Zakopane Thermal Baths: Day Trips from Krakow with Chocholowskie Termy

Price, Length and Rating Side by Side

The figures below are the price per person, the length and the operator's own rating and review count. Every tour offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start.

If you want the cheapest day, take the $25 option, but expect to pay the baths on the day. If you want the highest rating, KrakowDirect holds 5 from 639 reviews. The $32 days carry between 4,847 and 11,531 reviews each.

Where Each Bath Is and What It Has

The table shows where each bath is and what it has. Szaflary lies on the road towards Nowy Targ and Krakow, so it is the one you pass on the way back.

The tours on this page go to Chocholow, a short drive from Zakopane on mountain and country roads.

Why Chocholow Wins for a Day Trip

Chocholowskie Termy has almost 4.500 m2 of water surface and 52 pool troughs, and a treatment zone with sulphide and brine water. The outdoor level 0 pool holds 638 m² of water at 1.2 m depth, and level -1 holds 855 m² at 1.25 m. There are three slides totalling 318 m, a 164 m blue raft slide, an 80 m green raft slide and a 74 m trapdoor slide.

Terma Bania has 15 pool basins and 2,400 m² of water surface, and it works regardless of weather. Choose it or Termy Bukowina if you travel by car or private transfer and want a smaller crowd. Termy Bukowina is open daily 9:00-22:00. One of the private tours, Zakopane, Gubalowka and Bukowina Thermal Baths Private Tour, goes to Bukowina, so it is possible to book that bath on a guided day.

Chocholowskie Termy Tariff

The low-season list applies from 1 September to 24 December and has separate Monday-Thursday and Friday-Sunday tariffs. The table shows the Monday-Thursday pool ticket. Evening entry after 19:00 is cheaper, but it leaves no time for a day trip home to Krakow.

On Zakopane and Tatra Mountains Day Trip, Baths Optional, the baths cost 115 PLN per person and the Gubalowka funicular 42 PLN per person, both paid on the day. Parking costs PLN 10 extra at the baths. If you stay past the hour on your ticket, the late-exit fee is PLN 15 per extra 5 minutes.

What the Other Baths Charge

In the low season Termy Bukowina charges for an adult 3.5-hour package PLN 89 Monday-Thursday or PLN 99 Friday-Sunday, and all day at PLN 125 or PLN 149. Terma Bania's Play + Relax zone for 2.5 hours starts from PLN 83 online for an adult. Prices change by season, so check the bath's own site before you go.

Getting There on Your Own

PKP Intercity runs a Pendolino from Krakow to Zakopane with a journey time of 1 hour 57 minutes, and 9 daily pairs of trains plus 2 seasonal pairs. From Zakopane you still need a bus or taxi to Chocholow. The bus from Krakow only goes to a place called Bazna Nizna, and from there you need a taxi.

That is two connections before you reach the water, and the hours get tight if you also want Zakopane itself.

A tour such as Zakopane Thermal Springs Tour from Krakow with Hotel Pickup pairs the transfer with the baths and a stop in Zakopane. The combined tour arranges transport, funicular tickets and entry in advance. Check each card for what is included, because the costs on the day are not the same on every tour.

Hours and Current Closures

The sauna area opens at 10:00 and closes at 22:00 Sunday-Thursday and 23:00 Friday-Saturday. The slide tower is closed from 16 to 18 November, so pick another date if the slides matter. Water temperature is 32-38 °C all year, so winter soaking is normal.

The Gubalowka resort is closed for technical maintenance from 16 to 27 November, with replacement coaches to the summit from 9:30 to 19:00. If your tour pairs the baths with the Gubalowka funicular, ask the operator what replaces it on those days.

It can get very busy with families at weekends, so a weekday tour gives you more room in the pools. The 3-hour ticket charges you if you go over the limit, so on a tour with a fixed pickup, keep to the meeting time.

Towels and Flip Flops

The Chocholowskie Termy tariff covers entry, family tickets, parking and the late-exit fee, and has no towel rental. On a tour with a fixed 11 hours away, pack a towel and swimwear in your day bag rather than hunt for a rental.

Flip flops are the same story: the entry rules are posted at the baths, not in the tariff. Pack pool sandals so you never walk the wet floor barefoot, then follow whatever the staff ask at the entrance.

What to Pack for a Tour Day

A swimsuit, a towel and pool sandals are the three items. With 3 hours on the standard ticket, there is time to change, soak, use the sauna zone and eat. Chocholowskie Termy charges a late-exit fee of PLN 15 per extra 5 minutes, so keep an eye on the clock.