Wisła is a mountain resort in the Silesian Voivodeship of southern Poland, 90 km south of Katowice. In 2019 its population was 11,000. Poland's largest river, the Wisła or Vistula, arises nearby in these Beskids mountains.

Istebna to the south is a separate township (gmina) stretching to the Slovak border; its attractions are also described here.

Understand

Wisła was a tiny farming village until hill-walking, winter sports and other leisure activities developed in the 19th century. For centuries this area was part of Bohemia then Austria-Hungary, with a majority Lutheran population, joining Poland at independence in 1920. It's now an all-year resort.

Tourist information is available at the "Hapsburg Palace" just north of Uzdrowisko railway station, open Tu & Th 14:00-16:00, W F Sa 09:00-14:00. It's an old hunting lodge transplanted from elsewhere. Just be careful which door you enter as part of it is an escape room.

Get in

By plane

Katowice (KTW ^IATA), Kraków (KRK ^IATA) and Ostrava (OSR ^IATA) all have a good range of European flights and are about 90 minutes drive.

By train

Regional trains run from Katowice every two hours, taking two hours to Wisła via Tychy, Pszczyna, Zabrzeg, Skoczow and Ustron. Trains make five stops in Wisła:

• 1 Wisła Jawornik
• 2 Wisła Uzdrowisko is the main station.
• 3 Wisła Dziechcinka
• 4 Wisła Kopydło
• 5 Wisła Głębce is the end of the line.

By bus

Long-distance buses don't come here, Wispol is the local bus line:

• W2 from Bielsko-Biała: six a day, taking an hour via Ustroń.
• W3 from Cieszyn: six a day, taking an hour via Goleszów and Ustroń, and continuing from Wisła to Przełęcz Salmopolska and Szczyrk.
• 52 from Cieszyn hourly on the same route, and continuing to Wisła Głębce, Istebna and Koniaków.

The main bus halt is outside Wisła Uzdrowisko railway station.

Get around

This is a long straggly valley where you need wheels to carry all your winter sports clobber.

The trains from Katowice and buses from Cieszyn serve the main valley.

Some half-a-dozen taxi firms ply the valley and wait at the railway station.

See

Skiing at Nowa Osada

• Special Forces Museum (Muzeum Spadochroniarstwa i Wojsk Specjalnych) is a personal collection of parachuting and special-ops equipment. It's at Przylesie 1A, north end of the village.
• Beskid Museum, Pawła Stellera 1 (Wisła centre near Uzdrowisko station), ☏ +48 33 855 2250. M-Sa 10:00-15:00, Su 08:30-13:30. Displays of local history and culture. (updated Jul 2024)
• Lutheran church is just south of the central marketplace. Wisła, unusually for Poland, is predominantly Lutheran, and this church was built in neo-classical style in 1838. It's seldom open.
• Museum of Magic Realism, Ochorowicza 6 (500 m south of Dziechcinka station), ☏ +48 690 044 214. Tu-Su 11:00-18:00. Gallery of surreal paintings. (updated Jul 2024)
• 1 President's Palace, Zameczek 1, ☏ +48 33 854 6500. This modernistic mansion was built between 1929 and 1931. From 1981 to 2002 it was a holiday complex for families of mine-workers, but thereafter it's been an official residence of the President of Poland. No visits unless you're an ambassador or something. (updated Jul 2024)
• Source of River Wisła is the barrage lake east of the President's Palace, gathering two tributaries into the great river at the heart of Poland.
• 2 Jerzy Kukuczka Museum, Istebna Wilcze 340, ☏ +48 508 389 558. W-Sa 10:00-16:00, Su 10:00-14:00. Home of the mountaineer Jerzy Kukuczka (1948-89). He was a high altitude specialist, ascending all 14 mountains over 8000 m in an eight year span, mostly by new routes or in winter. He fell when his rope broke on Lhotse south face and his body was never found. (updated Jul 2024)
• 3 Studio of Jan Wałach in Istebna can be visited by appointment only. He worked internationally but lived (1884-1979) mostly in the Beskids.
• 4 Chata Kawuloka, Istebna 163, ☏ +48 33 855 6231. Wooden farm cottage where the owner demonstrates his grandparents' rustic way of life. (updated Jul 2024)
• 5 Centrum Pasterskie, Koniaków, ☏ +48 602 128 388. Apr-Sep daily 09:00-18:00. Sheep farm and creamery where you can watch the production of sheep cheese, and of course buy some. Free. (updated Jul 2024)
• Lace Museum is next to Centrum Pasterskie, open daily 10:00-16:00. Craftswomen make and sell their lace here.
• 6 Na Grapie Museum, Jaworzynka 720, ☏ +48 508 844 275. Apr-Sep M-Sa 09:00-15:00. Guided display of life and crafts in these mountains. Adult 8 zł, conc 5 zł. (updated Jul 2024)
• 7 Trojmedzie is the tri-border point of Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, reached by short easy trails from each country.

Do

• Winter sports: some dozen lifts take you onto the nearby mountains, and several also run in summer for hikers and mountain bikers. For example Nowa Osada has a main run of 1 km descending 200 m from top to base. Cieńków – Malinka is a somewhat larger area.
• Ski jumping: Adam Małysz Ski Jumping Hill is on Highway 942 southeast of the village. It hosts Grand Prix competitions and the record (set in 2024) is a 144.5 m jump. Adam Małysz (b 1977) has retired from jumping and rally-driving, and since 2022 is CEO of the Polish Ski Federation.
• Hiking: Kazmierz Sosnowski Main Beskid Trail (Główny Szlak Beskidzki imienia Kazmierza Sosnowskiego, "GSB") is a 496 km trail through the mountains. The record for running it is a shade under 94 hours.

Buy

President's Palace

• Aldi is the main supermarket, at 1 Maja just north of Uzdrowisko station, open M-Sa 06:00-22:00.
• Several convenience stores along the valley, Żabka and Biedronka are the commonest chains.

Eat

• Muzeum Stolica Pradziadków, Biskupa Juliusza Bursche 33 (500 m north of Uzdrowiska station), ☏ +48 505 060 504. Styled a museum, but it's a restaurant serving trad food by historic methods. They need 24 hours notice. (updated Jul 2024)
• Rynek the market square has Stara Karczma (within Beskid Museum), Pizza Tutto, Ondraszkowa Izba, PHU Tomaso, Fajno Chatka, Hospoda s Knedlíkem, U Zosi, Pizzeria Palermo and Robert Fiedor.

Drink

• Cafes serve alcohol, there isn't a stand-alone pub.

Sleep

The valley is packed with hotels, guesthouses and rooms for rent.

• 1 Hotel Gołębiewski, Biskupa Juliusza Bursche 3, ☏ +48 33 855 4700. Large spa hotel with spacious clean rooms, a bit dated. B&B double 1000 zł. (updated Jul 2024)
• 2 Pensjonat Karina, Bukowa 16B, ☏ +48 33 855 2470. Friendly guesthouse with a large garden. B&B double 350 zł. (updated Jul 2024)
• Crystal Mountain is a vast slab on the mountainside above Pensjonat Karina.
• 3 Hotel New Wave (formerly Gawra), Górnośląska 44, ☏ +48 33 855 2392. Pleasant small hotel. B&B double 300 zł. (updated Jul 2024)
• 4 Maria i Natasza, Wyzwolenia 46, ☏ +48 602 116 290. Comfy self-catering apartments with communal canteen. Double (room only) 360 zł. (updated Jul 2024)
• 5 Hotel Stok, Jawornik 52A, ☏ +48 33 856 4100. Spa hotel in Jawornik side valley, lots of facilities and entertainment for children. B&B double 500 zł. (updated Jul 2024)

Connect

As of July 2024, Wisła and its main approach road have 4G from Orange and Play, and 5G from Plus and T-Mobile.

Go next

• Szczyrk is another mountain resort in the next valley east.
• Cieszyn straddling the Czech border has many medieval buildings.
• Hairpin roads climb over the Beskids into Slovakia.