Podlaskie is a mystical land of primeval forests and quiet wetlands where the last wild bison roam free. This region is the best place for a Podlaskie wild forest drive that takes you into the heart of the Białowieża National Park. You can walk under giant oaks that have stood for five hundred years and see the forest exactly as it was in the time of the kings.
The road leads you to the 'Land of the Open Shutters' where the wooden houses are painted in bright blues and greens with hand carved details. You can find mosques built of wood in the villages of Kruszyniany and Bohoniki where the local Tatars have lived for centuries. The landscape is a mix of deep woods and the wide river plains of the Biebrza where thousands of birds gather in the spring.
As you head north you will find the Suwałki region where the hills are steep and the lakes are as deep as a sea. You can visit the Wigry Monastery which sits on a high point above a maze of blue water and green islands. This region is a place of deep peace and ancient faiths where the clock feels like it has stopped and nature is the only ruler.
Podlaskie highlights
- Białowieża Bison Walk into the last primeval forest in Europe to see the giant bison roaming among the ancient oaks. The trees here are hundreds of years old and the forest feels like a world from the past.
- Tykocin Synagogue Visit a grand house of prayer that has been kept exactly as it was with high walls and old books. The town nearby is full of wooden houses and has a slow and quiet feel.
- Kruszyniany Mosque See a green wooden mosque built by the local Tatars who have lived in these woods for centuries. You can taste their unique food in the small house right across the street.
- Wigry Monastery Explore a white abbey that sits on a hill in the middle of a maze of blue lakes and green islands. You can climb the tower to see the water stretching out in every direction.
- Biebrza Marshes Walk on long wooden bridges over the wet plains where thousands of birds gather to nest. It is a flat and wild land that feels like the edge of the world in the spring.
- Land of Open Shutters Drive through three villages where every wooden house has bright blue shutters carved with flowers and birds. The churches here are also made of wood and painted in bright colors.
- Grabarka Holy Hill Climb a hill covered in thousands of wooden crosses brought here by pilgrims over many years. The air is quiet and the site is the most holy place for the local eastern church.
- Suwałki Landscape Park See a world of steep green hills and deep blue lakes that was made by the ice long ago. It is the coldest part of the land but has some of the best views in the north.
- Supraśl Icon Museum Visit a brick monastery to see hundreds of holy paintings that glow with gold in the dark rooms. The town around it is a quiet spa surrounded by a deep pine forest.
- Pentowo Stork Village See dozens of giant stork nests on the roofs and trees of a single old farm by the river. It is the best place to see these big white birds during the warm summer months.
The local Four
History of Podlaskie
Podlaskie is a mystical realm where the primeval forest is the only ruler and the bison are the kings of the wood. This land was the hunting ground of kings and czars who, since the 1400s, kept the woods wild and untouched. This ancient nature is the heart of a Podlaskie wild forest drive where the Białowieża Forest contains oaks that have stood for over 500 years.
The region became a safe haven for people of many faiths who built wooden mosques and blue painted churches side by side. Tatars who rode with the Polish kings settled in Kruszyniany in the 1600s and built green houses of prayer that still stand today. This mix of cultures created a world of open shutters and hand carved wood that looks like a colorful dream.
The bogs and marshes of the region served as a natural barrier that kept the modern world at bay. Rare birds and wild elk still rule the Biebrza Marshes, a wetland covering over 590 square kilometers. It is a place of deep silence and old magic where the forest remembers the time before the first stone cities were built and the first kings were crowned.