To the Tatra Mountains

We split the one-way journey over two days. The first day: Rīga - Warsaw, approximately 700 km (8.5 to 9 hours on the road); the second: Warsaw - Murzasichle, approximately 400 km (5 to 5.5 hours). Faster progress was hampered by the many hours-long traffic jams caused by road works on the Polish roads. They do build them properly, though, pouring a proper concrete layer under the asphalt.

Before Kraków we used the toll road twice, each time for 10 PLN, i.e. 2.33 EUR. On the toll section the road surface and markings are simply ideal. The feeling is surreal when you are driving calmly at 130–140 km/h but someone overtakes you from the left lane as if you were standing still.

Good news for those whose car runs on LPG. At all the fuel stations encountered along the way, LPG was also available. The highest price encountered was at the British Petroleum station in Zakopane: 2.42 PLN per litre; the lowest was in the town of Suwałki at an Oil Transfer station: 2.25 PLN per litre. In total we went through four tank-fills. The most popular and well-equipped (good coffee to take away and WC available) fuel station in Poland is Orlen. A few Statoil stations were also spotted, alternating with Circle K (a rebranding in progress).

In Zakopane and its surroundings all roadsides are paid parking areas (2–5 PLN per hour or 25 PLN per day); they have also provided fairly large parking areas for tourists, to which large P signs and attendants invite you - people in green reflective vests, waving like mad to show the direction of entry. They also appear out of nowhere each time you stop at one of the roadsides. Despite payment being made in cash, a receipt was given without asking every single time - which does not always happen at private car parks in Rīga.

After Kraków the roads become increasingly winding and soon the first breathtaking views of mountain silhouettes appear in the distance. From Murzasichle to the mountain stopping points, a serpentine road winds upward and then downward. Particularly challenging is driving in heavy rain and thick, barely penetrable fog. We had the pleasure of experiencing both these natural phenomena to the full, as unlike Latvia - where the heat persisted - there it rained more wildly than at Midsummer, and for several days in a row.

Particularly challenging were the last days in southern Poland, when substantial streams began to flow down the streets from the mountain (ankle-deep), while initially calm and crystal-clear mountain brooks and small rivers turned into brown, swirling torrents that, to us - people unfamiliar with mountain terrain - seemed quite extreme, and we began to get nervous, flipping through Polish TV channels in the hotel room to check whether an evacuation alert had been declared for the region.

Travelling in one's own car has several advantages:
- you can stop almost wherever and whenever you like, to enjoy a view, a natural feature, or a building;
- you can bring as much luggage as you need - and don't need - on the principle of "it'll come in handy," meaning the boot filled to capacity;
- using a navigator, you can find the shortest, fastest, and most convenient route to any attraction;
- there is no need to adapt to schedules.

Disadvantages:
- you have to pay for movement and parking at every step (roads, car parks, fuel - and heaven forbid a breakdown);
- fatigue from driving - despite the fact that there were two of us as drivers, the stiffness upon climbing out of the car was considerable;
- despite it being your holiday, the strong stuff cannot be enjoyed (for those to whom this applies) during the breaks between drives.

Where to Stay in Poland?

In Poland we did not take a chance with airbnb but chose places on Booking.com. With two of the three places we were genuinely lucky and had a great time. The third (Apart Roma in Warsaw) we would not recommend to any traveller - the photos visible on Booking.com bore no resemblance to the real situation; moreover the landlady, to tired travellers who had arrived around 23:30, demanded extra money for the late disturbance. If you don't want to end up under a bridge in Warsaw at midnight, you pay. About all of this I now hope other bookers on Booking.com will also read and be warned.

But now - about the good ones. The first lovely place was in Warsaw itself on the way to the mountains - Villa Park Wesoła (Władysława Raczkiewicza 89, 05-077 Warszawa). They have not only an Italian restaurant and garden furnished in a Tuscan atmosphere, but also a lovely pool that each hotel guest can visit without restriction. The staff do not understand or speak English particularly well, but that is a general Polish peculiarity - even young people in restaurants and cafés understand English poorly.

The second place, which I found on Booking.com, was a newly opened hotel this year in Murzasichle (15 minutes' drive from Zakopane) - Willa Grand Karpatia (Budzowa 2, 34-531 Murzasichle). Everything done in Polish national wood-carvings, the region's characteristic pointed roofs, and wrought-iron stair and balcony railings. Very pleasant, positive, and responsive hosts - one family that has been receiving travellers since 1960 - initially in the older and smaller family home, and from this year in a spacious three-floor building with balconies and a view of the mountains, which has ambitions to grow into a popular mountain SPA hotel. Prices very reasonable - 45–55 EUR per night.