The largest areas in 23 Polish National Parks are occupied by forests. They include the Świętokrzyski, Roztoczański, Białowieski, and Kampinoski National Parks, where forests cover from 75 to 95% of their area. The recreational layer bioclimate occurring in the forest areas of these parks were investigated. The forest microclimate considerably differs from that which occurs in non−forest areas. Moreover, different forest communities have a different effect on the human organism. The primary objective of the study is a comparative analysis the recreational bioclimate of forest communities along tourist trails in the Białowieski, Świętokrzyski, Kampinoski, and Roztoczański National Parks, with consideration of their health benefits. The forest communities of the analysed parks are dominated by forests with a favourable bioclimate: 62−87%, with the exception of BNP, where they occupy only 11% of the area. Communities with an unfavourable bioclimate cover 22% and 15% of BNP and KNP; in the remaining two parks they cover <5% of the forests. In three of the four national parks analysed, a large majority of tourist trails run through communities with favourable bioclimatic conditions (90% in SNP, 77% in the RNP, and 73% in the KNP), with the exception of BNP (19%). Unfavourable bioclimates are only found on BNP (12%) and KNP (3%) trails. Statistical analysis shows a similarity between the analysed parks in terms of the recreational bioclimate occurring on tourist trails, with the exception of the Białowieski National Park, which is statistically different from the others.

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