July 23, 2021
I had such a lovely time in Krakow, but it’s time to get back out into nature. I heard about the High Tatras while I was planning travel in Slovakia, but it was just a bit too far and difficult to get to, so instead I’m hoping to access them from the Polish side.
Today I’m heading to Zakopane, which is a bit of a risk since I haven’t loved the last three small towns I’ve visited, mostly because they’re deserted due to the pandemic. It’s also a risk because Zakopane is known for being a ski town, and I don’t even ski, plus it’s not the winter! It’s still supposed to be beautiful in the summer and there’s good hiking so I am hopeful.
The hostel options in Zakopane aren’t fabulous. There’s a cool one in the woods but I’m alone and don’t want to trek out there, so I opt for Target Hostel, which is walking distance from the train and bus station. The room I am in has 8 beds and no window and it smells awful. It has a small kitchen at least, and decent bathrooms, so it’s not the worst thing ever. (Edit: It rained one day so I tried to dry my clothes for at least 5 hours, and they felt WETTER when I returned.)
After a travel day, I need pizza so I decide to go to Cristina Ristorante & Pizzeria. They had good pizza, which put me in a better mood, so afterwards I find the energy to explore Krupowki Street (the main street in the town).
Let me say, this place is SO touristy. However, the tourists are all Polish. Everyone here thinks I am Polish (at the restaurants, shops, and hostel). I did see some Americans and other tourists, but it definitely seems like they must have family here or something. I actually don’t mind this at all. There’s something joyful about observing how people from other cultures celebrate or vacation.
Something that I read about and want to try is oscypek cheese. It’s not hard to find at all, as there’s vendors all over the street selling it. Many of them make it easy by taking credit card. The cheese is basically salty string cheese, and it’s super tasty (probably too tasty because I had to buy an entire serving for myself and I will be eating it all today).
I stop at Lidl before calling it a day and stock up on breakfast food and snacks. The Lidl is pretty standard, so take advantage while you are here!
July 24, 2021
Today I need to do laundry, and they don’t have it in the hostel so I have to find a laundromat. I go to Peperalnia Samoobslugoa by recommendation. It’s small but it’s very well kept. It’s a bit pricy because you have to pay for wash, dry, and soap AND the dryer only runs for a little while so you might need to run it multiple times. That being said, it was a good experience.
One of the top things to do here is a hike to a lake. I haven’t met anyone but I really want to do it, so I set out to go alone. I do a lot of things alone that probably sound dangerous, however, my plan is always to turn around if things seem iffy. Let me explain.
The hike is named Morski Oko and buses leave from the main station frequently to take you to the trailhead. Last return is around 8 pm and the cost is about 12 Zloty each way, You must pay in cash. You also need cash to get into the park (only like 4 Zloty). There is food at the trailhead and lake as well as ice cream on the way (which you can assume I took advantage of).
The hike is not a real hike, by my definition, but it is about 10 miles round trip so it will take 4 hours at a typical pace. You get fresh air and great views, but nothing about it is technical, and actually most of it is paved. It will get your blood pumping a bit because of the length and some altitude gain, but anyone can do this hike, and if the weather is good you can do it solo because tons of people will be there. My only tip is to take the rocky short cuts through the switch backs to save time.
So like I said, I had done research ahead of time that led me to believe this hike would be safe to do alone. People had said that the path was well marked and touristy, so I thought it would be okay. Another sign was that there are buses full of people (families with children!) heading there each day. There’s also options for transportation so you don’t actually even have to walk all the way to the lake. Had any of that been untrue, I would have had had to reevaluate.
I’m glad this hike existed since I didn’t find anyone to go with, because I did want to get out into nature while I was here. It’s wasn’t exactly the mountaineering experience I was looking for, but it will do considering the circumstances (COVID).
I’ve more than worked up an appetite so I head to STRH Art Café because it has a rooftop. It was a bit pricey, but the food was good. They had outside seating which I really liked but it was night so it was a bit chilly and they didn’t have heaters.
July 25, 2021
I’m back at STRH Art Café for work because their menu had good breakfast food and I want to see the views in the daytime. The coffee is good, but it was a little concerning how fast they brought my food. The pancakes ended up being some of the saddest I’ve had, so I would stick to coffee and dessert, because the views are worth it.
It’s raining hard today so I didn’t get to try the cable car that I wanted to (because you get to see some of the Tatras without hiking). There’s a webcam online so you can see if it’s worth going or not, and of course it was incredibly cloudy. Instead I just make the best of the rainy day by getting work out of the way.
Since I’m enjoying a traditional Polish vacation solo, I need to try some more of the food. I stop at Bakowo Zohylina Niznio for dinner, which had a wait (so you know it’s good) but I wasn’t in a rush. They have really nice outdoor seating and live music at dinner time, which was fabulous. I would definitely recommend this place!
Check Out My Guide to Zakopane ⧉
My Google Maps Guides have all the important locations I mention in my blogs, and you can open them right in Google Maps to make it easy to plan your own trip!