Kampinos National Park

Kampinos National Park (Kampinoski Park Narodowy; say "kam-PEE-noss") protects the Kampinos Forest, a wild landscape of inland sand dunes and marshes that begins right at the edge of Warsaw. From the city limits you can reach the park headquarters in about 10 minutes by car or take a city bus from the metro. Entry is free, moose roam the wetlands, and about 360 km of marked trails make it the easiest big nature escape from the Polish capital.

Why Kampinos is special

Created in 1959, the park covers about 38,500 hectares (roughly 95,000 acres) northwest of Warsaw, between the Vistula and Bzura rivers. Forest covers about 73% of it, and some 5,800 ha in 22 zones are strictly protected. In 2000, the Kampinos Forest and its surroundings were designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve under the Man and the Biosphere program. That is a nature designation, not a UNESCO World Heritage listing.

The landscape runs in east–west bands: ridges of inland dunes, some parabolic dunes reaching about 30 m, alternate with strips of bog and wet meadow. Pine forest grows on the dunes and alder swamps in the hollows, so the scenery changes every few hundred meters. Around one million people visit each year.

The park's emblem is the moose (elk in British English), reintroduced from 1951; beavers were released in 1980 and lynx from 1992. More than 1,400 vascular plant species have been recorded.

Top things to do in Kampinos National Park

• Visit the Museum and Education Center at Granica, set in 1920s forestry buildings, with the Kampinos Forest Museum and an open-air museum of traditional forest-village architecture. The center is named after Jadwiga and Roman Kobendza, the naturalists who campaigned for the park.
• Pay respects at Palmiry, a cemetery for victims of German mass executions during World War II, with the Palmiry Museum and Memorial Site nearby.
• Walk a nature trail into strictly protected areas such as Roztoka or around the Opaleń glade.
• Picnic at one of 13 forest glades with shelters and benches, such as Granica, Jakubów (Izabelin), Lipków or Roztoka.
• Combine with Żelazowa Wola, Chopin's birthplace, at the western edge of the forest, where the Southern Forest Trail ends.

Hiking and biking: how much time you need

The red trail from Dziekanów Leśny to Brochów is the park's backbone, crossing every landscape type; blue and green trails follow the dune belts. There is also a roughly 145 km Kampinos Cycling Trail and ten educational paths.

• 1–2 hours: a nature path from the Jakubów glade in Izabelin or the loop around Opaleń (Laski).
• Half a day: Granica, with the museum, open-air museum and dune walks.
• Full day: a long stretch of the red trail, or the cycling trail.

The terrain is flat, but loose sand slows you down. Carry water and tick repellent, and never leave the trail in wetlands.

Tickets, hours and rules (as of October 2026)

• Park entry is free.
• Open-air museum at Granica: 10 PLN (under US$3), reduced 5 PLN.
• Granica center: Tuesday–Friday 8 am–4 pm (last entry 3 pm); weekends 10 am–5 pm from April to October and 9 am–3 pm from November to March. Museum visits are guided, starting on the hour. Closed Mondays and public holidays.
• Education Center in Izabelin (park headquarters, ul. Tetmajera 38): the permanent exhibitions are currently closed.
• Dogs are banned from most of the park; exceptions include the blue trail from Brochów to Famułki Brochowskie, parking lots, several picnic glades and public roads.
• Campfires and barbecues only at designated glades with written permission (for a fee).

How to get there from Warsaw

Take city bus 210 from Metro Młociny to the Urząd Gminy stop in Izabelin (about 20 minutes), then walk about 750 m to park headquarters. For Granica, a private bus runs from central Warsaw to Kampinos (about an hour), followed by a 3 km walk on the blue trail. Warsaw Chopin Airport makes Kampinos a realistic half-day trip even on a short city break.

Is Kampinos worth visiting in winter?

Yes. The park is open year-round, and with snow many forest roads suit cross-country skiing. But snow can hide trail markings, so carry an offline map, start early because days are short, and stay on marked routes: frozen marshes can be deceptive. In winter 2026/27 the Granica center keeps shorter weekend hours (9 am–3 pm).