Self-Guided Krakow to Warsaw Bike Tour

Arrive in Krakow and check in to your hotel.

Our representative will meet you later in the day and share information about your cycling adventure including route maps with you.

After the briefing, we head to a guided walking tour of Krakow city.

Krakow is the erstwhile capital of Poland, and its cultural nerve centre. It was one of the first cities in the world to be declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is consistently rated among the most beautiful cities in the world.

Located on the banks of the Vistula river, its cultural and architectural legacy spans across the Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque periods. The Jagiellonian University in Krakow was established in 1364 AD by King Casimir III, making it one of the oldest universities in Europe. Pope John Paul III was an alumnus of the university, as were 4 Polish recipients of the Noble Prize in literature.

Unlike Warsaw, Krakow was spared much of the destruction of the Second World War, and most of its historic core remains intact and well-preserved.

We learn about the city’s history and see the most important places, such as the main market, St. Mary’s Basilica, the Cloth Halls, and St. Florian’s Gate, Wawel.

In the evening we recommend taking a walk in the Kazimierz district.

After breakfast, we leave our luggage in the reception and begin our cycling adventure.

We start biking from the dragon monument, dedicated to the mythical Wawel Dragon. According to legend, King Krakus, the founder of Krakow slew the Wawel Dragon and established peace and prosperity.

The Vistula will be our trusted companion for much of our bike tour. It is Poland's longest river, its most important waterway, and a national symbol of the country. In fact, Poland is sometimes often referred to as the "country upon the Vistula.

We bike on paved roads and flat terrain to head for the Wieliczka Salt Mine, where we have about 1-hour guided tour scheduled.

Excavated since the 13th century, the Wieliczka Salt Mine is one of the world's oldest operating salt mine, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

After the tour, we continue cycling further onwards to reach Niepołomice, where we can see the 14th century castle.

We then bike through the Niepołomice forest to reach our destination, Nowe Brzesko, a small town close to the Vistula river.

Stay for the night is in a renovated heritage hotel with a beautiful park which is home to chestnut trees up to 190 years old.

We start biking from our hotel in the morning to reach the village of Zalipie.

Zalipie is one of the most colorful villages you will see. The entire village of about 30 houses is pained in colorful floral and other folksy patterns. Even barns and kennels have beautiful paintings on them.

Perhaps the most beautiful house in the village is that of the local folk artist Felicja Curyłowa (1904–1974).

From Zalipie, we take a transfer of a little over an hour to our destination for the day, Baranow Sandowmierski.

Yet another small Polish town on the Vistula, Baranow Sandomierski is best known for its castle, dating back to 1591 and made in the Mannerist style native to Poland which predated Baroque.

Our hotel for the night is located within the castle.

We begin riding from our hotel along the Vistula to reach Sandomierz, a small but picturesque town situated at the confluence of the Vistula with its tributary, the San.

Sandomierz is also called Little Rome, because like the Italian capital, Sandomierz too is built on seven hills. It also has several beautiful buildings of historical importance.

Before entering Sandomierz we recommend you to take a pause and take a walk in the gorges, and take some photos.

Our hotel for the night is called Maly Rzym, which means Little Rome in Polish.

After checking in, we have a guided city tour of Sandomierz scheduled.

After a hearty Polish breakfast, we take a quick transfer of about 45 minutes to Józefów nad Wisłą and begin our biking from here. With the Vistula once again as our companion, we head due north towards Kazimierz Dolny.

Kazimierz Dolny is recognized as an art center in Poland. Many painters retreat to this picturesque town to sell their paintings, as the town has several art galleries.

Historically, Kazimierz Dolny was once an important river port. As a result, there are several old granaries in town, which have now been converted in hotels.

We ride through the Kazimierz Landscape Park spread out over an area of 136.70 square kilometres (52.78 sq mi) before entering into the town proper, and get a chance to observe virgin nature of this part of Poland.

The region around Kazimierz Dolny is an important wine growing region, and the city holds an annual wine festival in the month of December.

We recommend talking a walk in the town or doing a short bike trip of 10 kms (6.2mi) to the 16th century castle in Janowiec, crossing the Vistula by ferry.

If you have the time, you can also We also visit some of the many gorges surrounding Kazimierz (about 5 km by bike/on foot), or take a river cruise on the Vistula to observe the old quarries from this perspective.

We start biking from our hotel to head towards Naleczow, some 21 kms (13 mi) from Kazimierz Dolny. Situated atop a plateau, Naleczow is a spa town, thanks to the mineral-rich water from its springs which is believed to have healing properties, especially for circulatory disorders. Water from Naleczow is bottled and sold in Europe under the brand Woda Nałęczowianka. We recommend a walk through the spa park here.

At this point, you have the option of wrapping the day's biking and taking a transfer to Lublin, some 30 kms (18.6 mi) away.

Alternatively, you can continue cycling all the way to Lublin, which is where we stay for the night.

Lublin is the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river. In the middle ages, it was important town in the trade route between Krakow and Vilinius in Lithuania. It is known for its open green spaces and historical architecture. It has been selected as the European Capital of Culture for the year 2029. The old town of Lublin is considered one of Poland's national monuments by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

Lublin is also an important wine growing region of Poland, so make sure to try some local wines while you're here.

We start the day with a van transfer to the Kampinos Forest. The forest is located close to Warsaw, and the transfer takes 2 hours 30 minutes. The forest is a part of the Kampinos National Park and is a protected area. One of its distinctive features is a combination of different landscapes such as sandy dunes and marshes along with dense forests of pine and spruce.

We can bike for up to 20-40 kms/12.4 - 24.8 mi inside the forest.

After the cycling we meet the company representative and hand over our bikes to them.

We then take a 1 hour transfer to Warsaw, the capital of Poland.

After checking into our hotel, we take a 2 hour guided walking tour of Warsaw. Like Krakow, the old historic core of Warsaw is a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its historic architecture, much of it reconstructed after being destroyed in the Second World War.

Like Krakow, Warsaw is also perched upon the banks of the Vistula.

We stay for the night in the Polonia Place, a 4-star heritage hotel dating back to 1913.

You can depart according to your own schedule after breakfast, or extend your stay in Warsaw.