Tarnów County

Tarnów County (Pol. powiat tarnowski) is one of 19 land counties of Lesser Poland Voivodeship. It covers the area of 1413.4 km² with the population of over 197,000 people, the population density is 139.9 p/km². The county's administrative centre is Tarnów. Tarnów County came into being on January 1, 1999 as a result of an administrative reform.

A part of Tarnów County is located within western part of Outer Carpathians, in Highlands of Ciężkowice-Rożnów and Sandomierz Basin. Geographical location at the junction of two diverse types of landscape areas, contributed to the development of large biodiversity on the territory of the county. The peak of Tarnów foothills is Brzanka (534 m above sea level).

At the foothills of Tarnów County there are several marked tourist routes.

Walking routes:

  • Marked by blue: Ciężkowice — Rzepiennik Strzyżewski — Jodłówka Tuchowska — Brzanka — Tychów
  • marked by yellow: Siedliska — Nosalowa — Brzanka — Ostry Kamień — Gilowa Góra — Liwocz — Kołaczyce

Bicycle routes:

  • Marked by green: Burzyn — Brzanka
  • Marked by yellow: Tarnów — Wola Rzędzińska — Ładna — Skrzyszów — Szynwałd — Zalasowa — Ryglice — Brzanka
  • Marked by red: Ciężkowice — Rzepiennik Strzyżewski — Jodłówka Tuchowska — Brzanka

For those who enjoy alpine skiing there are such sport and tourism centres on the territory of Tarnów County:

  • Gromada ski lift, Siemiechów
  • Jastrzębia SKI lift, Ciężkowice

Worth seeing:

Sacred architecture and cemeteries

  • Wooden church of St. John the Baptist (XVth-XVIth centuries), Rzepiennik Biskupi
  • Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish church (XIVth century), Tarnów
  • Blessed Virgin Mary wooden church (1458), Tarnów
  • Parish church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (1772-1776), Tarnów
  • Holy Family Church (1904-1906), Tarnów
  • Wooden church of Holy Trinity (1595-1597), Tarnów
  • Jewish Cemetery (1583), Tarnów
  • Old cemetery (XVIIIth century), Tarnów
  • Wooden church of St. Martin (1520), Czermna

Fortifications

  • Trzewlin castle (XIVth century), Wielka Wies
  • Ruins of Melsztyn castle(XIVth century), Melsztyn
  • Remains of defensive walls (XIVth-XVIth centuries), Tarnów
  • Ruins of Tarnow castle (XIVth century), Tarnów

Palaces

Tarnów County
  • Ignacy Jan Paderewski's mansion, Kąśna Dolna
  • Marriage Palace (1880), Tarnów

Other architectural sights

  • Railway station (1855), Tarnów
  • General Joseph Bem Mausoleum (1929), Tarnów
  • Mikvah (1904), Tarnów
  • Mikolajowski House (the oldest building in the town, 1524), Tarnów
  • Town Hall (XIVth century), Tarnów
  • Florecki House (XVIth century), Tarnów

Protected areas

  • Pasmo Brzanki Landscape Park
  • Ciężkowice-Rożnów Landscape Park, Ciężkowice

Museums

  • Ethnographic museum; Tarnów, Krakowska St. 10
  • Diocesan museum; Tarnów, Katedralny Sq. 6
  • Museum of regional ethnography; Tarnów, Rynek Sq. 20-21
  • Krystyna and Włodzimierz Tomek Nature Museum; Ciężkowice, 3 Maja St.