Destination Poland
For the Illustrated Daily Courier, the country's leading newspaper of its time, May 17, 1935, was a big news day.
Three major events dominated the headlines: the lavish funeral arrangements in honour of Marshal Józef Piłsudski, Germany's push for increased military expenditure and Italy's mobilisation of a million soldiers for war in Ethiopia. But tucked away among all these major news stories was a long feature about the need to develop the country's tourism infrastructure.
"We often return to the neglected issue of tourism investment The weight of this as a necessary condition for the development of tourism in the country is particularly worthy of the government's attention," read the story.
Nearly 70 years on, and the statement is just as apt today, according to Henryk Handszuh, head of the Quality in Tourism Development project at the World Tourism Organisation.
"The authorities need to appreciate the importance of tourism," Handszuh said. "Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina are the only European countries with fewer hotel beds per 1,000 inhabitants than Poland. Tourism may still be developing at a faster pace than the economy at large, but without large investment outlays, I don't see how this trend can be sustained."
Bohdan Wyżnikiewicz, deputy head of the board of the Gdańsk Institute for Market Economics and author of a report on tourism investment, agrees.
"Total investment outlays have doubled since 1995, while in tourism the increase has been threefold," he said. "But the scope for improvement remains enormous. Tourism could well be the powerhouse of growth in the years to come, if only we have an integrated plan of development. There are brilliant opportunities for the country as a tourist destination."
It's an issue on which all the experts seem to sing in unison.
Handszuh, for one, has no doubts. "I am confident that some sort of growth will occur," he said. But he cautioned, "The danger is that it will happen in the way that has prevailed to date; an idea here, an idea there, but no overall view of where we want to go. The authorities, both at the centre and self-government levels, have to do a lot of thinking."
Wyżnikiewicz points to EU accession as a principal factor supporting a more optimistic view.
"Europeans will be interested in the new member of the club," he said. "But there are more reasons to be optimistic. Retirees are getting richer and they are obviously the group with the most time on their hands. At present 50% of Poles spend their holidays at home. With the country benefiting from membership, it is bound to change."
Surprisingly, perhaps, it is the foreign experts who emphasise the importance of the domestic market most.
"It is absolutely imperative that you think of the domestic tourist first," said Jens Friis Jensen of the World Tourist Organisation. "I am not an expert on Poland, but I have been having a lot of interesting conversations here, and the recurrent topic is that there is not enough appreciation of this in the country. The perception is perhaps that the foreign tourist has more money to spend. True as it may be, you must always focus on the customer close at hand. It leaves you less vulnerable in times of international crisis, such as the present turmoil over Iraq."
There is general agreement that the war will hit the industry hard, but the impact is likely to be confined to certain sectors.
"The airline industry will suffer most of all," said Krzysztof Łopaciński, president of the Institute of Tourism. "There is bound to be some adverse impact on Poland as a tourist destination since in times of war people tend to spend their holidays within their countries. But I do not anticipate serious problems."
"In any case, the effect will not be felt beyond the short term," Handszuh said. "For decades the share of tourism in the global economy has been on the rise. Even September 11 had only a temporary impact on its development. Last year saw a return to the path of growth, despite all the uncertainty and political trouble. It will be no different this time."
In a strange way, the war may prove an opportunity for the industry.
"Long-distance travel will be affected most of all, and at present overseas visitors account for only a tiny proportion of inbound tourism," Wyżnikiewicz said. "The number of arrivals will fall, but it need not be on a dramatic scale. The point is that it is not the number of trips made that determines the success or failure of a country as a tourist destination. What really matters is quality. You must get the tourist to spend."
The figures demonstrate that this is a crucial issue here. While average expenditure per trip stands at €750 worldwide, in Poland it is less than a sixth of that, according to the Polish Tourism Organisation. Although last year saw a slight increase in individual spending, Łopaciński says there is no reason to get too excited.
"It is true that the number of trips fell by 6.8%, while total expenditure was down by just 3.7%, which means there has been quite a significant rise of expenditure per trip," he said. "But this is not a result of an improvement in service quality. Quite simply, the largest single group of tourists come from Germany. That country's current economic problems mean that the less well-off do not go abroad, while the richer tourists are not prevented from coming here as we are still a cheap destination. So those who spend less have simply stopped coming. That is not, however, to say that the structural problems have gone."
So once again we return to the familiar story of underinvestment and the underdevelopment of the infrastructure.
"The market has forced prices down," said Anna Somorowska, president of the Polish Tourism Development Agency. "But the reason tourists spend so little is not that everything is cheap. It is that there are not enough things for them to spend their money on."
But investing time and money is only part of the solution. More than that, the experts emphasise the importance of the right mindset.
"In many countries there is a misconception as to the nature of competition on the tourism market," explained the WTO's Jensen. "Entities from the same region treat each other as competitors. That is wrong. The first thing is to get the tourist to come to you. No single entrepreneur can do it on his own. What you need is an integrated effort and a range of attractions. There is a role here for both public and private sectors. That is why the concept of the public-private partnership has been such a success in the development of tourism infrastructure. It is also an opportunity for your country. The most important requirement for PPP to succeed is not money. It is the desire to learn."
There is certainly a lot of learning to do. Regions, and even the central authorities, sometimes have priorities other than tourism development.
"Co-operation with local authorities can be a problem," said Grzegorz Chocian, the owner of Ekoton, whose work on the Podlasie Stork Trail is one of the few PPP success stories of in the country. "Every now and then I come across officials who say, 'Do you know that Germans are trying to steal our land?' But I would not exaggerate the scale of the problem. A lot of people are willing to co-operate; they know what they expect from their private partners and what there is to be gained.
Tony Lenehan, head of training operations at CERT of Ireland, a country often pinpointed as an example to emulate, says that preserving what is left of its unspoilt nature is Poland's biggest asset.
"The trends are going exactly where you would want them to go," he said. "Ecotourism is on the rise. There is a move away from the sun, away from the crowds. This is exactly what you could provide. You have no image as a tourist destination as yet. This is an opportunity to create one from scratch. There are countries that are currently seen as fashionable that would give a lot to have these assets and opportunities for the future."
Three major events dominated the headlines: the lavish funeral arrangements in honour of Marshal Józef Piłsudski, Germany's push for increased military expenditure and Italy's mobilisation of a million soldiers for war in Ethiopia. But tucked away among all these major news stories was a long feature about the need to develop the country's tourism infrastructure.
"We often return to the neglected issue of tourism investment The weight of this as a necessary condition for the development of tourism in the country is particularly worthy of the government's attention," read the story.
Nearly 70 years on, and the statement is just as apt today, according to Henryk Handszuh, head of the Quality in Tourism Development project at the World Tourism Organisation.
"The authorities need to appreciate the importance of tourism," Handszuh said. "Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina are the only European countries with fewer hotel beds per 1,000 inhabitants than Poland. Tourism may still be developing at a faster pace than the economy at large, but without large investment outlays, I don't see how this trend can be sustained."
Bohdan Wyżnikiewicz, deputy head of the board of the Gdańsk Institute for Market Economics and author of a report on tourism investment, agrees.
"Total investment outlays have doubled since 1995, while in tourism the increase has been threefold," he said. "But the scope for improvement remains enormous. Tourism could well be the powerhouse of growth in the years to come, if only we have an integrated plan of development. There are brilliant opportunities for the country as a tourist destination."
It's an issue on which all the experts seem to sing in unison.
Handszuh, for one, has no doubts. "I am confident that some sort of growth will occur," he said. But he cautioned, "The danger is that it will happen in the way that has prevailed to date; an idea here, an idea there, but no overall view of where we want to go. The authorities, both at the centre and self-government levels, have to do a lot of thinking."
Wyżnikiewicz points to EU accession as a principal factor supporting a more optimistic view.
"Europeans will be interested in the new member of the club," he said. "But there are more reasons to be optimistic. Retirees are getting richer and they are obviously the group with the most time on their hands. At present 50% of Poles spend their holidays at home. With the country benefiting from membership, it is bound to change."
Surprisingly, perhaps, it is the foreign experts who emphasise the importance of the domestic market most.
"It is absolutely imperative that you think of the domestic tourist first," said Jens Friis Jensen of the World Tourist Organisation. "I am not an expert on Poland, but I have been having a lot of interesting conversations here, and the recurrent topic is that there is not enough appreciation of this in the country. The perception is perhaps that the foreign tourist has more money to spend. True as it may be, you must always focus on the customer close at hand. It leaves you less vulnerable in times of international crisis, such as the present turmoil over Iraq."
There is general agreement that the war will hit the industry hard, but the impact is likely to be confined to certain sectors.
"The airline industry will suffer most of all," said Krzysztof Łopaciński, president of the Institute of Tourism. "There is bound to be some adverse impact on Poland as a tourist destination since in times of war people tend to spend their holidays within their countries. But I do not anticipate serious problems."
"In any case, the effect will not be felt beyond the short term," Handszuh said. "For decades the share of tourism in the global economy has been on the rise. Even September 11 had only a temporary impact on its development. Last year saw a return to the path of growth, despite all the uncertainty and political trouble. It will be no different this time."
In a strange way, the war may prove an opportunity for the industry.
"Long-distance travel will be affected most of all, and at present overseas visitors account for only a tiny proportion of inbound tourism," Wyżnikiewicz said. "The number of arrivals will fall, but it need not be on a dramatic scale. The point is that it is not the number of trips made that determines the success or failure of a country as a tourist destination. What really matters is quality. You must get the tourist to spend."
The figures demonstrate that this is a crucial issue here. While average expenditure per trip stands at €750 worldwide, in Poland it is less than a sixth of that, according to the Polish Tourism Organisation. Although last year saw a slight increase in individual spending, Łopaciński says there is no reason to get too excited.
"It is true that the number of trips fell by 6.8%, while total expenditure was down by just 3.7%, which means there has been quite a significant rise of expenditure per trip," he said. "But this is not a result of an improvement in service quality. Quite simply, the largest single group of tourists come from Germany. That country's current economic problems mean that the less well-off do not go abroad, while the richer tourists are not prevented from coming here as we are still a cheap destination. So those who spend less have simply stopped coming. That is not, however, to say that the structural problems have gone."
So once again we return to the familiar story of underinvestment and the underdevelopment of the infrastructure.
"The market has forced prices down," said Anna Somorowska, president of the Polish Tourism Development Agency. "But the reason tourists spend so little is not that everything is cheap. It is that there are not enough things for them to spend their money on."
But investing time and money is only part of the solution. More than that, the experts emphasise the importance of the right mindset.
"In many countries there is a misconception as to the nature of competition on the tourism market," explained the WTO's Jensen. "Entities from the same region treat each other as competitors. That is wrong. The first thing is to get the tourist to come to you. No single entrepreneur can do it on his own. What you need is an integrated effort and a range of attractions. There is a role here for both public and private sectors. That is why the concept of the public-private partnership has been such a success in the development of tourism infrastructure. It is also an opportunity for your country. The most important requirement for PPP to succeed is not money. It is the desire to learn."
There is certainly a lot of learning to do. Regions, and even the central authorities, sometimes have priorities other than tourism development.
"Co-operation with local authorities can be a problem," said Grzegorz Chocian, the owner of Ekoton, whose work on the Podlasie Stork Trail is one of the few PPP success stories of in the country. "Every now and then I come across officials who say, 'Do you know that Germans are trying to steal our land?' But I would not exaggerate the scale of the problem. A lot of people are willing to co-operate; they know what they expect from their private partners and what there is to be gained.
Tony Lenehan, head of training operations at CERT of Ireland, a country often pinpointed as an example to emulate, says that preserving what is left of its unspoilt nature is Poland's biggest asset.
"The trends are going exactly where you would want them to go," he said. "Ecotourism is on the rise. There is a move away from the sun, away from the crowds. This is exactly what you could provide. You have no image as a tourist destination as yet. This is an opportunity to create one from scratch. There are countries that are currently seen as fashionable that would give a lot to have these assets and opportunities for the future."
