Ostroleka, Kurpie’s largest city, deserves a visit if only for the former Bernardine monastery, which while seemingly modest from the outside, has a superb interior. If you want to find out all about the region, there is no better place to do so than at the Kurpie Museum in Ostroleka.

Lovers of nature will be attracted by the area’s naturally beautiful places, including the White Forest, home to countless rare plants and trees; and the reservation of Czarnia, where you can find 200-year-old pines measuring 30 metres in height. In Dlugosiodlo lives the oldest tree in Masovia, the oak of St John, planted in 1481. More old oaks grow in the Debina reserve.

A great attraction is the Palm Sunday procession in Lyse, during which distinctively long palms are showcased to a huge audience of locals and visitors. Then, in June, the focus of attention is directed to the village of Kadzidlo. Visitors who happen to be there in this month have a chance to observe a two-day spectacle, the “Kurpian Wedding”, which captures the wedding traditions typical of this part of Poland. However, the most fascinating plain-air folk performance is called “Honey Harvesting” and takes place yearly in Myszyniecon on the last Sunday of August.

You can find many traditional houses still standing in the countryside, especially in such places as Kadzidlo (Kurpian Farm) and Nowogrod near Ostroleka (open-air museum). A good example of Kurpian-Masurian building techniques is the village of Klon, which is under the care of a conservator of historic monuments. It is also worth paying a visit to the mansion in Laskowo-Głuchy, which at one time was owned by the Norwid family (Cyprian Kamil Norwid was one of the greatest of the Polish Romantic poets). Moreover, visitors can keep themselves busy by visiting the church in Barcice, built in 1758, and the precious palaces in Slezany and Popowo by the Bug River.

The region has such a large number of clean rivers, such that it can be easily called a haven for anglers.

Kurpie forests are rich in mushrooms, blackberries, whortleberries and herbs.

Bird-watchers can find eagle owls, corncrakes, nightjars, European rollers and, if they are lucky, a group of black storks flying overhead. In the fields along rivers it is not rare to see cranes and wild geese.

For all those who enjoy water sports this is an excellent location. You can canoe and sail on numerous rivers crossing the region, including the Narew, Omulew, Bug, Orzyc, Pozoga, Szkwa and many more. The first two are particularly popular for using canoes and sailing craft.