180 representatives of the Polish tourism sector and media are staying in Kvarner

The Kvarner Tourist Board, in cooperation with the Croatian National Tourist Board and the CNTB Representation in Poland, hosted Polish agents and journalists in Kvarner on 12 and 13 May.

The study group consists of 140 representatives of the Polish tourism sector, Polish airports, the most important Polish tour operators and agencies, and as many as 40 journalists from the most important Polish media. All of them arrived at Rijeka Airport the first promotional flight Polish national airlines LOT.

The goal of this trip is to better promote the Kvarner region, but also to influence the occupancy of LOT airlines that will fly to Rijeka Airport this summer from Polish cities.

Croatia remains at the top of destinations for guests from Poland when it comes to individual travel, and thanks to direct flights of the airline LOT, more and more guests from Poland use this type of transport to come to Croatia.

In the crisis year of 2020, the President of the Management Board of LOT, Rafał Milczarski, recognized the security and potential of the Kvarner region, and then introduced the first flight from Warsaw to Rijeka Airport.

With road accessibility, Kvarner's air connections with Polish cities will certainly increase the number of Polish guests in Kvarner, said the director of the Kvarner Tourist Board Irena Persic Zivadinov. and added that last year more than 560.000 overnight stays were realized from Poland, which is almost at the level of the record 2019, with a share of 3,7% in the total overnight stays realized in Kvarner.

"Among guests from Poland, Croatia and Kvarner have been recognized as safe destinations in the last two years, with the Safe stay in Croatia campaign contributing greatly. For many guests from Poland, Croatia is the only foreign destination they have visited for years. Although Kvarner is a favorite car destination for guests from Poland, in cooperation with LOT and CNTB we are working hard to promote airlines.A large number of agents and journalists who responded to this visit to Kvarner confirm that Kvarner is still attractive and sought-after destination and we will certainly strengthen our mutual tourist connection ", added Peršić Živadinov.

Representatives of the Polish tourism sector and journalists during their stay in Kvarner are divided into several groups, and will visit Opatija, Rijeka, the island of Krk and the Crikvenica-Vinodol Riviera. In addition to the natural beauty of the destination, participants are presented with eno-gastronomic offer and numerous cultural and historical sights from the Kvarner area, and a rich and interesting program designed in collaboration with local tourist boards and the CNTB office in Poland.

"I am very pleased that this year we continue our very successful cooperation with our strategic partner, the Polish national airline LOT. Thus, as part of the promotion of the new summer, which will connect Rijeka Airport with the Polish market, high representatives of the Polish tourism industry arrived in Kvarner, as well as 30 prominent journalists from the most influential Polish media. The arrival of this special plane is an excellent opportunity to show our guests how attractive Kvarner and Croatia are with a rich selection of different motives for the arrival of many guests. ", she stated Agnieszka Puszczewicz, director of the CNTB Representation in Poland, adding that this news will certainly resonate in the Polish market, from which excellent tourist results were achieved last year.

Croatia and Poland have a long-standing friendship, especially when it comes to tourist travel, and the proof of that is today's arrival of more than a hundred Polish tour operators and numerous journalists, said the Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac she added: 

"Poland is our important emitting market, which has accounted for more than 120 percent of overnight stays so far this year, which is a great indicator that Poles are increasingly recognizing us as a year-round tourist destination for quality vacations. We also want to highlight Croatia as a destination for sustainable tourism that offers quality accommodation and content, personalization of arrangements, evaluation of experiences and emotions through communication with local culture and community, for which Polish tourists are showing increasing interest. towards Croatia and we are pleased to continue this successful cooperation and I believe that this year we will achieve even better results from the Polish market. "

Last year, Poles made about 6,6 million overnight stays, which puts them in 5th place in terms of arrivals

This summer, the Polish LOT will have 28 flights to Croatia every week, to Rijeka, Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik and Zadar Airports.

"If you have good airlines and if you have a good tourist promotion destination in a country, then you can do a very good job."  he pointed out Pawel Niewiadomski, President of the Polish Chamber of Tourism and explained the point of the whole story. It sounds and it is - simple. It’s just a matter of goal, budget and whether we play the game or not. 

"Poland has established itself as one of the most important markets for Croatian tourism. This is best confirmed by the fact that Poland is practically the only market from which we achieved a better result last year than in 2019. Namely, Poles achieved about 6,6 million overnight stays last year. , which is eight percent better than the record and pre-pandemic 2019. who will spend his vacation in Croatia, among other places in Kvarner, which will be connected with the cities of Warsaw and Zielona Gora by flights ", said CNTB Director Kristjan Staničić, adding that LOT transported more than 33 passengers from Poland to Croatia last year.

Photo: LOT, Jacek-Bonczek