Skiing in Białka Tatrzańska, Poland

Skiing every January has become a bit of an annual tradition. So much so that this is my third year in a row doing it. I'm as surprised as you are, guys.

This girl is not coordinated nor will she ever be. I gave up contact sports and became a runner because, well, it's simple. Skiing? Not so much.

Now, I'm not the world's most talented skier yet. I've fallen on many occasions and I get nervous on steep slopes (and even steep ski lifts). That's why our choice to ski at Białka Tatrzańska while on our holiday in Poland was the best ski-related decision we ever made.

Białka Tatrzańska (or Bialka as I'll call it so I don't have to keep copy-pasting), is the perfect place for beginner skiers. The slopes really cater to beginners in how the majority of the slopes are graded as "easy." If there's one thing I hate, it's spending my money on a ski trip where I can only do a few slopes over and over because most of them are aimed at advanced skiers. So in this sense, I guess Bialka is not for everyone. But if you're just here to have a good time, snap a few pics, and have a drink or two at the end of the day, this is your place.

I should probably mention why we decided to go skiing while in Poland. Not only is it now a tradition to ski every year for Ben and me, but the ski areas in Poland are cheap and easily accessible. Bialka was on the lower-end price wise, but anywhere you go will be far less money than skiing elsewhere in Europe. The one caveat? Fake snow. Not all Polish ski areas rely on fake snow, but this one did. We didn't mind, but if you do mind, then I'd recommend heading over to Zakopane.

We left for Bialka from Warsaw on Friday morning. Most of the ski areas in Poland are closer to Krakow, so this was an easy way to get ourselves down in that general direction in the process. We hopped on a train from Warsaw to Krakow (and snagged ourselves a completely empty seating area), took in the wintery views, and arrived in Krakow about 3 hours later. From there, we had an hours wait before frantically trying to figure out where the bus would pick us up at the station. We trusted our gut, waited, and, to our surprise, a minibus came to pick us up. We were thinking something more along the lines of a full coach bus, but hey ho.

After our 2-ish hour-long journey, we were dropped right down the road from our bed and breakfast, Dom Rodziny. We loved the quirky charm of this little inn, from the friendly host to uber-religious memorabilia around the space. And the quirks didn't stop there. We found ourselves eating "dinner" at the inn, which took place from 3-5PM, strangely. There was a buffet of sorts where we served ourselves some tomato-noodle soup and salad, followed by being given a large vessel filled with more soup. We were also given plates of fried fish and potatoes without asking. Ben and I both agreed that this was possibly one of the strangest meals we had ever had.

Bialka appealed to us as a ski resort because of its offer of night skiing. Because we arrived in the late afternoon, we wanted to be able to take advantage of all there was to offer. We paid for a pass that lasted from 4-8 PM and it was the perfect introduction to the slopes! Despite my hesitance in skiing at night (low light plus low visibility weren't the best conditions), I sucked it up and got on with it anyway. And I was glad I did! We started slow and only went on some of the lower trails to ease ourselves in.

After skiing, we headed to one of the resort's bars for a beer and a mulled wine (or, as Ben likes to call it "wine hot" #languagebarriers). Paired with a hot serving of fries this was the perfect post-skiing treat. We also had a few ciders back at the inn.

Our first full day of skiing was met with slightly better visibility that improved as the day went on. Breakfast at the inn was as strange as the dinner, but it really felt Polish. From jam-filled crepes to continental meats, we felt like we were getting the full experience (breakfast and dinner were included after all). 

Once we stepped back into our skis, we were off for a busy day on the slopes. Ben skied a few reds (the harder ones) while I mastered the blues. We were surprised by how crowded it got, but because it was so beginner-friendly, everyone was very accommodating despite the crowds. We had a lunch break of more french fries, a hot dog, and a doughnut to keep us going. Not exactly an athletes lunch.

After skiing literally every blue possible- which took the majority of the day, I might add- I tried my hand at skiing part of a red. I was slow and steady, but made it out in one piece!

For our final dinner in Bialka, we did our research and found the best pizza spot in town, Fresco. Maybe this place didn't have the most 'grammable interiors, but this pizza seriously hit the spot. I went for a pepperoni pizza while Ben ordered the spiciest one possible. I mean, with pizzas this big and cocktails this cheap, how can you go wrong?

And with sore muscles, pinched toes, and full stomachs, we hopped on the infamous minibus back to Krakow, for the final leg of our adventure in Poland.

Make sure to stick around for next week's post on what we got up to in Krakow!