Bison Show Reserve (Wolin National Park)

The Bison Show Reserve is a bison breeding centre open to visitors in the middle of a forest, in Wolin National Park. It lies on the green hiking trail, about 1.5 km from the centre of Międzyzdroje, or roughly half an hour on foot. You watch the animals from behind a fence from viewing platforms, and alongside the bison the reserve is home to wolves, deer, wild boar and white-tailed eagles, among others.

Why there are bison on Wolin

The reserve was founded in 1976. In July of that year the first four bison were brought from Borki and Białowieża: the cow Pomina, the bull Podskakiewicz and two heifers, Pompea and Podwyżka. The park explains that they are lowland bison entered in the European Bison Pedigree Book. Their names begin with the syllable “Po”, from the first letters of the word POLAND. Most of the reserve's present residents were born on the spot.

The reserve was created as part of a conservation breeding programme. One or two calves are usually born each year, and the size of the herd has varied from 5 to 12 animals at different times. To avoid too close a kinship, the park from time to time exchanges animals with other breeding centres. The bison are not returned to the wild because the Wolin forests have too poor a food base.

What you will see in the reserve

The reserve covers 28 ha, of which 20 ha is the bison paddock and 0.5 ha is the show paddock, best seen from the platforms. The entrance is guarded by an ornamental gate. There is also a quarantine section for newly arrived animals or ones suspected of illness, which is closed to visitors.

The reserve also keeps animals that were healed or raised by people and would not cope in the wild. The park lists wild boar, roe deer, deer and white-tailed eagles, and eagle owls live in the aviaries. The wolf siblings have an enclosure of their own of 0.6 ha: the male Kamyk, found after a road accident in Kamień County and missing one paw, and the female Freja, who joined him in early 2024.

Around the reserve

The reserve lies in Wolin National Park, so a visit is easy to combine with a walk along the trail. The nearest points are Kawcza Góra, about 1.3 km further on, and the Natural History Museum of Wolin National Park, run by the same park. The black trail also leads to the resort centre along the seaside avenue, where the Walk of Fame stands.

Practical information

• Location: Międzyzdroje, in the forest about 1.5 km from the centre, on the green trail. The walk along the green trail takes about half an hour. By the black trail via the Walk of Fame (Aleja Gwiazd) and Kawcza Góra the route is 4.7 km.
• Getting there by car: the park points to the Kwasowo car park at the exit from Międzyzdroje towards Wisełka, from where it is about 1.7 km on foot.
• Opening hours according to the park's website: from 1 May to 30 September daily from 10:00 to 18:00 except Mondays, last entry at 17:30. From 1 October to 30 April from 8:00 to 16:00 except Sundays and Mondays, last entry at 15:30. Check the current hours on the website of Wolin National Park before your visit.
• Tickets can be bought at the ticket office or in the park's online shop.
• On site there are benches, tables, a shelter, toilets and viewing platforms that are also adapted for people with disabilities.