Elements of polish culture in belarus as a constituent of the tourist potential of the stańkowo town

Abstract

Abstract Subject and purpose of work: The paper presents the tourist potential on the example of the small town of Stankava (Polish name: Stańkowo) in the Minsk Oblast in Belarus. Materials and methods: The research was conducted by means of the diagnostic survey method using the questionnaire as an author’s tool in 2019. The research sample comprised 196 respondents – inhabitants and tourists (including 142 women and 54 men). Results: The results of the research show that Stankava is a naturally and culturally attractive tourist area referring to the history of the former borderlands of Poland with an unused development potential. However, in the opinion of respondents, actions of local authorities regarding the preservation of historical memory and the tourist promotion of the town by means of available resources are on a very low level. When assessing the tourist infrastructure, they indicated the lack of tourist trails, services, accommodation facilities and food outlets. The insufficient marking of existing attractions and historically important places was noticed, too. In the tourists’ view, natural and cultural objects are the most important attraction during holiday in the place under analysis. Conclusions: In order to make fuller use of the tourist potential of the town, it is necessary to develop its tourist and recreational infrastructure and to increase the role of tourism and recreation in the development policy of local authorities.