Sniezka with kids - through the Lomniczka Cirque to the top of the Giant Mountains

How do you climb Sniezka with kids? We went up from Karpacz on the red trail through the Lomniczka Cirque. It took us just under two hours to reach the Dom Slaski mountain hut and about 2.5 hours to reach the top. We came down a different way, past the Strzecha Akademicka and Samotnia huts. The whole loop was 17 km and took us just over five hours. Sniezka (1603 m) is the highest peak of the Karkonosze (Giant Mountains) and of the whole Sudetes range.

We climbed Sniezka with our daughters Agata and Justyna in the second half of August 2021. We were collecting points for the PTTK Mountain Hiking Badge (GOT), a Polish badge for walking in the mountains, and Sniezka is also one of the Crown of Polish Mountains. A year later we came back to the Karkonosze to climb Szrenica, and in 2023 we went up Snieznik.

Starting in Karpacz, and a missing stamp

In the morning the car park below Sniezka was almost full. We had face masks in our backpacks, because in 2021 you never knew where you would need one. At the Karkonosze National Park ticket office we found out there was no stamp for our GOT badge books. So our video had to be our proof of the walk.

On the way we talked about how in the mountains people don't ask "how many kilometres", but "how many hours". The signposts show walking time at a normal pace. We usually walk a bit faster, so we hoped to beat the times.

The red trail through the Lomniczka Cirque

For a short time the red trail joins the yellow one. At a map we showed the kids how to read contour lines: when the lines are far apart, the climb is gentle, and when they almost touch, it gets steep. On this part of the trail there is also a sign saying dogs are not allowed.

We passed the Nad Lomniczka hut, which was closed for renovation at the time. After a few years it is open again. Sniezka showed itself between the trees for the first time, and the kids noticed that the higher we went, the smaller the trees became. First forest, then small spruces and dwarf mountain pine, and at the very top only rocks.

Lomniczka Waterfall and the Mountain Victims' Cemetery

At the Lomniczka Waterfall the trail crosses the cascades on a small metal bridge. Higher up it gets really steep, with stone steps zigzagging up the side of the cirque. Our little "mountain goat" led the way.

Below Kopa there is the Symbolic Cemetery of Mountain Victims. Plaques on the rocks remember people who died in the Karkonosze and in other mountains, and the biggest one says "In memory of the dead, as a warning to the living". The kids asked if these people were buried here. We explained that they are not, it is a place of memory, and we talked about being careful in the mountains, being ready for any weather and not overestimating your strength.

Dom Slaski and Sniezka in the clouds

We reached Dom Slaski in just under two hours. Sniezka kept playing hide and seek with us: one minute in the sun, the next minute in fog. Two paths lead to the top. In summer the steep zigzag path (Zakosy) is one-way, up only, and you come down the longer Jubilee Road.

At the top there were lots of people and lots of clouds, but every now and then the fog lifted and we could see the views. The weather observatory with its famous "flying saucer" shape was closed, it has been closed to visitors since 2015. Next to it stands the 17th-century St Lawrence Chapel. The trail on the other side goes down into Czechia, but we were heading back to Karpacz.

Down past Strzecha Akademicka and Samotnia

From Sniezka we walked down towards Strzecha Akademicka. Soon we left the crowds behind. From above we had a great view of the whole trail we had walked in the morning.

A signpost said 15 minutes to Strzecha Akademicka and 30 minutes to Samotnia. The Samotnia hut stands by the Maly Staw lake, at the bottom of a huge glacial cirque. We wondered if we would be alone at Samotnia (its name means "the lonely place"). We weren't, but the view was still amazing.

Then we turned onto the green trail towards Bialy Jar, to walk where there were fewer people. The path was easy, without the loose stones that had made us trip earlier. At the end we also stopped at the Dziki Wodospad (Wild Waterfall) on the Lomnica river, already in Karpacz.

We walked for over five hours: two and a half up and two and a half down, 17 km in total. You can see it all in our video:

Fun fact: the Bialy Jar avalanche

Bialy Jar, the gully we walked down, is the site of the worst avalanche disaster in Poland. On 20 March 1968 an avalanche swept away a group of hikers there and 19 people died. In winter this place looks very different from how it looks in August.

More of our mountain trips

Our first mountain test with the kids was Sleza in 2014. In the Sudetes we also visited the Fairy Tales Garden in Miedzygorze.

Practical info

We checked this in November 2026.

• Route: Karpacz - Nad Lomniczka hut - Lomniczka Waterfall - Mountain Victims' Cemetery - Dom Slaski - Sniezka (1603 m) - Dom Slaski - Strzecha Akademicka - Samotnia - Polana - Bialy Jar - Dziki Wodospad - Karpacz. For us: 17 km and just over 5 hours.
• Karkonosze National Park ticket: 11 PLN, reduced 5.50 PLN. Children under 7 go in free.
• Sniezka: in summer the Zakosy path is up only, and you go down the Jubilee Road. The observatory is closed to visitors.
• Dogs are not allowed on the red trail through the Lomniczka Cirque.
• The trail through the Lomniczka Cirque is steep and rocky, best for kids who already have some easier hikes behind them. Not suitable for pushchairs.
• Parking: paid car parks in Karpacz. In summer they fill up early in the morning.
• GOT badge: kids can start collecting points for the Popular GOT badge from the age of 7 (60 points needed). Stamps from huts are the usual proof of a walk.