Cycling Trail around the Tatras - Easy and Scenic Route
Nearby: Nowy TargCountry: Polska, S艂owacja
| Distance | 37.3km |
|---|---|
| Time | 3h 50min |
| Ascents | 293m |
| Descents | 290m |
Elevation Profile:
add_road Asphalt road
directions_bike Bike route without motorized traffic
wb_sunny Route in the sun
restaurant Restaurant or bar nearby
sports_basketball Playground along the route
directions_car Access by car
train Access by train possible
wc Toilet along the route
directions_bike Bike route
The cycling trail around the Tatra Mountains is a perfect proposition for all cyclists: young and old, experienced and beginners. The path is well-prepared, safe, with good facilities, and above all, incredibly scenic!
- Cycling Route around the Tatra Mountains: Nowy Targ - Trstena.
- Starting Point of the Trail around the Tatra Mountains in Nowy Targ
- Nowy Targ - Trstena. Route of the Cycling Trail around the Tatras
- Nowy Targ - Rogo藕nik - Czarny Dunajec
- Trail around the Tatras: Czarny Dunajec - Podczerwone
- Trail around the Tatras: Podczerwone - PL/SK border
- Slovak Part of the Trail around the Tatras: Liesek - Trstena
- Cycling Trail around the Tatras with Children
- Cycling Trail around the Tatras - Rest Stops
- Attractions on the Cycling Trail around the Tatras
Cycling Route around the Tatra Mountains: Nowy Targ - Trstena.
The cycling route around the Tatra Mountains, or rather, the "Historical-Cultural-Natural Trail around the Tatras / Historicko-kult煤rno-pr铆rodn谩 Cesta okolo Tatier" is a total of 250 km (!). We will describe the most popular, easily accessible, and safe section from Nowy Targ to the Slovak town of Trstena, which runs along the former railway embankment (approximately 38 km / 3 hours one way). Unfortunately, the remaining 200 km of the trail currently lead through public roads...
Starting Point of the Trail around the Tatra Mountains in Nowy Targ
The most convenient way to start the trip is in the vicinity of the railway station in Nowy Targ. You can either take a train here or leave your car in a large, free parking lot.
Unfortunately, the beginning of the trail is not well-marked. Initially, we enter the green cycling trail, but after passing the hotel and the stadium, we turn right onto Sybirak贸w Street and reach the path leading south, along the Zakopane road (separate lane, of course). Fortunately, we soon leave the vicinity of the busy road, turn right onto Podtatrza艅ska Street, and here we find the first "Szlak Wok贸艂 Tatr" signs.
Nowy Targ - Trstena. Route of the Cycling Trail around the Tatras
In Nowy Targ, on the pine-scented road through the forest, we will see the last section of the former railway track.
Nowy Targ - Rogo藕nik - Czarny Dunajec
After crossing the bridge over Wielki Rogo藕nik, our path will run along the busy road 957. Fortunately, we are separated from it by a wide green strip, and on the left, we already have the Tatras, and on the right, Babia G贸ra.
Trail around the Tatras: Czarny Dunajec - Podczerwone
Just past Czarny Dunajec, the cycling path deviates from the road and leads through picturesque meadows and fields. It is worth stopping at the Bridge over Czarny Dunajec. There is a secluded station (unusually located in the forest) and a descent to a stony beach on the river.
Trail around the Tatras: Podczerwone - PL/SK border
A very pleasant section of the trail, and probably the most popular (with the highest traffic). Near the renovated Podczerwone railway station (cafe, ice cream, fast-food dishes), there is also a parking lot and a bike rental. That's why many tourists start their journey from here.
From Podczerwone, the path winds through fields and groves, passing an interesting, characteristic chapel (see below), and leads us to the border with Slovakia.
Slovak Part of the Trail around the Tatras: Liesek - Trstena
After crossing the national border (remember to bring your ID or passports, including those for children!), the Tatras occasionally hide from us: sometimes behind the line of roadside trees, later behind the gentle, green Orava hills.
On the way, it is worth stopping in Liesek at the chapel. There is a spring where we can replenish our water supply.
Trstena is a small, peaceful town. The path leads here behind the buildings, along the river, to the atmospheric center. In the Market Square area, there are several restaurants, pizzerias, and bars.
Cycling Trail around the Tatras with Children
Is it worth taking children on the cycling trail around the Tatras? Absolutely!
If we have doubts about the fitness of our youngest ones, we can shorten the route and choose only a section of it (e.g., Podczerowne - Liesek, from the renovated railway station to the chapel with the spring and back, which is 2 x 14 km).
When setting off with children on the trail around the Tatras, remember to take frequent breaks! Stretch your backs, move your legs and arms (which get bored on a bike...)
The ascents and descents on the route are very gentle and alternate: after climbing uphill, we can rest on the downhill sections. A regular bike with a few gears will do the job!
The entire route is very sunny. Remember to use sunscreen!
The path is well-prepared, even, without difficult or dangerous moments. Except for the very beginning in Nowy Targ, it is separated from car traffic, and several road crossings are well-marked and secured.
Cycling Trail around the Tatras - Rest Stops
Along the entire route, you will find several "MORs" (cyclists' rest areas, marked on our map) with the obligatory set: "shelter + benches + tables", but there are also more interesting and less typical places worth stopping at, for example:
* stony beach near the bridge over Czarny Dunajec:
as well as the ones mentioned above in the descriptions of individual sections of the trail:
* a characteristic and photogenic chapel just before the PL/SK border
* the renovated PKP railway station in Podczerwone (food facilities, playground, historical exhibition)
* a chapel with a spring in Liesek (SK), and a nearby extensive picnic meadow.
Attractions on the Cycling Trail around the Tatras
The main attraction on the cycling trail around the Tatras is, of course, the almost continuous panorama of the Tatra mountain range (in this regard, the Nowy Targ - Trstena direction is more scenic than the return: Trstena - Nowy Targ). Although the mountains remain the same, we observe them from different angles, in different lighting, etc., so it is simply impossible to take our eyes off them! And which peaks can we actually see?
On the Slovak side, there are signs with labels to help us recognize them:
Interesting Facts about the Trail around the Tatras: former Nowy Targ - Trzciana (Trstena) railway line
The section of the trail around the Tatras from Nowy Targ to Trstena is also a piece of railway history! Do you remember the disconnected track in the forest in Nowy Targ? Along the way, you will come across several buildings (ruins) of railway stations:
...and at the only renovated PKP railway station in Podczerwone, there is also a historical exhibition "Where the Wheels Will Take Us. Traces of the Transborder Railway" about the line that operated here from 1904 to 1991:
PS. We have included this route in our article "Family Cycling Routes in the Krakow Area." Get to know the others as well!
Family Bike Routes near Krakow
Are you tired of cycling on paths in urban parks? It's time to go on a family bike trip outside the city! Here are a few of our favorite and tested bike routes. ...
...as well as in the article "Ma艂opolska - Routes for Active Families":
Ma艂opolska - Trails for Active Families
Are you an active family who loves sports all year round and wants to test your fitness in the great outdoors? We have a few ideas on how to combine training with a tourist trip. ...
Publish Date: 2022-06-18
Last Updated: 2022-06-20
More in the Region Ma艂opolskie (Ma艂opolskie)
Total Length 1350 km
