The area, described by the hosts: a guide to Podhale

Blog

We write about what guests ask us over breakfast: where to go, how long it takes and what to do when the weather turns.

Oscypek cheeses stacked on a highland shawl, a wicker basket beside them

Food

Oscypek, bundz and żyntyca straight from a shepherd's hut in Witów

Cheese sold by the roadside all year round is very rarely oscypek. The real thing is made for only half the year — and a few minutes from us you can watch it happen.

19 August 2026 · 7 min read

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Food

Where to eat near Witów: five addresses and one mountain hut

Breakfast is included with us, but lunch and dinner have to happen somewhere. Here are the places we send guests to ourselves, with no drive to Krupówki.

19 August 2026 · 6 min read

Rezydencja Kojsówka in Witów from the air, beside the road leading towards the Tatras

On two wheels

Kojsówka for motorcyclists: a base below the Tatras, or a stop on the way

Witów sits where you can ride out in any direction in the morning without queuing on the main road to Zakopane. And the owner rides himself — a BMW R 1200 C, the same model Bond took across the rooftops of Saigon.

18 August 2026 · 8 min read

Magura Witowska seen from the surrounding pastures, spring green and cloud

Walks

Magura Witowska: the walk that starts at Kojsówka's gate

The nearest summit to Kojsówka is 1,232 metres, the climb takes an hour and a half to two hours, and the trail starts in Witów — no drive, no car park at Siwa Polana and no crowd.

15 August 2026 · 7 min read

A funicular car climbing Gubałówka, the Tatra panorama behind

Walks

On foot to Gubałówka along the ridge, over Butorowy Wierch

You can ride up Gubałówka with the crowd, or walk onto it along the ridge from the west — a route only a handful of visitors know about. It starts a few steps across the river.

15 August 2026 · 8 min read

Skiers on the Witów Ski slope, the chairlift alongside

Skiing

Witów Ski: the slope you walk to after breakfast

A four-seater chair, a six-minute ride up and easy runs kept under snowmaking. For families with children Witów-Ski has one advantage over the big resorts: there is no journey to make.

15 August 2026 · 7 min read

The view from inside a cave in the Kościeliska Valley onto forest and Tatra crags

Walks

The Kościeliska Valley: caves, Smreczyński Staw, the hut and Ornak

The most varied valley in the Western Tatras: five caves you can visit without a guide, a limestone gorge, a lake in the forest, and a hut from which you can walk onto the Ornak ridge.

15 August 2026 · 9 min read

Wooden shepherds' huts on Polana Chochołowska, the peaks of the Western Tatras behind

Walks

The Chochołowska Valley: where to go beyond the mountain hut

Most visitors walk as far as the hut, take a photograph and go back the way they came. A pity, because the most interesting part starts exactly there. Here are six ways to carry on.

15 August 2026 · 9 min read

A cyclist on a gravel road above Witów, the Tatra panorama behind

On two wheels

Cycling from Witów: the Route around the Tatras and the Chochołowska Valley

Three metres wide, smooth tarmac, no cars, and an old railway embankment instead of climbs. At Podczerwone you join a route an eight-year-old can ride comfortably.

15 August 2026 · 8 min read

Souvenir stalls and a horse-drawn cab on Krupówki street in Zakopane

Sightseeing

Zakopane all year round: what to do in each season

Zakopane in July and Zakopane in November are two different towns. Here is what makes sense in each of the four seasons — and why it is easier to see it from a base a quarter of an hour away.

15 August 2026 · 9 min read

The Chochołowskie Thermal Baths from the air: pools, slides and the Tatra panorama

Things to do

Thermal baths below the Tatras: which to choose from Witów

The thermal baths are the fallback for rain, the way to warm up after skiing, and an attraction for children. From Witów the choice is simple — but it is worth knowing when it pays to drive further.

15 August 2026 · 7 min read

The river running beside the garden at Rezydencja Kojsówka

Things to do

A quiet break: a few days by a mountain stream

There are holidays you come back from more tired than you left. This is about the other kind: when the only sound all evening is water running behind the garden.

15 August 2026 · 7 min read

A children's play centre in Witów: a slide, a ball pool and a toy area

Things to do

Raining in the Tatras? A full-day fallback plan with children

The forecast has collapsed and the children have no intention of sitting in the room. Here is a plan for a day like that: from a play centre a few minutes away to hot water under an open sky.

15 August 2026 · 6 min read

Shepherds' huts on a pasture in the Lejowa Valley, spruce forest around

Walks

The Lejowa Valley: the quietest valley in the Western Tatras

It lies exactly between the two most crowded valleys in the Western Tatras and is practically empty. If you are looking for quiet on an August weekend, this is the address.

15 August 2026 · 6 min read

A regional dish served on a wooden table in a restaurant near Witów

Food

Where to eat in Witów: Witowianka by the slope

Breakfast is included with us, but lunch and dinner have to happen somewhere. The nearest, with no drive to Zakopane and no hunt for parking, is Witowianka by the slope.

15 August 2026 · 5 min read

Plan your stay

The trails are easiest to start from a base in Witów

Breakfast included, free parking and the hot tub when you get back.

Get to know Kojsówka See the area