Nature Education Centre of Tatra National Park in Zakopane

The Nature Education Centre of Tatra National Park is a park facility in Zakopane at Tytusa Chałubińskiego 42a. It was founded in 1984 as the TPN Nature Museum and operated under that name until 2004. Today it presents the nature of the Tatras in a modern multimedia exhibition.

From museum to education centre

Among those who took part in creating the museum were Prof. Witold Paryski and Prof. Mieczysław Klimaszewski. The main theme of the exhibition was Tatra nature and the history of its protection. In 2004 it was decided to turn the museum into a nature education centre, the display was modernised and educational programmes for tourists and residents were launched. In 2015-2017 the centre was extended and rebuilt with funds from the Norway Grants and the European Union.

What to see inside

According to the park's website, the exhibition includes the largest model of the Tatras in Poland with a multimedia presentation, cinema rooms with nature films, dioramas of Tatra meadows and forests, and a replica of a cave. The Discoverers' Room, with games, computer programs, educational films and 3D stations, is ticketed separately. There is also a shop with publications and souvenirs.

The building houses the Tatra Documentation Centre named after Zofia Radwańska-Paryska and Witold H. Paryski. It took over the Paryski collection of several tens of thousands of items: books, periodicals, maps, photographs and postcards.

Before heading into the mountains

The centre works well as an orientation point before a trip. From here it is not far to Nosal (about 1.6 km) and to the Karol Szymanowski Museum in the Atma villa (about 1.9 km).

Practical information

• Address: Tytusa Chałubińskiego 42a, Zakopane.
• The park's website gives opening hours from Monday to Saturday, longer in the summer season than in winter; it is closed on Sundays and selected public holidays. The exhibition requires online booking. Check current hours at tpn.gov.pl/cep-zakopane.
• Contact given on the park's website: cep@tpn.pl.