LODGING
We have created a shelter for you in the middle of the Tatra National Park. We put all our Highland hearts into providing you with a space where you can just be, draw energy from the mountains, and fully recover.
EN Hotel is a place where we provide Highland hospitality to all those who escape into the Tatra wilderness from the hustle and bustle of cities, craving closeness to nature and other people. We take care of hikers tired of traversing the trails alone. We wait with warm soup and mulled wine for all couples and groups of friends enjoying the beauty of Podhale together. We warm up, massage, and help stretch muscles weary from sports efforts. We are here for those who are searching for themselves and their path, as well as for those who need warmth and support. We provide shelter, safety, and peace of mind. We treat our guests as our ancestors treated theirs years ago—with care and respect.
EN is an intimate resort with only 15 rooms, each of which overlooks the peaks of mountains or the boughs of trees. As our guest, you become part of the mountain ecosystem. You envelop yourself in soft bedding, the raw stone of the decor resembles that of the hillside, and when you take a shower, you feel like you’re standing under a waterfall. You regenerate in the lap of wild nature while remaining a stone’s throw from the centre of Zakopane. Authenticity and sincerity—of words, services, and materials—await you in every room and common space.
LOCATION
EN Hotel is located in the Tatra National Park, on the trail leading to Myślenickie Turnie, right next to the ski piste. We are located at an altitude of 1030 metres above sea level, 100 metres south of the bottom station of the cable car from Kuźnice to Kasprowy Wierch. EN Hotel belongs to a Natura 2000 area—an area where nothing new can be built; our hotel is located in the historic building of the former Energetyk. The energy of the Tatra Mountains is at your fingertips.
Being in a nature reserve brings many benefits for the soul and body, but also obligates us to take advantage of hospitality responsibly. We are all guests of nature, the mountains, the forest, and the animals that live here. We do not disturb the harmony between us. In the Tatra National Park, it is forbidden to park cars and—after dusk—to disturb animals, so there are no parking lots nor elevators. One of our Highlander friends with special permission to move around the reserve will come to pick you up at the designated place and bring your luggage in, so you can start your regeneration.
About the owners
Marysia and Kuba, and Kasia and Tomek
We love the Tatra Mountains; we want our hospitality place to be an integral part of them. We live and work in harmony with nature. We want to nurture the traditions of our ancestors and surround our guests with care. We share the best of what we have and treat guests to our favourite flavours and emotions from the bottom of our hearts.
Tomek comes from one of the oldest Highland families and he inherited hospitality from his mother, who descended from the Krzeptowski-Bioły family. This is the same family from which Sabała Krzeptowski—Zakopane’s most celebrated storyteller—descends. Tomek’s dad often jokes that his wife has blue blood, while he himself descents from the Karpiel family—also extremely respected in Podhale. Tomek feels immense pride in his ancestry, which is why he has taken up the mission to spread his love for the Tatra Mountains and restore the region’s splendour. Kasia works at the Witkacy Theatre, and in her opinion, theatre is such a place where everyone can find refuge, regardless of what they are currently hiding from in their lives. Kasia’s mother ruled the city in the 1990s when it came to entertainment; everyone knew her, went to her bar, and then to her designer boutique and florist shop. She instilled in her children a love of play and the ability to change in response to market needs. Kasia and Tomek provide catering services together according to the idea that the guest comes first and they want to provide the guest with shelter, both culinary, local, and spiritual.
Marysia and Kuba are krzoki, which means they are not from a Highland family. Marysia’s family has been living in Podhale beginning with her great-grandfather’s generation, and she herself grew up in a house with guest rooms. Since she was a child, she has heard that customers are always called guests—they are people who need to be hosted, welcomed into the house. She met Kuba while studying architecture in Kraków. They have worked in this profession for 15 years and specialize in renovations. What they enjoy most is saving old buildings, not designing from scratch, but participating in making history. Their studio is called Old New Architects, as they combine the old fabric with the present with full respect for history. They work with real, natural materials that enhance the beauty and authenticity of the places they restore to their splendour.
Architecture
The former Energetyk building, which houses the EN Hotel and which gives the hotel its name, is one of the local historic landmarks. Our task was to bring out its beauty and emphasize its stately austerity. Energetyk is made of stones quarried from nearby rivers, accompanied only by wood from the local forests—it is part of the trend of so-called murowańce [masonry houses]. Previously in Podhale, all structures were built of wood; in the 1920s and 1930s, the trend of building with stone emerged, and the buildings constructed during this period are called murowańce.
When remodelling Energetyk, we wanted to fully preserve its character and consistency with the mountain landscape. We used only materials that are originally found in the Tatra Mountains: granite, steel with characteristic discolouration, and wood. On the exterior of the building, the renovation changed nothing except for replacing the roof with larch shingles and restoring wood and stone elements.
The furniture and accessories were designed locally by local artisanal companies. Fronts and tops were machined by hand, and there are many granite edgings in the decor—uneven pieces of granite that are cut in a standard process to create even slabs. We value authenticity much more than perfection. In the rooms, we added only one fabric to wood and stone: natural woven linen, which appears on curtains and bedspreads. We want our guest to be able to feel the human touch in every design element. We play with the texture, and when sliding fingers over the finishes, one does not sense the machine and saw, but the axe, the chisel, the workmanship of local hands.
History
As recently as 150 years ago, the Tatra Mountains were an industrial area—with smelting furnaces and the clatter of huge stream-powered hammers crushing the ore mined in the mountains. Traces of mining and iron smelting go back to the 18th century here, that’s where the name Kuźnice comes from. Although ore mining ceased at the end of the 19th century, the spirit of the old days remains with us in the name of this place..
Part of the building meant for hotel use was reclaimed by the Tatra National Park in 2014. Historically, it was called Energetyk. The building was used as a holiday home, and a hostel operated here for a while. Energetyk came into our care in 2019. The name EN Hotel directly refers to the previously used term and we are also proud to continue the former functions of the building. The original design documentation, which intended to expand the building, involved a much more significant intrusion into the surrounding area. Since we love and respect the mountains, and the thing we have enjoyed the most in design over the years is saving buildings and their history, in 2020, we decided to renovate the facility based on the existing fabric with no structural changes. EN Hotel is a combination of the tradition and spirit of the Tatra Mountains with novelty and the present; it is our nod to the past.
