The region consists of mountain ranges built of igneous and metamorphic rocks and covers of sedimentary rocks occurring on them - with advantage of limestone - as well as dells separating them, covered with "flisz podhalański" (loam schists with sandstones and mudstones) and in some places lake sediments and river accumulation sediments. Altitudes in Centralne Karpaty Zachodnie reach from 490 m asl on the lowest located Kotlina Orawsko-Nowotarska (Orawa-Nowy Targ Valley) to over 2400 m asl in Tatry (the Tatra mountains) with the highest peak in Poland - Rysy (2499 m asl).

Through Centralne Karpaty Zachodnie goes European divide which separates the Baltic Sea catchment area from the Black Sea catchment area.

Climate of the region is locally very diverse. Here occur clear climatic belts which are characterized by temperature falling and amount of rainfall growing along with altitude. Summers are warm and winters cool. The most intensive rainfalls take place in summer months (June and July) - up to 1500 mm in Tatry. Very common are winter termic inversions during which much colder air is gathering in valleys than on peaks and gusty wind "halny" is blowing down from Tatry peaks down to valleys.

Vegetation of Centralne Karpaty Zachodnie is laid out in belts, locally diverse. A part of a bottom of Kotlina Orawsko-Nowotarska is occupied by peatlands, the Pieniny mountains are overgown by rock mountain grasses, which occur only here, whereas Tatry are the main region area of occurrence of alpine vegetation within Karpaty Zachodnie. In order to protect plant cover on area of Karpaty Zachodnie have been created 2 national parks and 9 reserves.

On Polish territory the region consists of two smaller units: Obnizenie Orawsko-Podhalanskie (Orawa-Podhale Depression) and Lancuch Tatrzanski (the Tatra Mountain Chain).

Obnizenie Orawsko-Podhalanskie occupies area of 960 km², only middle part of which lies in Poland. It stretches from west to east on length of 70 km and width of 20-30 km. This region, very diverse in terms of geological construction, consists of 4 units of altitude from 490 m asl to over 1000 m asl. These are: Kotlina Orawsko-Nowotarska, Pieniny, Pogorze Spisko-Gubalowskie (Spisz-Gubałówka Piedmont) and Row Podtatrzanski (Sub-Tatra Furrow). A western part of the region is drained through the Orawa to the Vah (Danube), and an eastern part through the Dunajec to the Wisła.

Lancuch Tatrzanski is a macroregion which clearly stands out among surrounding valleys and piedmonts. Its eastern part reaches the biggest absolute alititude in the Carpathian - up to 2600 m asl. Geologic construction and glacial landform is similar to higher parts of the Alps. Lancuch Tatrzanski is divided into smaller sub-regions - we can distinguish Tatry Zachodnie (the Western Tatras) and Tatry Wschodnie (the Eastern Tatras).