Christmas in Masuria in a lake house: how to plan Christmas Eve in your own house

In short: Christmas in a lake house in Masuria is a way to spend Christmas Eve with your own people when the whole family wants to be together and no flat is big enough for everyone. Nobody has to be the host who cooks from morning while the others arrive for dinner. Everyone stays under one roof, cooks together, the children have room to play, and after dinner you can step out onto the terrace and look at the stars over the lake. Our Christmas offer is four nights, from 23 to 27 December, in one house for 10 people or in two houses for 20. Just remember that in Poland the shops are closed on 24, 25 and 26 December, so Christmas in the house starts with well-planned shopping.

Below we explain step by step how to plan Christmas in a lake house: how it differs from Christmas in a hotel, how a bigger family can share the houses, when to book, what to buy and where before Christmas Eve, how to bring Polish Christmas Eve customs to the house, where the nearest midnight Mass is, what to do on Christmas Day and Boxing Day and what it all costs. We are also open about what our houses do not have.

There are two ways to spend Christmas away from home. The first is a hotel with a Christmas package: a Christmas Eve buffet, carols with a band, activities for children and staff who clear up after dinner. The second is a whole house to yourselves, where you celebrate in your own way. People who want a break from cooking choose a hotel. Families for whom being together at their own table matters most choose a house.

1. 01the whole family under one roof: grandparents, parents, children and cousins, without driving from one Christmas Eve to the next
2. 02nobody is the host: you cook together, and each family can bring some of the dishes from home
3. 03your own traditions: your dishes, your carols, your dinner time and presents under the tree
4. 04the children have room to play inside and out, and the adults can stay longer at the table
5. 05quiet mornings with a view of the lake instead of traffic jams between relatives' homes

To be honest: in the house nobody serves you dinner or cleans up after Christmas, and the houses have no sauna or hot tub. If you would like everything prepared for you, a hotel will suit you better. If you want Christmas like at home, only in a place where everyone fits, choose a house. We compare the two in more detail in Lake house or hotel in Masuria.

For Christmas we offer a four-night stay. You arrive on 23 December, the day before Christmas Eve, and the house is ready from 16:00. You spend Christmas Eve and both days of Christmas here and leave on 27 December by 11:00. This way nobody has to drive on Christmas Eve, and you do your shopping on the way on 23 December, the last day before the shops close.

1. 01one house for up to 10 people or both houses for up to 20 people
2. 02each house: 130 m², four bedrooms (one on the ground floor), three bathrooms, a fully equipped kitchen and a terrace facing the lake
3. 03bed linen, towels, Wi-Fi, Smart TV, heating and parking by the house are included
4. 04in winter from PLN 999 per night for the whole house; at Christmas the price is higher, and the Christmas offer on the prices page shows the exact amount for the whole stay
5. 05local tax of PLN 3.50 per person per night, for adults and children from 4 years
6. 06a 30% deposit and free cancellation up to 30 days before arrival, so for arrival on 23 December until 23 November

You can check and book the Christmas offer on our prices page and see the layout and equipment of the houses under Houses and gallery.

Christmas has a fixed date and cannot be moved by a week. On top of that, the decision is usually made by several families at once, so it takes time. That is why large houses by the water, and especially two houses side by side for 20 people, are the first to disappear from the calendars.

1. 01book as soon as the family knows who is coming: there is no back-up date for Christmas
2. 02if several families are going, collect each family's share of the deposit before you book
3. 03use free cancellation: with us up to 30 days before arrival, so booking early carries little risk
4. 04if you would like to stay for New Year too, ask us about a longer stay before you book both dates separately

We cover the general rules of early booking, comparing prices and paying safely in When to book a summer house in Masuria, and New Year by the lake in New Year's Eve in Masuria in a lake house.

One house is enough for a family of up to 10. Four bedrooms let you put grandparents, parents and children in separate rooms, and the ground-floor bedroom suits anyone who prefers to avoid stairs. Three bathrooms mean that on the afternoon of Christmas Eve nobody queues for the shower while dinner is getting cold.

With 20 people you rent both houses. They are identical, each with 130 m² and room for 10. To be honest: neither house has a room where 20 people can sit down to Christmas Eve dinner at one table. So this plan works best: before dinner everyone meets to share the Christmas wafer and exchange wishes together, then each house sits down at its own table, and on Christmas Day you visit each other. The houses stand side by side, so the other one is only a few steps away.

Remember that no more than 10 people sleep in one house. If someone from the area visits you at Christmas, guests from outside the booking may be on the grounds by arrangement with us until 22:00. We write more about sharing the houses in House in Masuria for 20 people and House in Masuria for 10 people, and about a trip with several generations in Family reunion in Masuria.

In Poland, Christmas Eve, called Wigilia, is the most important evening of Christmas, and most of its customs need only a few small things in the boot. Dinner begins when the first star appears in the sky. A little hay goes under the white tablecloth, and one empty place is laid for an unexpected guest. Before dinner everyone shares a thin Christmas wafer, called opłatek, and exchanges wishes. The traditional dinner is meat-free, and in many homes there should be twelve dishes on the table. After dinner come presents, carols and, for those who wish, midnight Mass.

1. 01the Christmas wafer: buy it before Christmas in a parish or a shop, on Christmas Eve it will be too late
2. 02a handful of hay for under the tablecloth and a candle for the table
3. 03decorations, lights and a tree: a small potted tree is easy to bring, and if you are thinking of a large real tree, ask us beforehand
4. 04presents: hide them in the boot before the children start looking around
5. 05a carol book or a playlist, because the house has a Smart TV and you have your phone
6. 06something warm for everyone for stepping out onto the terrace to look for the first star

24 December is a public holiday in Poland and the shops are closed that day, just as on both days of Christmas, 25 and 26 December. Petrol stations and pharmacies, among others, stay open. That means three days without shopping, so buy everything you need for Christmas Eve and Christmas by 23 December at the latest. The shops are full before Christmas, so prepare a list in advance and split it between families and cars.

The kitchen in each house has a hob, an oven, a fridge, a dishwasher and tableware, so you can cook a full Christmas Eve dinner for 10. It is easiest to split the menu between families: one brings the beetroot soup and dumplings, another the pierogi, a third the cakes. Many dishes can be made at home and brought in jars and boxes, then only warmed up. If you have a favourite pot for soup or a tin for poppy seed cake, bring it along.

1. 01barszcz, a clear beetroot soup, with uszka, small mushroom dumplings, or mushroom soup
2. 02fish, most often carp, fried or in aspic, or herring
3. 03pierogi with sauerkraut and mushrooms, and cabbage with peas
4. 04kutia or noodles with poppy seeds, poppy seed cake, gingerbread and a dried-fruit compote
5. 05breakfasts and lunches for the three days when the shops are closed, with some to spare
6. 06drinks, coffee, tea and something for the second day of Christmas, when you fancy less traditional food

In Masuria, the land of lakes, fish on the Christmas Eve table feels natural. Buy fresh fish before you set off or on 23 December, though, because on Christmas Eve everything will be closed. If you would like something warm after midnight Mass or on Christmas Day, prepare bigos, a Polish hunter's stew, or a roast in advance, so it only needs warming up.

The nearest churches are in Mrągowo, 9 km from the houses. The town has several Roman Catholic parishes, including St Adalbert's on Królewiecka Street, as well as a Lutheran parish, a reminder of the Protestant history of Masuria. The parishes publish the times of midnight Mass, called Pasterka, and of Christmas services on their websites and notices before Christmas, so check them before you set off.

For midnight Mass choose a driver who does not drink wine with dinner, and expect the roads to be slippery at night. On the second day of Christmas it is worth driving to Święta Lipka, about 50 minutes from the houses. It is a Baroque pilgrimage complex with a rich interior and a famous organ, which is presented at set times; you will find them on the sanctuary's website.

Christmas in Masuria is above all a time to rest, but when you feel like moving after two days at the table, a few places nearby are open in winter too. Over Christmas opening hours often change and some places are closed, so check them before you go.

1. 01the ski slope on Góra Czterech Wiatrów in Mrągowo, about 15 minutes from the houses: two T-bar lifts, floodlit pistes with artificial snow, a beginners' slope and a ski school
2. 02in Mikołajki, about half an hour's drive: the year-round Alpine Coaster toboggan run, the ski slope at the Gołębiewski hotel and the Tropikana water park for a frosty day
3. 03walks along the shore of Lake Krzywe and on the field tracks around the village, best before noon
4. 04the promenade by Lake Czos in Mrągowo for a short Christmas walk
5. 05the sanctuary in Święta Lipka, about 50 minutes' drive, and on the way back the castles in Reszel or Kętrzyn

You will find more winter ideas in Masuria out of season and on our Attractions page.

For children, Christmas in a lake house is an adventure: a new place, a lake outside the window and the whole family in one house. To keep Christmas Eve from dragging for the youngest, give them jobs: watching for the first star from the terrace, laying the table, decorating the tree or icing gingerbread biscuits brought from home.

1. 01the ground-floor bedroom suits grandparents or parents with the youngest
2. 02bring a travel cot with you, because we do not have cots
3. 03by the water, on the jetty and by the fire children are always supervised by adults
4. 04do not treat the frozen lake as an ice rink: you cannot see how thick the ice is under the snow
5. 05we do not accept pets, except assistance dogs

Read more about a stay with children in Masuria with children.

A white Christmas does happen in Masuria, but it is not the rule. There can be frost, snow and frozen lakes, and there can be a thaw and rain. So plan Christmas to work in any weather and treat snow as a gift. The days are the shortest of the year: the sun rises around 7:50 and sets around 15:15. The houses are year-round and heated with gas, so it is warm inside whatever happens outside.

If frost comes, Lake Krzywe may freeze. The Polish State Fire Service reminds that safe ice is about 10 cm thick and that snow hides weaker spots. Do not go onto the ice in the dark or after alcohol, and always keep children close by the water. We describe more rules in the section on the frozen lake in New Year's Eve in Masuria in a lake house.

1. 01warm, waterproof boots and hats, because it is windy by the lake
2. 02torches or head torches for evening walks and the drive to midnight Mass
3. 03a sledge if the forecast promises snow
4. 04slippers and comfortable clothes for long evenings in the house

Krzywe is about 282 km from Warsaw, roughly 3.5 hours' drive in good conditions, and 67 km from Olsztyn. On 23 December the roads are busy, because many people are travelling to their families, and in winter it can be slippery, so plan some extra time. There is free parking by the houses, and the satnav will take you to the door.

Before your stay we send directions and details about access to the house. On 27 December many people are travelling back from their families, so expect more traffic on the way home too.

Here is an example for one house and 10 people, from the lowest winter price. The price per night at Christmas is higher than this rate, and the Christmas offer on the prices page shows the exact amount for the whole stay, so treat this as the lower limit.

1. 01accommodation: 4 nights at PLN 999, so from PLN 3,996 for the whole house
2. 02local tax: 10 people for 4 nights at PLN 3.50, so PLN 140; children under 4 do not pay
3. 03firewood: PLN 200, if you order it
4. 04in total from PLN 4,336, so from about PLN 434 per person for four nights, without food and travel

Families usually share the Christmas food between them: each brings some of the dishes, or the shopping is split equally. We show how to plan the budget for the whole trip in Cost of a weekend in Masuria.

Our Modern and Loft houses stand on Lake Krzywe, 9 km from Mrągowo, in a quiet zone where combustion engines are banned. The lake shore is about 10 metres from the terrace, and the beach with a jetty about 20 metres from the houses. Both houses are year-round and heated, and bed linen and towels are included.

1. 01Christmas offer: arrival on 23 December from 16:00, departure on 27 December by 11:00
2. 02one house for up to 10 people or two houses for up to 20
3. 03the current price for the whole stay in the Christmas offer on the prices page
4. 04a 30% deposit and free cancellation up to 30 days before arrival
5. 05an invoice on request

Check free dates on our prices page. If a larger family is coming, you would like to stay until New Year or you have another question, write or call us before you book.

The best Christmas is the one everybody made it to, nobody had to drive home after dinner, and in the morning there was a lake outside the window.