on our research, it's a shorter, more accessible ride (1,298 m long), offering a panoramic view over the Tatras, while Kasprowy Wierch, which we experienced ourselves, climbs higher and offers a more spectacular high-mountain panorama.

Hiking in the Tatras

Zakopane is also the starting point for several well-known hikes (Lake Morskie Oko, Kościeliska Valley) that we didn't have the chance to do during our stay — we cover them in full honesty in a dedicated article.

Zakopane in winter: skiing

A note on transparency: our trip took place in July, in high summer, with no skiing involved. Zakopane is also a renowned winter sports resort in Poland, with several ski areas nearby — information we're passing on here for reference, without any first-hand experience of our own.

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