Zakopane

Zakopane
Zakopane - view from Gubałówka Hill (Tatra mountains in the background)
Coat of arms
Zakopane
Coordinates: 49°18′N 19°57′E / 49.3°N 19.95°E / 49.3; 19.95
Country	Poland
Voivodeship	Lesser Poland
County	Tatra
Gmina	Zakopane (urban gmina)
Established	17th century
Town rights	1933
Government
- Mayor	Janusz Majcher
Area
- Total	84 km2 (32.4 sq mi)
Highest elevation	1,126 m (3,694 ft)
Lowest elevation	750 m (2,461 ft)
Population (2006)
- Total	27,486
- Density	327.2/km2 (847.5/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	34-500 to 34-504
Area code(s)	+48 18
Car plates	KTT
Website	http://www.zakopane.eu

Zakopane [zakɔˈpanɛ] ( listen) is a town in southern Poland with some 28,000 inhabitants (2004), situated in Lesser Poland Province since 1999 (in 1975–98, it was part of Nowy Sącz Province). The town, a place of Góral culture and informally known as "the winter capital of Poland," lies in the southern part of the Podhale region at the foot of the Tatra Mountains, the only alpine mountain range in the Carpathian Mountains.

Location

Zakopane lies in a large valley between the Tatra Mountains and Gubałówka Hill. It is the most important Polish center of mountaineering and skiing, and is visited annually by some three million tourists. The most important alpine skiing locations are Kasprowy Wierch, Nosal and Gubałówka Hill.^[1]

Zakopane has the highest elevation (800-1,000 m) of any town in Poland. The central point of the town is at the junction of Krupówki and Kościuszko Streets.

History

The earliest documents mentioning Zakopane date to the 17th century, describing a glade named Zakopisko. In 1676 it was a village of 43 inhabitants. In 1824, together with a section of the Tatra Mountains, it was sold to the Homola family.

Zakopane's further history was connected with the development of the mining and metallurgy industries in the region — in the 19th century, it was the largest center for metallurgy in Galicia — and later with that of tourism. It grew greatly over the 19th century, as more and more people were attracted by its salubrious climate, and soon developed from a small village into a climatic health resort of 3,000 inhabitants (1889).

Rail service to Zakopane began on October 1, 1899.

During World War II, Zakopane served as an important Polish underground staging point between Poland and Hungary.

In March 1940, representatives of the Soviet NKVD and German Gestapo met for one week in Zakopane's Villa Tadeusz, to coordinate the pacification of resistance in Poland.

Sports

Zakopane hosted the Nordic World Ski Championships in 1929, 1939, and 1962; the winter Universiades in 1956, 1993, and 2001; the biathlon World Championship; several ski jumping world cups; and several Nordic combined, Nordic and Alpine European Cups. It hosted the Alpine World Ski Championships in 1939, the first outside the Alps and the last official world championships prior to World War II.^[2]

Zakopane recently made unsuccessful bids to host the 2006 Winter Olympics and the 2011 and 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships.

Tourism

Zakopane

Koliba villa

Koliba villa

Interior of Koliba

Jaszczurówka Chapel

Zakopane's hiking trails and ski slopes make it a tourism mecca for all seasons. The downtown bustles with outdoor-wear shops, ski-rental stores, and oscypek stands.

To escape the crowds, one puts on a pair of hiking boots or rents a bike.

Twin cities

Zakopane participates in town twinning to foster international links.

• Saint-Dié-des-Vosges (France)
• San Carlos de Bariloche (Argentina)^{[citation needed]}

Notable structures

• Gubałówka Hill Funicular
• Zakopane-Gubałówka transmitter
• Wielka Krokiew ski jumping ramp
• Kasprowy Wierch cable car
• Hotels in Zakopane
• The five-star Villa Marilor Hotel, once a small palace, has the status of an architectural monument.

Notable residents

• Jan Bachleda-Curus, Olympian.
• Jan Pawlica, Skier and Olympian
• Tytus Chałubiński physician
• Olga Drahonowska-Małkowska, one of the founders of Scouting movement in Poland
• Władysław Hasior, sculptor
• Jan Kasprowicz, poet, playwright
• Kornel Makuszyński, children's writer
• Jan Marusarz, Olympian
• Stanisław Marusarz, Olympian
• Władysław Orkan
• Karol Szymanowski, composer. His house in Zakopane, the Villa Atma, is now a museum dedicated to the composer.
• Stanisław Witkiewicz
• Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz (Witkacy), playwright, novelist, philosopher, photographer and painter
• Mariusz Zaruski mountaineer and yachtsman
• Jerzy Żuławski, poet, writer

Notable visitors

• Joseph Conrad
• Pope John Paul II
• Mieczysław Karłowicz
• Serge Lifar
• Emil Młynarski
• Bolesław Prus^[3]
• Kazimierz Przerwa-Tetmajer
• Artur Rubinstein
• Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły
• Henryk Sienkiewicz
• Krystyna Skarbek
• Maria Skłodowska-Curie
• Stefan Żeromski^[4]

Gallery

Pod Jedlami villa	Szymanowski Museum at the Villa Atma	Zakopane at night	Zakopane - Gubałówka Hill ski run
Zakopane - Gubałówka Hill: a nursery ski run	Zakopane - Gubałówka Hill funicular entrance	Krupówki	Church of the Holy Family
A patriot's grave in Peksow Brzyzek cemetery	The Katyn Memorial in Peksow Brzyzek cemetery	Traditional Oscypek cheese market	Traditional Zakopane contemplative Christ carving

Notes

References

• Stanisław Kasztelowicz and Stanisław Eile, Stefan Żeromski: kalendarz życia i twórczości (Stefan Żeromski: A Calendar of His Life and Work), Kraków, Wydawnictwo Literackie, 1961.
• Krystyna Tokarzówna and Stanisław Fita, Bolesław Prus, 1847–1912: Kalendarz życia i twórczości (Bolesław Prus, 1847–1912: A Calendar of His Life and Work), edited by Zygmunt Szweykowski, Warsaw, Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, 1969.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Zakopane

• Official Page (Local Municipality)
• Zakopane.com
• Zakopane
• Oficial web site of five star hotel Villa Marilor
• General information, available in Polish, English, German
• Zakopane ICT - Travel Guide
• Photos from Zakopane in summer
• Symphony No. 3 of Henryk Górecki using text found in a Gestapo cell in Zakopane.
• Zakopane - showplace

Coordinates: 49°18′N 19°58′E / 49.3°N 19.967°E / 49.3; 19.967

v • d • e Gminas of Tatra County Seat Zakopane (urban gmina) Rural gminas Gmina Biały Dunajec • Gmina Bukowina Tatrzańska • Gmina Kościelisko • Gmina Poronin