Bicycling through Poland

Bicycling was a hobby of at least two Polish Nobel prize winners: Maria Sklodowska-Curie and Henryk Sienkiewicz, the author of Quo Vadis. The whole of the country’s area is now accessible to bikers. Marked biking trails are 3,000 km long. The best-known route is the R-1 – the Polish section of the trans-European biking trail. This begins at Kostrzyń, runs through the Lubusz region which is dotted with lakes, the Noteç Forest, and on to the lower Vistula valley and across the Elbląg Plateau to the Russian border.

By bicycle to medieval castles...

Centuries ago knights dismounted their horses before entering a castle yard. Today cyclists park their bikes in front of the castle gates. Some of them belong to the “Castles” group of tourists who travel around the Kraków-Częstochowa region. They visit old castles, including the Royal Castle on the Wawel Hill in Cracow, travel around the Pomeranian and Masurian regions, stopping at the Gothic castles built by the Teutonic Knights. Their itinerary leads through Mazovia, where they pay a visit to the Royal Castle of Warsaw and to the ruins of the Gothic castles at Czersk and Liw.

Very popular with tourists is the castle of Golub-Dobrzyń, which is on the list of ten most attractive medieval strongholds in Europe.

The castle hosts international knights tournaments and crossbow contests. Similar events are held in the castles of Gniew, Brodnica, Ostróda and Ryn. The castle at Chojnik near Jelenia Góra plays the same role in the region of the Sudety Mountains.

... And bicycling in the mountains

Biking along mountain trails has recently become very popular. Practically, all Polish mountains are accessible by bicycle. The bicycling trails in the Beskidy, Bieszczady and the Sudety Mountains are particularly attractive. It is in the Sudety that the annual rally to the top of Mt Śnieżka (1602 m) is held. Mt śnieżka is the highest peak in the Karkonosze range and it offers a beautiful panoramic views over the whole of the Sudety Mountains. The trails high up in the Karkonosze range are quite difficult and dangerous, and are best left to professionals. It is much safer and more comfortable to take the gentle slopes.

Bicycling rallies

Those tourists who choose the Polish section (Kostrzyń-Braniewo) of the trans-European R-1 trail will have a chance of travelling through the ravines near Sulęcin, across vast expanses of forests and along the lower Vistula escarpment famous for its scenic views. World bicycle rallies have already been held eight times in Poland, organised by the Aliance International de Tourisme (AIT) and the Polish Tourist Society (PTTK). The meetings were held at Zakopane, Ruciane-Nida, Sopot on the Baltic coast, at Kazimierz Dolny in the Lublin region, Rogoźnik in Silesia, Wisła in the Beskidy Mountains, Pokrzywna in the Opole region, and more recently at Giżycko in the Masurian Lake District. On all occasions the trails were so well designed that participants could enjoy longer tours, taking in the most attractive spots of the region.