Discover Bolesławiecki: ceramics, culture and nature

Ceramic history in Bolesławiec

The Muzeum Ceramiki w Bolesławcu collects materials on the history of the city and the Bolesławiec region, the development of Bolesławiec ceramics, and contemporary ceramic sculptures by artists who take part in the ceramic plenary sessions in Bolesławiec. Since April 2024, the collections of the ceramics department and the city history department have been presented in newly and modernly designed spaces. Check the current visitor access conditions before your visit.

Bolesławieckie Święto Ceramiki, the Bolesławiec Ceramics Festival, also puts ceramics at the centre. It takes place annually in August in the city. The 32nd edition ran from 19 to 23 August 2026; over five days, there was a ceramics market at the Rynek and on ul. Prusa. For future trips, check the dates and programme for each year, as future editions may be organised differently. Another cultural connection was established in 2021: Bolesławiec became the first city in Poland to officially join the European Route of Ceramics, a cultural route certified by the Council of Europe.

City routes and ceramic techniques

The Muzeum Ceramiki offers five historic city routes; when booking, you choose one route. “Szlak ceramików i rzeźbiarzy” is one of the named routes. Another, “Szlak średniowiecznych budowniczych i kopaczy złota”, leads to the town hall, the church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Nicholas, the city walls, and a monument commemorating the construction of the water and sewage network in 1531. The two walks have different emphases: one points to ceramics and sculpture in its very name, while the other links several sites associated with the city’s history. Check the current booking arrangements in advance.

The Centrum Dawnych Technik Garncarskich in the destination’s immediate surroundings complements its focus on ceramics. Visits are possible individually or in groups without a guide. Check the current operating details before your arrival.

Forests, trails and protected landscapes

The lowland “Puszczański” trail between Zebrzydowa and Bolesławiec is 34 kilometres long in total. Of this, 16 kilometres run through Gmina Osiecznica and five kilometres through Gmina Bolesławiec. The trail leads mainly through large forest areas; in Gmina Bolesławiec, a significant part runs through meadows. This trail therefore brings both the overall distance and the differences between the described sections in each gmina into focus. The ER–6 “Dolina Bobru” cycling route is a designated cycling route in Gmina Bolesławiec.

Several landscape and protected areas are listed in the wider Powiat bolesławiecki. The Bory Dolnośląskie is one of its ten Natura 2000 sites and one of its four protected landscape areas. Dolina Czarnej Wody is also among these four protected landscape areas. Przemkowski Park Krajobrazowy is one of the landscape parks in the powiat; Brzeźnik is one of its three nature reserves. These names represent different regional conservation and landscape themes, complementing Bolesławiec’s more urban focus on ceramics.

Historic buildings and regional traditions

The history of the affiliated gminas also offers specific points of interest. The manor house in Warta Bolesławiecka acquired its Renaissance appearance in the first half of the 16th century. In Gmina Nowogrodziec, Pieczenica (Pečenica), a feast of spit-roasted suckling pig, is a symbol of cultural heritage; the associated customs are still practised there today. These two examples have a different focus from Bolesławiec’s ceramic culture: one is a historic building, the other a living culinary tradition. Together with the landscapes of the powiat, they offer a regional perspective that goes beyond the city routes.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Osiecznica, Zebrzydowa, Kliczków, Bunzlau, Raciborowice Górne, Kraśnik Dolny, Naumburg Am Queis, Kruszyn.

Go to the overview of the wider travel region: Lower Silesia.