Szyndzielnia Gondola Lift

Yellow glass-sided gondolas gliding over the forest from the Olszówka district have been a familiar sight in Bielsko-Biała for generations. The Szyndzielnia cable car opened on 21 December 1953 as Poland's first gondola lift and the first cable car built in the country after the Second World War. Today the line is 1,810 m long and the ride takes just over 6 minutes; at the top you'll find an observation tower, a mountain hostel from 1897 and the trails of the Silesian Beskids.

History: from four-seat cabins to Doppelmayr

Construction began in 1950, with machinery and cabins supplied by the Austrian firm Brüder Girak. Originally 35 four-seat cabins carried up to 300 passengers an hour; the ride along the then 1,920 m route took about 12 minutes. On its first day the lift took 2,000 passengers up the mountain. A major upgrade in 1994–1995 brought six-seat gondolas, automatic doors and a single combined haul-and-carry rope, halving the journey time. The latest big overhaul was carried out by Doppelmayr, and the lift reopened on 11 March 2017. In 2023 it celebrated its 70th anniversary.

What to see at the top

• The observation tower, 18 m high, next to the upper station, opened on 14 August 2015. On a clear day you can see the Tatras, Babia Góra and Pilsko.
• The old upper station – taken out of service in 1995 and renovated in 2016, it now tells the story of the lift and displays cabins from different eras; it also houses the Stara Stacja restaurant.
• The PTTK hostel on Szyndzielnia at 1,001 m – built in 1897 by the Beskidenverein, the first mountain hostel in the Silesian Beskids and in the Polish Beskids as a whole.
• The alpine garden below the hostel – a garden of mountain plants founded in 1905 and restored in 2011.

Interesting facts

Since the 2017 upgrade the lift has 32 passenger cabins and two service cabins, runs at up to 5 m/s and can carry up to 750 people an hour. The retired gondolas were offered for sale, and some ended up at the Tauron Arena in Kraków as café booths. In 2020 the lift received the Marka – Śląskie award in the tourism and recreation category.

Tripto tip

The lift runs all year, but to a timetable with maintenance breaks – check times and prices on kolej-szyndzielnia.pl before you go. Allow 2–3 hours for the return ride, the tower and a short walk to the hostel. From the upper station it's an easy hike on to Klimczok or Błatnia, and trails also lead down to Wapienica, Bystra and Szczyrk. Near the lower station, the Hotel Szyndzielnia has a large car park, including spaces for campervans.