Polish Travel Research Articles

The Political System of the Venetian Republic Through the Eyes of Polish Travellers at the Turn of the 18th and 19th Centuries

The Political System of the Venetian Republic Through the Eyes of Polish Travellers at the Turn of the 18th and 19th Centuries

Healthcare Significance in Tourists’ Destination Choices: A Case Study of Polish Travelers

Abstract Introduction. The purpose of the research was to analyze what role the accessibility and quality of health care plays in the country chosen as a tourist destination. It also examined where tourists get their information about health care in the country they plan to go to and whether they had to use medical services at the place of their stay. Material and methods. An analysis of source materials was performed and a diagnostic survey was conducted. Results. While the quality and availability of health care at the destination is important to some respondents, the main factors related to location, tourist attractiveness (tourist attractions, tourist infrastructure) and price still determine the choice of destination. Only 4% of the respondents identified the availability and quality of healthcare services as key factors in their decision-making process. At the same time, 38.6% of the respondents considered the quality and availability of healthcare services when choosing a tourist destination. For longer trips, the quality and availability of health care at the destination is more important when choosing a destination. Conclusions. Healthcare facilities are part of the associated infrastructure in tourism. This type of infrastructure primarily serves the local population, but also conditions the proper organization and management of tourism at the destination. In addition, in the situation related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of health care in tourist destinations has increased. This also requires increased efforts toward ensuring access to medical services as well as information about them in tourist destinations.

The holistic repercussions of the ongoing war and refugee crisis on the Polish travel agencies

AbstractThe Russia–Ukraine conflict is a common concern and hot‐debated topic of the international community. This study aims to assess the influence of the war and refugee crisis's holistic repercussions on the Polish tour operators/travel agencies; and elaborate on the response capability of managers/concerned authorities. Findings revealed that the war and refugee crisis negatively impacted the travel agencies, and managers were put under severe pressure—decreased number of tourists, plummeted total revenue and surged total costs. The findings further contribute to the advancement and strengthening of understanding of the differential impacts of the factors on tour operators/travel agencies by their grouping criteria (license, main market and IATA certification). The travel agencies' performance metrics and operational statistics deteriorated. The managers' responses about predicting the impact of the ongoing crisis also revealed that the effects of the war and refugee crisis would continue in the near future. The contribution and novelty of the research are the advancement of understanding by evaluating refugees and war's holistic repercussions; how the forced migrations have influenced the performance metrics and elaboration of managers' response capability; and unearthing the methods for the forced migrations.

“This is a strange country” – along the Sicilian paths of Polish travelers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries

Since the romantic jurney novelist devoted to Italy, having an tremendous interest from literary historians and cultural scholars side, already have untold studies number, therefore this text concerns Polish travel prose from the later period: the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the next. The monographic approach to the topic would significantly exceed the size of the article, so I limited the analysis to three selected texts: Sicily. Sketches from a Journey (1896) by Michał Lityński, Letters from Sicily by Stanisław Bełza (1900), Zofia Sokołowska On the Ends of Italy (1901). An image of an island full of contrasts emerges from them – delightful with the sun of the south, exotic vegetation, attracting connoisseurs of art, lovers of ancient ruins, but whose times of glory are irrevocably gone.

COMMUNICATE TO ENGAGE: STORYTELLING, CONTENT CREATION, AND PROMOTING THE IDEA OF SUSTAINABILITY AND INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE IN TRAVEL VIDEOBLOGS

In the area of digital media narratives, an important communication role is played by influencers who, thanks to original media messages, become creative gatekeepers of specific ideas. Travel videoblogs are often underestimated as pure entertainment, whereas they can be seen as important tools for public discourse creators. The research uses methods of compositional and content analysis, supplemented with narratology and netnography. In the space of popular travel videoblogs, the main ideas promoted include the ideas of sustainable development and intercultural dialogue. Bloggers create and stimulate the existence of online communities, express specific ideas, concepts and worldviews that partly come from the area of scientific discourse, particularly anthropological, cultural and ethical ones. The research highlights the serious public role played by the digital nomads as influencers and new kind of friendly authority and presents case study of successful communication strategies, narrative skills and technical competences of authors. The online travel narratives can be seen as marketing of ideas and thus used as practical tool of communication for institutions, non-governmental organizations and other actors of communication. The paper analyses new material (new genres of communication, new channels, new strategies) and topic of high importance in the context of intercultural conflicts and ecological problems. One of the most influential Polish travel vlogs, Globstory by Kaja Kraska (initiated in August, 2014), serves here as a case study. It was chosen because its content is typical for this genre and because of creative and engaging practices of the vlogger who successfully influences the public and its understanding of specific ideas and problems.

Characteristics of Polish travellers admitted at the University Centre of Maritime and Tropical Medicine in Poland, 2023.

After COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, people started to travel again. Each year, thousands of Poles travel internationally, and many travel to tropical or subtropical destinations in Asia, Africa or South America. The aim of this article was to describe the characteristics of Polish travellers based on the information from a retrospective 12-month review of the medical records of Polish patients seeking pre-travel advice at the largest diagnostic and treatment travel medicine centre in Poland in 2023. The retrospective study was based on the analysis of medical records of 2,147 patients seeking pre-travel advice at the University Centre of Maritime and Tropical Medicine in Gdynia, Poland, between January and December 2023. The study focused on the analysis of the following patients' variables: age, sex, travel details (purpose of travel, length of travel, departure month, continents and countries to be visited). It also aimed to evaluate the range of prevention measures which were either recommended or administered to patients seeking pre-travel advice at the clinic (preventive vaccinations, chemoprophylaxis). In addition, it assessed the health status of the patients presenting at the travel medicine clinic; retrospective health assessments were based on the information from the interviews with the patients. Patients who sought pre-travel advice were mostly aged 36-65 years (49.5%), they were travelling for tourism purposes (78.3%), for a maximum period of 4 weeks (79.0%), mostly in November (15.2%) or in January (14.9%). Most travellers planned to visit Asia (55.5%) or Africa (29.0%); mainly Thailand (21.5%), Vietnam (8.5%), Kenya (8.3%) or India (8.2%). The most frequently administered immunoprophylaxis included vaccinations against typhoid fever and hepatitis A. Other commonly recommended/prescribed prevention measures included: insect repellents (69.3%), sunscreen (58.3%), antimalarials (35.8%), antithrombotic drugs (32.6%), and antidiarrheal drugs (25.6%). The analysis of patient interviews demonstrated that 61.8% of the travellers consulted at the clinic had no pre-existing medical conditions, while 38.2% required the use of chronic medications, mainly for allergies (14.3%), thyroid disorders (13.6%), cardiovascular diseases (9.3%), or psychiatric disorders (5.5%). A large number of Polish travellers visit destinations where the risk of infectious and non-infectious diseases is high. Providing patients with professional advice during a pre-travel consultation will help protect against travel-associated health problems.

„Obcy” kraj, „inne” społeczeństwo. XVII-wieczna Anglia w relacjach podróżniczych mieszkańców Rzeczypospolitej – wyobrażenia a rzeczywistość.

Travel in the modern period played an important role in shaping the geographical horizon and creating perceptions of ‘foreign’ countries and ‘other’ peoples. ‘Curiosity’ was the basic impulse to embark on a journey to ‘foreign’ countries. It stimulated the development of knowledge, inspired, and encouraged meticulous observation of the surrounding reality. The aim of the article is to reconstruct sympathies and prejudices towards English society and the image of England existing in the consciousness of Old Polish voyagers. The source base of the article consists of printed and manuscript accounts of journeys and ambassadorial missions, as well as instructions written down by parents or guardians. The accounts contain rich and intriguing descriptions, which are a testimony to the confrontation of imagination with reality. The source material presents a diverse image of the English people. Accounts by Old Polish travelers are dominated by remarks related to the religious aspect. Descriptions of the prevailing religion were emotionally charged and constituted a manifestation of the feelings and religious beliefs of Catholics as well as dissenters. The image of the heretic Englishman is a stereotype firmly rooted in the Old Polish mentality. The resulting image of England has its roots in reality, but also in subjective opinions, impressions, sympathies as well as in myths and stereotypes functioning in the Sarmatian consciousness.

Epidemiological and clinical analysis of polish short-term and long-term travelers returning from tropical countries

BackgroundThere is a lack of information about health problems after returning from tropical countries among travelers from Poland. The aim was to create characteristics of diseases imported to Poland from tropical regions and to determine the changes in the travel trends. MethodThis retrospective study is based on medical records of 2391 Polish patients >18 years old, hospitalized between 2006 and 2016 after returning from tropical areas. The analysis covered purpose, duration and travel destination, and health problems related to the travel. 1098 patients (short travel, <1 month, n = 345 vs long travel, >6 months, n = 753) were selected for further analysis. ResultsThe most frequently visited region was Sub-Saharan Africa. Tourists dominated among short-term and missionaries among long-term travelers. The most popular health problems in both groups were digestive system disease and febrile diseases. Diarrhoea of undetermined aetiology, dengue fever, malaria, fever of unknown aetiology and infectious mononucleosis were more likely to occur among short-term travelers whereas blastocystosis, giardiasis, schistosomiasis among long-term travelers. In the group of long-term travelers 363/753 (47,8%) were diagnosed with an infectious or parasitic disease in relation to a trip to a country with a hot climate. ConclusionsTropical diseases occur among Polish travelers so they should be taken into account in the context of prophylaxis when preparing for travel and in the diagnosis of diseases that occur after returning from a tropical zone. This first analysis of disease incidence among Polish travelers indicates a strong need for more research in this area.

Characteristics of Polish travellers: six-month experience from the University Centre of Maritime and Tropical Medicine in Gdynia, Poland.

The number of international travels has grown substantially over the last decade, both globally and in Poland. Thousands of Poles travel to tropical or subtropical countries in Asia, Africa or South America each year. The aim of this paper was to discuss the characteristics of Polish travellers seeking pre-travel consultation at the largest diagnostic and treatment travel medicine clinic in Poland. This retrospective study was based on the analysis of medical records of 1291 patients seeking pre-travel advice at the University Centre of Maritime and Tropical Medicine in Gdynia, Poland, between 1 July and 31 December 2022. The study comprised the analysis of the following patient variables: age, sex, travel details (purpose and length of travel, continents and countries to be visited, activities planned). The study also aimed to evaluate the range of prevention measures which were recommended/ administered (preventive vaccinations, chemoprophylaxis). In addition, it assessed the health status of the patients presenting at the travel medicine clinic. Patients who sought pre-travel advice were mostly people aged 18-35 years old (50.1%), travelling for tourism (72.2%), for a maximum period of 4 weeks (85.0%), travelling in December (24.3%) or in November (22.2%). Most of the Polish travellers consulted at the clinic travelled to Asia (56.2%), mainly to Thailand (27.3%), Vietnam (10.8%) or India (8.7%). Most travellers were planning a beach holiday (56.4%). As regards extreme activities, scuba diving was the most popular among the patients involved in the study (22.5%). The most frequently administered immunoprophylaxis were vaccines against typhoid fever (76.3%) and hepatitis A (56.2%). Other commonly recommended/prescribed prevention measures included: probiotics (75.9%), repellents (73.6%), antimalarial drugs (60.9%), and antidiarrheal antibiotics (51.9%). The analysis of patient interviews demonstrated that 42.4% of Polish travellers consulted at the clinic complained of no medical problems while 36.0% were taking chronic medications, mainly for allergies (17.1%) or thyroid disorders (12.2%). A growing number of people from Poland travel to destinations where the risk of infectious disease exposure or transmission is high. Providing a patient with appropriate advice during a pre-travel consultation will help protect the traveller against travel-associated risks at their intended destinations.

Colonial Fantasies, Imperial Realities: Race Science and the Making of Polishness on the Fringes of the German Empire, 1840–1920

Colonial Fantasies, Imperial Realities: Race Science and the Making of Polishness on the Fringes of the German Empire, 1840–1920

Javanese Mosaic

ABSTRACT This article attempts to analyse some images of Java in Polish travel writings from the second half of the 19th century in a comparative framework, and linking the various aspects of representations of the island with the respective travellers’ background, social and intellectual trends of the epoch, and literary conventions. This approach is based on concepts of imagology, habitus and comparative reading. The travelogues by three Polish authors are analysed here: aristocrat, lawyer and politician Adam Sierakowski (1846–1912), soldier Henryk Sienkiewicz (1852–1936, a relative of a famous writer by the same name), and an apostolic delegate for the East Indies Władysław Michał Zaleski (1852–1925). Polish travel accounts are juxtaposed with texts written by English, American, Russian, and Javanese travellers: Charles Kinloch (1810–1893), Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore (1856–1928), V. Tatarinov (c.1860), Nikolai Miklouho-Maclay (1846–1888), and Radèn Mas Arya Candranegara V alias Purwalelana (1837–1885). The examples show that although some descriptive aspects of Java may be linked to national identity, far more fruitful would be a detailed examination of texts and contexts through a comparative analysis.

Wykorzystanie dziedzictwa kulturowego Łemkowszczyzny w ofertach wyjazdowych polskich organizatorów turystyki

The article is an attempt to answer the question of the extent to which the cultural heritage of the Lemko ethnic group is used in the content of offers of tours to the Lemko region organized by Polish travel agencies. As a result of the internet query, tourist offers existing in 2022 were selected for research, the program of which was based on the cultural legacy of the Lemkos. In particular, the research took into account the selection of cultural values in the construction of the offer. The analysis of the offers showed that the sites most frequently used in tour offers were churches inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Moreover, reference to material heritage dominated the content of the offers. The research showed that in the modest offer of tours to the Lemko region, only part of the cultural heritage potential of this historical region was used.

Tesori di arte sacra a Venezia e Padova nelle descrizioni dei viaggiatori polacchi del XVIII secolo

In the 18th century, Italian sanctuaries played an important religious and cultural role, especially in Venice and Padua. They were visited by Polish wanderers during their trips around Europe, for example: diplomatic missions, pilgrimages, educational or tourist trips. They recorded their impressions from visiting these places in the form of descriptions in diaries, journals and itineraries. Reading the reports from the expeditions provides valuable insights on the mentality, customs of upbringing, as well as the religious and aesthetic experiences of eighteenth-century adventurers. The article aims to present the ways in which the collections of sacred art were perceived by Polish travelers from the 18th century. The analysis of their accounts, especially the fragments concerning the sanctuaries in Venice and Padua, will serve to present the literary covenants used by Polish wanderers. It should also answer the questions which tendencies dominated in the travel literature of that time, what phrases and formulations were used, and what items were paid special attention to.

Madryckie place w relacjach wybranych polskich podróżników w XIX i na początku XX wieku

This article presents the perception of Madrid squares as viewed by Polish travellers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The squares functioned for centuries as key areas of a city, both for the residents and visitors. In Spain, they were also an important element of culture and urban planning. Plaza Mayor – a unique European city square – was established in that country. Therefore, it may be assumed that the squares, playing a leading role in the analysed urban space, are one of the main tourist destinations. The aim of the article was to analyse the accounts of Polish travellers who came to Madrid in the 19th century and attempt to answer the following questions: what role the squares played during the time of those travels, which square made the greatest impression on the writers and why. The author also wanted to gain a better understanding of the aesthetic sensitivity and architectural and urban awareness of the Polish travellers. The analysis was carried out on the basis of source texts and historical studies. The presented image of public spaces was juxtaposed with iconographic and cartographic sources. The article shows that the Polish travellers staying in Madrid in the 19th and early 20th centuries limited their urban strolls to only a few squares, and the most important ones were approached with critical assessment.

„Hiszpania! Jakież czarodziejskie słowo, jakże uroczo brzmi ten wyraz!" Obraz Hiszpanii na przełomie XIX i XX wieku w polskich listach z podróży

Modern Polish ideas about the Iberian Peninsula can often be summarised in slogans: azure sky, beautiful women, bullfighting, Don Quixote from La Mancha. Has this image of Spain been with us for centuries, or has it been “produced” by modern mass tourism? The aim of this article is to analyse travel texts from the 19th and 20th centuries describing journeys around the Iberian Peninsula and an attempt to answer the question of what Spain looks like in the eyes of Poles deprived of their own statehood. Is it terra incognita, an exotic country with a rich history, in which travellers find a reflection in architecture and customs, fascinated by Madrid, Barcelona, and Salamanca? Or maybe it evokes disappointment? The article compares travel letters by four Polish travellers and historians: Aleksander Hirschberg, Adolf Pawiński, Józef Wawel-Louis, and Stanisław Starża. The analysis of the letters was divided into thematic blocks: historical Polish-Spanish relations, perceptions and impressions, opinions about Spaniards and Spanish women, and cultural controversies (corrida, cockfighting).

Plaatsbepalingen: de Nederlanden in de wereld

The idea for this issue of Neerlandica Wratislaviensia arose from an interest in the Low Countries – their culture, literature, and language. This interest has translated into a number of various approaches to the concept of Nederlandsheid, seen not only through the eyes of the authorities on the Dutch language and literature from the University of Wroclaw, but also representatives of other scientific disciplines within the philology department of this university. Their focus, supplemented with a look at Low Countries from the perspective of Dutch and Flemish ‘insiders’, created an interesting mosaic presenting Low Countries in an exciting and accessible way. The articles of the 32nd issue of Neerlandica Wratislaviensia mention both the former Dutch colonies and the modern Low Countries seen through the eyes of Polish travelers; they describe authors’ auto-images and tools to make a literary work more attractive. Here we find fairy tales, non-fiction, and linguistic considerations. This number shows how small countries can strongly influence scientists’ knowledge.

Exporting Socialism or Searching for the “Third Way”?

The article explores the perception of India in socialist-era Polish travel reportage, focusing in particular on the political debates inscribed in the Cold War divisions. Four books of reportage from India, by Jerzy Ros, Wiesław Górnicki, Janusz Gołębiowski, and Jerzy Putrament, serve as primary material for this research. The reporters, visiting India on official assignments, discuss the relations between the so-called Second and Third World and India’s take on socialism. While the analyzed texts do not present a uniform vision, the reporters’ narratives reveal an interesting relation of ambivalence: Indians are seen at times as socialist brothers, but at other times a rather patronizing attitude prevails.

Selected Geographical and Tourist Aspects in the Assessment of the Quality and Standard of Living of Polonia in the Greater Toronto Area

The quality of life is commonly referred to as a determinant of well-being, contentment, happiness or a sense of satisfaction with one’s own existence. Often used interchangeably with the level, conditions or standard of living. Quality of life is the satisfaction of meeting all human needs. The main aim of this research is to determine the level and quality of life in terms of tourism by the Polish community living in the Greater Toronto Area, which includes the city of Toronto and four regions: Halton, Peel, York and Durham.The article will present its own model of objective factors (standard of living) and subjective factors (life quality) interacting with each other with a particular emphasis on geographic and tourism aspects. The main aim of this article is to show how the Polish community living in the Greater Toronto Area assesses the aspects related to tourism management in the city. The results of the study will be presented on the basis of a survey questionnaire conducted on 583 respondents. The respondents assessed, among other things, whether they were satisfied with the conditions of rest and relaxation in this city, public transport and the environmental quality. Respondents were also asked to evaluate the activity of Polish travel agencies operating in the Greater Toronto Area. The study will also address matters related to improving the quality of life and tourism development in the city. As indicated by the respondents, such activities as supporting existing tourist activities, expansion of bicycle paths or increasing sports and recreational infrastructure (i.e. construction projects of swimming pools, tennis courts) are the main needs in the city, which could contribute to the higher rated aspects of Toronto related to tourism. Data will be presented showing that in the Polish community in the last twelve months their household had enough income to cover the costs related to leisure, vacations, holidays or school breaks.

Zreformowana Anglia w oczach polskich podróżników

Reformed England in the Eyes of Polish Travelers in the Early Modern Period&#x0D; The aim of this article is to reconstruct and present the image of reformed England and the English people as perceived by the inhabitants of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. The primary source used is travel literature. The author analyses travellers’ impressions with research and educational journeys, “grand tour,” and diplomatic missions related to state or parliamentary activities. Travel literature containing descriptions of England reflect the author’s impressions, feelings, judgments and subjective opinions, as well as convey some knowledge about the world acquired not only during the trip, but also as a result of prior knowledge gained through learning and education. Moreover, the article discusses the emergence of a spectrum of perspectives and prejudices both for and against the English people, as well as the formation of national stereotypes.

Odroczenie skuteczności odstąpienia od umowy o udział w imprezie turystycznej : regulacja art. 15K ustawy COVID-19 w świetle dyrektywy 2015/2302

The aim of the article consists in a brief analysis of the specific legislative solution regulated in Art. 15k of the special-purpose law referred to as the COVID-19 Act. This provision introduces the institution of postponing the effectiveness of withdrawal from a contract before the start of the travel package, while modifying the regulation of Art. 47 of Polish Travel Package Act which implements Art. 12 of EU Directive 2015/2302 on package travel. It seems that the legislator's goal was to extend the maximum 14-day deadline for refund by the organizers of any payments made by the travelers for the package in the face of a crisis in the tourism industry caused by a coronavirus pandemic. Despite the general positive assessment of the state's activity in this respect, the introduced regulation raises doubts in relation to many legal aspects and the most serious objection to the legislator is the introduction of provisions that are contrary to the principles clearly defined in the EU Directive.