Free or much cheaper than usual accommodation, meals and material assistance – the tourist industry in Poland has become very involved in helping Ukrainian refugees. According to the report from the Noclegi.pl platform, hoteliers may have something more for their new neighbours – jobs in domestic tourism that are recovering from the pandemic crisis.
Already in the first days, when Ukrainians fleeing the war began to arrive in Poland, the owners of hotel facilities joined in to help, primarily by providing accommodation – often free of charge.
Survey in the Polish tourism industry
“We decided to check how the industry reacted to the current situation, so we conducted a survey sent to over 2,000 facilities,” says Natalia Jaworska, an expert at Noclegi.pl.
Almost 100% of the respondents expressed their willingness to help refugees from Ukraine in various forms. As many as 70% declared free nights. Others are ready to provide accommodation at a significantly lower price.
Almost half of the respondents are able to accept 5-10 people, and 12% of the respondents declare to accept even a larger group.
“In general, the owners do not want to additionally indicate on the booking platform that they provide this type of assistance, considering it not entirely the right form of promotion,” emphasises Jaworska. – They find guests who need support by working with local authorities or non-governmental organisations, they also ask for their data to be transferred to refugee assistance centres, ”explains Jaworska.
Accommodation is just one form of assistance. Hoteliers also offer support in the form of full board or providing the necessary equipment from their own resources or from friendly suppliers. The most common are towels, blankets, medications or sanitary products.
“When asked about other ideas for help, the most frequent answer is employment,” says Natalia Jaworska. Occasional, in the upcoming season, or permanently. Hoteliers also offer potential employees and their families help in learning the Polish language, ”emphasises the expert
And there may be a lot of work in the Polish tourist industry in the coming season, because the number of bookings for domestic holidays is growing day by day. After Poles temporarily refrain from planning holidays due to the situation in Ukraine, the booking traffic has already returned to the pre-pandemic level. Compared to the pre-pandemic season, the average price is 20% higher and currently amounts to PLN 86 per person.
Accommodation cheapest in Krakow
For now, the cheapest way to rest is in Krakow, where the average booking price is PLN 1001 per stay, and the average price per person is PLN 79. The most popular destinations among tourists are: Zakopane, Kołobrzeg, Gdańsk, Kraków and Władysławowo. In the latter, we will now pay as much as PLN 1749 for a family of 4 when leaving for 5 days.
In Zakopane, tourists have to pay an average of PLN 1,485 for a family of 4 when leaving for 4 days.
Source: Noclegi
