Krupowki

Krupowki is the spine of Zakopane, a long pedestrian street that fills with visitors at almost any time of year. It is unapologetically commercial, but it is also the place to take the pulse of Poland's mountain capital and to try the highland food of the Podhale region.

Almost everyone in Zakopane passes along Krupowki. It is where you eat, shop and gather before or after a day in the mountains, and it runs from the town centre up toward the Gubalowka hill. Treat it as the base camp for the resort rather than the reason to be here, and save your energy for the peaks and valleys of the Tatra National Park.

Stalls and grills along the street sell oscypek, the smoked sheep cheese of the Podhale, protected by name and often served hot with cranberry sauce. Between the souvenir shops you will find restaurants serving highland dishes, from mountain trout to hearty stews, and bakeries selling regional bread.

Look up as you walk, because the timber detailing on some of the older buildings shows the Zakopane architectural style, a regional design developed in the late nineteenth century by Stanislaw Witkiewicz that drew on Podhale folk building. A branch of the Tatra Museum on the street sets out the history of the town and the highland culture.

From the upper end of Krupowki, a funicular climbs Gubalowka hill for a wide view across the town to the Tatra ridge, which is especially good at sunset. It is the easiest high viewpoint in Zakopane and a short walk from the street.

Half an hour is enough to walk the length of Krupowki, but most people spend longer over a meal, a coffee and some shopping. Add an hour or two if you take the funicular up Gubalowka.

Krupowki is busy year round, at its fullest in the summer holidays, over the winter ski season and around New Year. Early morning and late evening are the calmer windows. For the mountain views from Gubalowka, aim for a clear afternoon into sunset.

Krupowki runs through the centre of Zakopane, a short walk from the bus and train stations. The town is reached by bus or train from Krakow in roughly two to two and a half hours. For getting to the mountains, see the Zakopane guide.

The street itself is broadly flat and largely pedestrian, so it is easier going than the mountain trails, though it slopes gently and gets crowded. The Gubalowka funicular carries you up the hill without a climb. Some older shops and restaurants have steps at the entrance.

Krupowki is the natural starting point for the resort:

• Gubalowka, the viewpoint hill above the street.
• Kasprowy Wierch, the cable-car summit on the main Tatra ridge.
• Morskie Oko and the Tatra National Park, the mountain highlights beyond the town.

Oscypek is a smoked cheese made from sheep's milk in the Podhale highlands, protected by name across the European Union. On Krupowki it is often grilled and served hot with cranberry sauce.

A funicular runs from the upper end of Krupowki to the top of Gubalowka hill, where a ridge path gives long views across Zakopane to the Tatras. You can also walk up on foot.

As the centre of Zakopane it is where you eat, shop and gather, and it is the base for trips into the mountains. Treat the surrounding peaks, not the street itself, as the main reason to be here.