I guess I’m a perfect person to ask this question! I grew up on a big, actually huge fruit farm in Poland. Everywhere you looked, you could see fruit! Thousands of apple trees, pear and plum trees, cherries, strawberries, raspberries, and a big vegetable garden with a fence of sunflowers around it! I have to admit that I barely remember buying any fruit or vegetables on the market or at the store. Everything was fresh and straight from the farm! I remember walking to orchards in the morning to have some cherries for breakfast! Then I would eat apples all day long! I also remember having some farm animals, when I was a little girl. Fresh milk, homemade butter and cheese, fresh baked bread, local honey! Yum!

My parent’s orchards in the full bloom!

My husband picking up beautiful plums while visiting Poland

And of course apples on my family farm!

Beautiful, young apple trees on my farm

Life was easy and simple. We played with rocks and sticks and everyone was happy!

Times have changed, however it is always fun to visit a true Polish farm and spend some time getting spoiled by Polish gospodynie!

There are over 2 million farms in Poland, and about 10 000 of them receive guests. The list of these farms can be obtained from regional agro-tourism associations.

Those people welcoming guests to their farms are passionate people who have abandoned the city life to live closer to nature. They are eager to tell you about the local attractions and very often will organise thematic excursions and rent out the necessary equipment. It might be rafting on the Biebrza River (spływ na rzece Biebrza), and bird watching (obserwowanie ptaków), or biking or cross-country skiing in the Suwałki region (kolarstwo czy biegi narciarskie na Suwalszczyźnie).

When choosing your agro-touristic lodging it is worth checking what their standards are. Places meeting the minimal standards are classified as category 1, and those in the highest standard, category 4, have a separate bathroom, cooking space and TV. Summer rental houses are a separate category. They usually have more than 3 bedrooms, fireplace, dining room and a kitchen. Sometimes they are also equipped with a sauna – or in the Mazury and Suwałki region – a hot tub.

The hosts usually offer meals, often prepared using ecological products. Bread baked in burdock leaves, milk straight from the cow, home made cheese, honey still with the scent of the forest, fried saffron milk caps, trout from the river. And for desert: a glass of liquor. Prices range from 40 zł to 140 zł for a double bedroom, and full board is from 20 zł to 60 zł per person.

Agro-tourist farms offer additional attractions: mini zoos (very often with exotic animals), playgrounds for the children and the opportunity to help around the farm (feeding hens, milking the cows). And for an extra fee (usually small) you can participate in thematic workshops: bee keeping, pottery, painting, sculpting.

So next time you plan few days in Poland, think about farm experience, instead of a hotel in the city:)