Beskidy Culture Week

Beskidy Culture Week (Tydzień Kultury Beskidzkiej, TKB) is an annual international folklore festival that has turned the Beskidy mountains into one big stage at the turn of July and August since 1964. Ensembles from Poland and around the world perform in Wisła, Szczyrk, Żywiec, Maków Podhalański, Oświęcim, Istebna and Ujsoły, and the organisers call it the biggest folklore celebration in Poland. The 63rd edition took place in 2026.

History: from Wisła's concert shell to eight stages

The first TKB was held in August 1964 in Wisła, on the initiative of Jerzy Drozd, head of the Cieszyn Music School and an expert on the musical culture of the Beskidy foothills. Ensembles from Wisła, Jablunkov, Istebna, Jaworzynka, Koniaków, Goleszów, Cieszyn and Żywiec performed in the amphitheatre's concert shell. The Wisła organisers took their cue from the Gorolski Święto in Jablunkov, run since 1949 by the Polish minority in the Czech Republic, and from the pre-war Mountain Festival.

The festival grew quickly: Szczyrk joined in 1966, Żywiec in 1975, Maków Podhalański in 1976, Ujsoły – as an accompanying event – in 1980, Oświęcim in 1992 and Istebna in 1995. It is organised by the Regional Cultural Centre in Bielsko-Biała and held under the aegis of CIOFF, the international council of folklore festival organisations. For a sense of scale: in 2009, 83 Polish and 23 foreign ensembles performed, including groups from Brazil, Ecuador, India and Turkey.

What you will see and hear

• Wisła – the festival's birthplace: concerts in the amphitheatre, parades of ensembles, a folk-art fair and highland specialities; every other year the International Folklore Meetings.
• Żywiec – the amphitheatre below Grojec hill, the annual competitive Festival of Polish Highlanders' Folklore and a folk-art fair with makers from many mountain regions.
• Maków Podhalański – concerts on the Makowianka stage in the centre of the town.
• Istebna – the Istebna Festival on the Pod Skocznią stage, with ensembles from the "Three Villages" of Istebna, Koniaków and Jaworzynka.
• Ujsoły – Wawrzyńcowe Hudy on St Lawrence's Day: after dark, piles of brushwood up to a dozen or more metres high are set alight.
• Szczyrk and Oświęcim – concerts by Polish and international ensembles; in Oświęcim the festival is centred on the Oświęcim Cultural Centre.

Did you know

The symbol of TKB is the klepok, a traditional wooden toy. The Gorolski Święto in Jablunkov, although it inspired TKB, is now an independent festival linked to it by friendship and long-standing cooperation. The festival lives on beyond the season too: in autumn 2026 Bielsko-Biała hosted an exhibition of photographs documenting successive TKB editions, complemented by Koniaków lace.

Tripto tips

• When: the festival runs for several days at the turn of July and August; the detailed programme of each edition is published on the official website tkb.art.pl.
• Where to stay: Wisła or Szczyrk are the most convenient – several stages are close by, and you can return to the amphitheatre for an evening concert.
• For families: craft fairs, parades and regional food work well for children too; bring warm clothes for the evening Hudy bonfires in Ujsoły.
• Admission: rules and ticket prices vary from stage to stage – check them in the programme of the given edition.