The park encircles the upper reaches of the Karkonosze Mountains with their highest peak, Mount Snieżka (1,603 meters above sea level).

The most important natural and picturesque areas of the Karkonosze are carefully protected. This includes a zone comprised mostly of rocks with post-glacial depressions, mountain lakes, and multiple rock formations called ostańce.

These slopes are mainly covered with spruce mixed with beech, sycamore and linden the upper parts of which are dominated by dwarf pine. High moorlands with numerous post-glacial plant species cover the vast plateau situated at 1,200 meters above sea level. A great number of protected endemic and Alpine plants occupy the uppermost zones of the Karkonosze.

In addition to the characteristic forest wildlife, the Karkonosze Mountains are host
to the moufflon, a species introduced to this area from the island of Corsica.

The park is registered by UNESCO as a World Biosphere Reserve.