Dolina Chochołowska (Chochołowska Valley) is the longest valley in the Polish Tatras, about 20 minutes’ drive from Zakopane, and lies inside Tatra National Park, so there is no traffic on the way in. In winter you travel it the old way: in a horse-drawn sleigh driven by a local wagoner, with snow-laden spruce forest on both sides and the occasional stop for photographs.
Each sleigh carries no more than four people, so you share it only with your own party or a few others and the ride never feels like a crowd. It lasts about an hour, long enough to get properly into the valley and away from everything.
Afterwards everyone gathers at a bonfire for about an hour of highland food: grilled sausage, bigos (hunter’s stew of cabbage, meat and mushrooms), Gazda’s lard spread on bread, cucumbers, mulled wine, and both highlander and regular tea. A traditional band of górale, the local highlanders, plays live throughout. Hotel transfers with an English-speaking driver and park entry are part of the price, and the whole outing takes around three hours.
