Carp served on Grandma’s Christmas tableware, at the same table that served as your childhood hideout and where you sang carols from a songbook with pages yellowed by time. It all has a unique charm, making these last days of December taste completely different from the rest of the year.
If, however, you want to spend Christmas a little differently and hear carols in a language less rustling than Polish, come to Kashubia for the holidays. Here, in peace and with sea air in your lungs, you can relax and discover this fascinating Polish region dressed in festive customs and symbols.
In this article, you will learn:
Gòdë in Kashubia: what they are and the name's origin
the key Christmas traditions and customs in Kashubia,
Kashubian Christmas Eve: what makes it
which traditional Christmas Eve dishes rule Kashubian tables,
what Christmas is like today in Kashubia by the Polish sea
Gòdë in Kashubia: what are they and where celebrated?
In Kashubian, Gòdë means the festive season, that is, from Christmas Eve through Epiphany. Gòdë are more than just the holidays: they are a time when life in Kashubian villages and small towns slows down, giving people time to meet, sing carols together and chat around festively laid tables.
Gòdë in Kashubia have deep roots in folk culture. Catholic traditions, ancient folk beliefs and Kashubians’ strong bond with the land, sea and nature intertwine here.
Gòdë are celebrated throughout Kashubia, from seaside towns such as Jastrzębia Góra, Puck, Władysławowo and Hel to villages hidden in the forests and among the lakes of Kashubian Switzerland.
Kashubian Christmas customs from Christmas Eve to Epiphany
In Kashubia, the festive season is filled with deeply rooted customs passed down through generations.
Kashubian Christmas Eve – traditions, magic and mystery
Christmas Eve in Kashubia cannot begin before the first star appears. When it does, family members share the Christmas wafer and sit down to a meatless meal. Importantly, in many rural homes, the wafer is also shared with the farm’s four-legged members, such as horses and cows. What other Christmas Eve traditions can be found in Kashubia?
- Ancient beliefs held that Christmas Eve had divinatory power. That is why in Kashubia hay was placed under the tablecloth to recall the stable and bring good luck.
- People watched the candle flames closely, as a steady flame foretold a prosperous year.
- In traditional Kashubian homes, during Christmas Eve dinner no one was allowed to leave the table without good reason, as this might make “luck leave the house”.
- In rural Kashubia, Christmas Eve is also a time to remember the dead. An empty place is set for them, and after dinner the table is often not cleared immediately, “because souls may come to share the meal”.
Between Christmas and New Year’s: carol singers, star and devil
After Christmas Eve begins the true period of Gòdë in Kashubia: the caroling season.
Once carol singers went village to village with a star,costumed figures showing death, devil, Turoń, goat or bear, plus children singing Kashubian/Polish carols.
Carol singers brought hosts cheer, wishes for prosperity and abundant crops, receiving cakes, fruit and sometimes small donations.
New Year’s Eve in Kashubia: divination, wishes
In the past, New Year divination was an essential part of New Year’s Eve celebrations in Kashubia. It was believed that the first person to cross the threshold on New Year’s Day could bring luck or bad luck, and that how you spent the first hours of the year would affect your fortunes in the months ahead.
New Year’s Eve divination is less popular now, but many Kashubians keep another custom: New Year visits with wishes for health, successful fishing and good work remain a living tradition, especially among older Kashubians.
Epiphany – protecting the home
The Gòdë season ends at Epiphany. In Kashubian homes, incense and chalk are blessed; doors bear the familiar K+M+B inscription and year.
Epiphany processions are also becoming increasingly popular. These colorful, joyful parades attract locals and tourists alike. If you spend Christmas in Kashubia and stay longer, it is a wonderful way to end your festive stay in a truly special, royal style.
Christmas Eve dumplings by the sea: what do they taste like?
There are no Gòdë without a table laden with food inspired by the sea, forests and fields.
- Kashubian Christmas Eve starts with dried mushroom or beetroot soup, often with homemade dumplings.
- Next come various kinds of herring in oil, vinegar or with onion, sometimes with cranberries.
- Then come other fish, fried, baked or in aspic.
- A Kashubian Christmas Eve table also features cabbage with peas or mushrooms and dried-fruit compote, thick, aromatic and scented with smoked plums.
Many love dried-fruit compote, but dumplings win Christmas Eve tables everywhere, not just Kashubia.
Kashubian dumplings are usually filled with cabbage and mushrooms, buckwheat or fish.
Modern Gòdë in Kashubia
Does Christmas in Kashubia today look the same as it did several decades ago? Of course not.
More and more people spend Christmas away from home, in apartments, guesthouses and hotels. Kashubian carols mix in playlists with Christmas hits like “Last Christmas” and “Jingle Bells”. Alongside traditional buckwheat dumplings, we serve vegan tofu dumplings.
Even so, many towns host Christmas markets, carol concerts and live nativity scenes, processions and local events attracting visitors from across Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic.
Kashubian hospitality, devotion to nature and family gatherings around the table remain strong, guaranteeing the region’s unique Christmas atmosphere.
Above all, nature, the sound of the sea, mysterious forests and Kashubian lakes create a beautiful, unique setting for being close to loved ones at this special time of Christmas, or Kashubian Gòdë.
Jastrzębia Góra by the sea at Christmas: why go?
If you want to experience Christmas Eve in Kashubia this year while valuing comfort, privacy and peace, Jastrzębia Góra and Apartamenty Pilice are the perfect choice.
The ideal place for families with children wanting festive cheer with winter beach walks, couples seeking a peaceful, atmospheric seaside Christmas, and busy people who finally want to take a break from cooking, cleaning and holiday pressure.
By booking Christmas by the sea at Apartamenty Pilice, you can order Christmas catering from Restauracja Papaj instead of making dumplings.
→ Skip washing and ironing Christmas tablecloths; walk Jastrzębia Góra’s cliffs.
→ Instead of getting up at dawn to prepare Christmas breakfast for guests and family, enjoy morning coffee overlooking the winter sky above the sea, then have a leisurely breakfast at a large table or on a comfortable sofa.
→ Instead of washing dishes after Christmas dinner, wrap up in a blanket and plan the new year with loved ones in a cozy apartment.
If you dream of a Christmas where you can truly relax, check available dates and book your stay in Jastrzębia Góra.
Let these Gòdë be unique; host you by the sea, as Kashubian tradition demands.
