In this guide
💡 The Short Version: FlixBus from Kraków’s MDA station takes 1 hour 44 minutes, runs at least 15 times a day and costs from £5.99 each way. The Gubałówka funicular is PLN 37 (£7) return online. The Kasprowy Wierch cable car is closed from 19 October to 6 November 2026. Since 1 September 2026 the Morskie Oko horse carts run only to Wodogrzmoty Mickiewicza, and the lake is a day of its own: allow at least 7 hours from Palenica Białczańska. Or book a tour: GetYourGuide’s Zakopane tour with cable car, Chochołów baths, cheese and vodkaad (4.8 stars from 11,123 reviews, 11 hours) includes the Gubałówka funicular, three hours at the thermal baths and a tasting, with pick-up in Kraków, so you buy no timetable and no tickets (GetYourGuide).
Going on your own
The bus is the practical way to Zakopane, and the train runs only on weekends and public holidays. Bus fares are from FlixBus.
- By bus. FlixBus runs from Kraków MDA (platforms G14 to G17, upper level) in a fastest time of 1 hour 44 minutes, at least 15 trips a day, from £5.99 each way (FlixBus).
- By train, weekends and public holidays only. The Koleje Małopolskie K5 “Luxtorpeda” leaves Kraków Główny at 06:20 and reaches Zakopane at 08:59 (2 hours 39 minutes), and returns at 19:06 to arrive at 21:57 (2 hours 51 minutes). The current timetable runs 30 August to 24 October 2026 (Koleje Małopolskie).
- The day. The bus and the funicular are the whole plan: Krupówki, the pedestrian street in the centre, and the Gubałówka funicular above the town.
Krupówki, the pedestrian street in the centre of Zakopane. Photo: Jonathanawhite, Wikimedia Commons.
| The day on your own | Cost | Pounds |
|---|---|---|
| FlixBus, return, from | 2 x £5.99 | £12 |
| Gubałówka funicular, online return | PLN 37 | £7 |
| Total | from £19 |
Tours that include Zakopane
Most tours stop first in the village of Chochołów for a cheese and vodka tasting in a shepherd’s hut, then spend 2 to 2.5 hours in Zakopane. The cable car they use is the Gubałówka funicular, not Kasprowy Wierch, so the closure below does not touch them. Prices vary by option and date; the checkout shows the total, and lunch is not included.
A Gubałówka funicular car. Photo: Zalasem1, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Zakopane tour with cable car, Chochołów baths, cheese and vodka
4.8 stars from 11,123 reviews · 11 hours · Thousand Miles Cracow Adventure Company
The tourad includes pick-up from your hotel or a meeting point, the Gubałówka funicular return ticket, three hours at the Chochołów thermal baths (all zones except the saunas), the Chochołów village stop and the tasting. The guide speaks English and Polish. Bring swimwear and a towel.
The same bundle from other operators
4.8 stars from 5,757 reviews, 4.9 from 4,543 and 4.9 from 2,269 · 7 to 11 hours
The thermal springs, cable car and tasting tourad (Cracow Top Tours, 7 to 11 hours), the cable car, hot springs, cheese and vodka tourad (ExploreCracow.com, 11 hours) and the cable car, vodka, cheese and hot springs tourad (11 hours) are built the same way. The Tatra Mountains and thermal baths tourad (4.8 stars from 1,321 reviews, 11 hours) has the Tatra Mountains, the cable car and the thermal baths in its title.
Tours without the baths
4.7 stars from 1,739 reviews and 4.8 from 973 · 9 hours
The Zakopane, Tatra Mountains and Gubałówka tourad (Poland is beautiful Cracow tours) and the Zakopane and Tatra Mountains tour with cable carad (Krak Tours) include the Gubałówka funicular ticket and the oscypek cheese tasting, with Chochołów and Krupówki, and no baths. The Zakopane and Tatra Mountains day tripad (4.7 stars from 504 reviews, 11 hours) includes the tasting only: the cable car (PLN 39) and the baths are optional and paid on the day.
What to see
- Gubałówka. Funicular return PLN 37 online, PLN 42 at the ticket office · 1 October to 18 December. The funicular from the town to the viewpoint over the Tatras. Reduced online return PLN 29; one way PLN 29 online and PLN 34 at the office; a dog is PLN 5 one way, a bike or large bag PLN 10, and a pram is free (pkl.pl). It stays open while Kasprowy is closed.
- Kasprowy Wierch. Return PLN 129 (£25), reduced PLN 109 (£21) · 1 October to 18 December · closed 19 October to 6 November 2026. The cable car takes about 20 minutes one way, with one change at Myślenickie Turnie, and a return ticket gives 1 hour 40 minutes at the top. Cars leave every 10 minutes (every 30 in poor weather or low demand). Return tickets stop selling 2 hours before the last car, and you collect them at the gate 20 minutes before your booked time. The Butorowy Wierch chairlift is open to 25 October.
- Morskie Oko. Park ticket PLN 11 (£2) · at least 7 hours. A long separate trip. The road starts at Palenica Białczańska, more than 20 km from Zakopane. The walk to the lake is about 8 km on tarmac, about 2.5 hours each way, with no bins on the route. The Park’s e-buses run Palenica to Włosienica for PLN 69 (£13.50) one way, including the park ticket, and Zakopane to Włosienica for PLN 89 (£17.50), with children under 4 free; the current timetable runs to 14 October 2026 and later weeks are released about a week ahead. Horse carts have run only from Palenica Białczańska to Wodogrzmoty Mickiewicza, about 2.9 km, since 1 September 2026, no longer to Włosienica. Tours exist but are thin: the Morskie Oko lake tourad (4.5 stars from 42 reviews, 9 hours) and the Morskie Oko, Skywalk and Zakopane tourad (4.9 stars from 32 reviews, 12 to 13 hours).
- Skip: Kasprowy Wierch between 19 October and 6 November, and Morskie Oko on a day when you also want Zakopane.
Morskie Oko lake in the Tatras. Photo: Aneta Pawska, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0.
Kasprowy Wierch fares, 1 October to 18 December 2026:
| Ticket | Adult | Reduced (5 to 26 and 65+) |
|---|---|---|
| Return | PLN 129 (£25) | PLN 109 (£21) |
| One way | PLN 119 (£23) | PLN 95 (£18.50) |
| Express Tourpass, booked time, return | PLN 159 | PLN 129 |
| Express Tourpass, one way | PLN 129 | PLN 102 |
Extra luggage is PLN 50 (pkl.pl).
Practical information
- The Park ticket. Tatra National Park entry is PLN 11 (reduced PLN 5.50) on every trail, PLN 55 for seven days. Buy it online at tpn.gov.pl, by the QR code at the gate or at entry points (tpn.gov.pl).
- Walking rules. On the Morskie Oko road there are no dogs and no drones, and from 1 March to 30 November no walking from dusk to dawn (tpn.gov.pl).
- Parking at Palenica. A car needs a TPN e-ticket, PLN 36 to 75 depending on season and time of purchase; arrive before 08:00. The Park warns that fake parking tickets are circulating (tpn.gov.pl).
- Buses to Palenica. They are run by outside operators, and since 1 January 2026 the Park no longer sells their tickets.
- The one thing that ruins the day. Booking a Kasprowy ride for 19 October to 6 November: PKL has closed it.
Zakopane is one of the day trips from Kraków, and the longest of the regular ones. Kraków public transport covers the way to MDA, which sits beside the main railway station. For a shorter day, Wieliczka Salt Mine is a 23-minute train, and Auschwitz and Wieliczka in one day is the other full-day tour. 3 days in Kraków shows where a day in the mountains fits, where to stay in Kraków has the areas by the station, and the best time to visit Kraków covers the season.
Common questions
How do I get from Kraków to Zakopane?
FlixBus runs from Kraków's MDA bus station (platforms G14 to G17, upper level) in 1 hour 44 minutes, at least 15 times a day, from £5.99 each way. A Koleje Małopolskie train runs on weekends and public holidays only: Kraków Główny 06:20, Zakopane 08:59, and back at 19:06, arriving 21:57. Current timetables run to 24 October 2026.
Is the Kasprowy Wierch cable car open?
Not from 19 October to 6 November 2026, when PKL has closed it for a technical break. The Gubałówka funicular stays open. In the low season to 18 December the Kasprowy return ticket is PLN 129 (£25).
How do I get to Morskie Oko from Zakopane?
Go to Palenica Białczańska, more than 20 km from Zakopane, and walk about 8 km on tarmac, about 2.5 hours each way, or take the Park's e-bus to Włosienica for PLN 69 (£13.50). Horse carts have run only as far as Wodogrzmoty Mickiewicza, about 2.9 km, since 1 September 2026. Allow at least 7 hours.
Is Zakopane worth a tour from Kraków?
A tour is worth it for the bundle: the most-booked tours include the Gubałówka funicular, three hours at the Chochołów thermal baths and a cheese and vodka tasting, with pick-up in Kraków. For Zakopane and the funicular alone, the bus costs about £12 return.
