The best holidays you can spend here where life is close to nature and its origins. Enjoy moments of happiness in a rich and diverse landscape of hills, mountains, lakes, endless nearly-white sand beaches and deep forests. Meet real people in real rural settings and enjoy the finest regional dishes or just feel one with nature. Polish countryside offers comfortable accommodation and good food at reasonable price. But these six places have something special: they all have won the competition for the best accommodations in the countryside in the nationwide challenge “The best of the countryside”.

So close and so pure

In Malowane Wierchy farm in the village of Gładyszów (Podkarpackie Voivodeship, eastern Poland) you can experience unique culture, in a region where two major religions: Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity meet. This farm is located far away from the hustle and bustle of big towns, only several kilometres from the Slovak border. The owners will cook for you the best local food prepared mostly from home-made ingredients. They have their own smokehouse where they smoke delicious sausages and hams.
here are five spacious rooms with bathrooms and balconies in the farm. Wooden beds with comfortable mattresses provide comfort. There is a dining room with kitchenette and TV corner and a playroom for children downstairs. The house is surrounded by green meadow. There is also a bicycle rental. On clear days, guests can enjoy beautiful views of the mountains, green meadows with grazing cows and horses.

Take a deep breath in the Poleski National Park

Picturesque located in a wild surroundings in the Lubelskie Voivodeship (eastern Poland), Polesie farm is a very good destination for nature lovers. Poleski National Park is the largest refuge of European pond turtle. In addition, you can see (sometimes only hear) rare species of birds, such as: white-tailed eagle, great crested grebe, mute swan, bittern, scimitar, gallinule, reed warbler, cormorant, white heron, gray heron, kingfisher. Excellent marked nature trails will lead you along the best observation points. Cyclists can ride -kilometres-long nature path.

The farm has four double rooms with bathrooms, a total of eight beds. Guests can use the living room and kitchenette. You can also order meals on site. The owners are proud of a number of energy-saving and pro-ecological solutions. You can hire bicycles and spotting scopes for animal observation.

Slow-food and family atmosphere

Villa Greta is a luxury guesthouse located in complex of several original buildings all built in the 19th century. It offers 9 rooms & 4 apartments, 48 places, including 7 extra beds. Meals for guests accommodated at the guesthouse are served in the dish of the day formula. There is also a restaurant a’la carte available for guests accommodated at the guesthouse and guests from outside. The hosts cook with seasonal, local, regional products and products from their garden and suppliers from the neighbourhood. There are always have dishes for vegetarians, vegans, people on gluten-free or milk-free diets available. The whole house has free wireless internet access (speed 4Mb/s).

You can plan many interesting trips, both on foot or by bicycle. Villa Greta is located in the Land of Extinct Volcanoes. The volcanoes were active as long ago as 5 million years. Now you can admire 25 cone-shaped hills. You can climb all of them. The most impressive is Ostrzyca, known as the Silesian Mount Fuji. In the Land of Extinct Volcanoes you will see beautiful, Silesian architecture, medieval castles, old fortresses, tunnels and quarries.

Get familiar with the culture of Slavs

“Herbal Jug” is located in the village of Sąpy (Warmian-Masurian region, norther Poland). This place smells of freshly baked bread and herbs. Its hosts, Mr and Mrs Nisiewicz, have bought an old farm back in 2009 and since then put their heart into creating one of the most friendly and charming guesthouses in Poland. – We did not reinvent the wheel, we only used what nature shaped – recalls Waldemar Nisiewicz, the host of the “Herbal Jug”.

– Our guests can take part in workshops on herbalism, pottery, sweet making, butter making and numerous others. All in all, we offer our visitors twelve various workshops – says Mrs Nisiewicz. One of the most unusual workshops will introduce you to the old Slavic tradition of making dolls. Before Christianity was finally established on the territory of Medieval Poland, Slavs believed that artistically hand-wrought dolls helps in coping with various problems and challenges. For instance, a Traveler Doll was supposed to bring fortune during the journey. Sounds like Slavic voodoo? Try it on your own in the “Herbal Jug”.

Feel the rural life

Guesthouse “Ola” run by the Zacharewicz family is located in the village of Słajszewo near the seaside (Pomeranian region, northern Poland). Here you can fall into the rhythm of a rural life and participate in running the real farm – collect eggs, feed chickens and milk cows in the morning, drive the tractor, observe plowing and sowing, and last but not least, eat a dinner prepared with the healthy local products: fresh milk, cottage cheese, homemade butter, freshly baked bread, vegetables, fruits, jams, compotes (pieces of dried fruits in sugar syrup) and other homemade preserves.

Mrs Zacharewicz serves traditional Polish dishes and pastries. Start with the homemade bread with lard. For the main course choose the savory Pomeranian duck and do not forget about the homemade berry liquor. For the dessert we recommend to order a fruit salad (blueberry, Pomeranian pear and apple) with horseradish topping. It will be definitely the tastiest dinner you have had in Poland!

Feel like at home

Ecotourism farm „Under the Silver Mountain” combines Polish hospitality, high accommodation standard and an ecological approach. Guests visiting Lower Silesia appreciate this place for its family atmosphere, excellent homemade food and a wide range of additional outdoor activities.

One of the nearby attractions is the Gliders’ Mountain (Szybowcowa Góra – 561 meters) with paragliding and gliding training center. If you prefer to stay on the ground, take a walk to the view point on the same mountain and admire the beautiful panorama of Sudety mountains. In the village of Pilchowice you can see the highest stone water dam in Poland (270 meters).