Hiking in Lesser Poland: the Tatras, the Pieniny and Babia Góra
Lesser Poland has the country's highest and most famous mountains: the Tatras above Zakopane, with their valleys, glacial lakes and granite peaks, the Pieniny with the Dunajec gorge, and Babia Góra, the queen of the Beskids. Here you will find the routes with track, elevation profile, GPX and practical information.
The numbers mark where each trail starts.
- 1Morskie Oko from Palenica BiałczańskaT 15.5 km · +560 m · 4–5 hours round trip · out and back
- 2Kasprowy Wierch from Kuźnice via Myślenickie TurnieE 6.1 km · +960 m · 3 hours up; you can come down by cable car · point to point
- 3Kościeliska Valley to the Hala Ornak hutT 10.7 km · +220 m · 3–4 hours round trip · out and back
- 4★ The Pieniny: from Sromowce Niżne to Krościenko via the Szopka PassE 6.5 km · +420 m · 2.5–3 hours · point to point
- 5★ Babia Góra from Zawoja via the Markowe Szczawiny hutE 12.2 km · +1340 m · 4–5 hours up · point to point
No trails match the filters: try widening them.
How to read the grades
Trails in Poland have no official difficulty scale: the PTTK waymarks, a red, blue, green, yellow or black stripe between two white ones, identify the route, not its difficulty (red usually marks the main trail). To compare them with our Italian guides, we have estimated the difficulty of each trail on the scale of the Club Alpino Italiano (Italian Alpine Club). Grades assume dry ground: rain, snow or strong heat make a route harder.
- T Tourist 2 in this guide
- Roads, mule tracks or wide, easy paths with no route-finding problems.
- E Hiking 3 in this guide
- Waymarked trails over varied terrain: you need hiking boots and a basic level of fitness.
- EE Expert hikers
- Exposed, steep or rocky sections, sometimes with chains: you need a sure foot and a head for heights.
- EEA Expert hikers with equipment
- Via ferratas or equipped routes: you need a harness, via ferrata set and helmet.
Before you set off
Park entry
Tatra National Park and Pieniny National Park charge an entry fee, at the booths at the start of the trails or online.
Crowds
In summer and at weekends the most famous trails, such as the one to Morskie Oko, are packed: set off at dawn or pick a weekday.
Weather
In the Tatras afternoon thunderstorms are frequent in summer and dangerous on the ridges: start early and be down by early afternoon.
Emergencies
Tatra rescue (TOPR) and rescue in other mountains (GOPR): 985 or 601 100 300; emergency number 112.
Water sports in Lesser Poland →← Guide to Lesser Poland
Routes © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via Waymarked Trails and BRouter; elevations from a digital terrain model. Times and elevation gains are indicative: waymarks on the ground and closure orders always take precedence.