a river in southern Poland, a right tributary of the Vistula. A small section of the river’s upper reaches marks the Polish-Czechoslovak border. The river is 243 km long and drains an area of 7,400 sq km. According to other sources it is 251 km long and has a basin area of 6,800 sq km. The Dunajec rises on the northern slopes of the Tatra Mountains. It intersects the Western Beskids, and in its lower reaches it flows through the Sandomierz Depression. The river overflows its banks in the spring. A hydroelectric power plant as well as the cities of Zakopane, Nowy Targ, and Nowy Sacz are situated on the Dunajec.