FAQ
Do I need to rent a car?
Yes. You could try it without. But
there are only three buses per day that go from Nowy Targ to Falsztyn,
so unless you want to plan very well or REALLY like walking and cycling
(over hills) for quite long distances to get everywhere, then you really
need to hire car. A good option is usually to pre-book one on the web site
of whatever airline you happen to be using or that also goes to the aiport
your are flying to (the Easyjet web site seems to often have good car rental
deals from Krakow Aiport). Expect to pay around £200 per week for
a small car. We also have details of local rental car company (called Top
Car, Nowy Targ) who are very good value for money and will drop your car off at the
house and/or pick you up and drop you at most airports - get in touch for more information.
How do I get there?
Stansted and other airports to Krakow with Ryanair(Krakow
aiport is 2 hours and ten minutes drive to the house - and can be done in 90 minutes by a driver experienced with the route (eg taxi).
Gatwick, Southend and other aiports to Krakow with Easyjet.
Gatwick to Krakow with LOT or British
Airways.
The other possibility is to fly with
WizzAir or Ryanair to Katowice (3 hours 10 minutes drive) or WizzAir to Kosice (from Luton) (about 2.5 hours drive away from the house).
Expect to pay around £150 per
person return including taxes for a budget airline during the summer (it
can be more during bank holidays etc).
You can, if you don't want to pick
up a hire car at the airport, get a taxi all the way from Krakow airport
to the house. Costs about £90. We can give you the details of the
good taxi firm in Krakow who have taken us before. You can also get trains
and buses from the Krakow to the house. Taxis are also possible from the other airports. Get in touch with us if you want
details.
Is the house completely on its
own/secluded?
No. The house is part of a row of
other holiday homes - all detached. In the summer other people are often
at these houses. There is a house next door on one side, which is about
10 metres away. On the other side is an empty plot of land then another
house. To the back is woodland and to the front is a field which is currently
used for grazing cattle. There are also a few farm houses around, which
are occupied all year.
Is it quiet at the house?
Yes, it is usually exceptionally
quiet. When you first arrive, the silence can almost be deafening! On Sundays
it's really nice to lay in bed listening to the bells from the church across
the other side of the lake.
You do occassionally get noise from
the neighbours (cutting wood etc) and, in the height of summer, from people
playing music down at the lake.
What is there to do?
In the house we have left board games,
playing cards, garden games and a small kids pool. There is also a TV and
DVD player (do inform us in advance if you would like this removed). There
are some DVDs in English in the cupboard in the front room.
Nearby the main activity is walking/hiking.
There's also mountaineering, climbing, fishing, bird-watching, sailing
and mountain biking (you can hire mountain bikes in Niedzica at Restaurant
Dwor and you are also welcome to borrow the two mountain bikes we have
at the house (which are only suitable for road usage not off road)).
The best restaurant that is close
by is called Restaurant Dwor. It's near the ski slope which is near the
Slovakia border crossing near Niedzica. There's also a camp site, bike
and canoe rental service there. There's a kids disco most nights in the
high summer on the beach in Niedzica. There's a nice pleasure cruiser (with
a bar) that does hourly (or so) trips around the lake during the day. The
castle is well worth visiting and also has a restaurant. There's also a
second castle on the other side of the lake which is worth visiting (and
you can get to by ferry boat from Niedzica).
We also suggest bringing several
good books for rainy days - or for sun bathing in the garden!
There's a special surge protector
4-way plug in one of the bedrooms for anyone who wants to plug in a lap-top.
What's the weather like?
Poland is generally a touch hotter
than the UK in the summer, with more consistently good weather that can
hang around for ages. However, it does rain and, particularly in May, June
and September and October you can expect cold evenings and nights - and
some cold days. Sometimes, overcast weather can also hang around for ages.
If you go walking, don't forget to bring the right sort of clothes for
the kind of walking you are planning.
In summer, we leave a couple of electric
heaters around the house in case you get chilly, but hopefully you won't
need to use them.
In mid winter, it is much, much colder
than the UK (it went down to -38 last winter in Falsztyn).
Is there anything we should know?
The electricity sometimes fades a
little - and has been known to black out completely on occassion. If this
happens, don't worry it usually comes back on. However, it is worth knowing
where some candles and a torch are (we leave these laying around usually)
and, if it lasts more than 30 minutes or so, please give us a ring and
we'll try and get someone to come round a have a look at the fuses and
so on (please check whether other houses have lost their electricity first
- if they have, you may have to sit it out and wait, as it's likely the
whole neighbourhood is down).
As you may have gathered, it is worth
taking a mobile phone, and our contact details, for emergencies. We'll
send you all the numbers you need when you book.
One of our neighbours looks after
the house for us while we are away, so if something happens while you are
staying there, we should be able to find a way of fixing it. Just give
us a ring on the telephone numbers we give you.
To us, it feels very safe to be on
holiday in the house. Despite this, it is always work locking up when you
go out for a walk or something - Poland is a relatively poor country still
and someone might be tempted to give it a go!
Our favourite river paddling spot
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