– Most of the region is already waiting for guests. The sun is shining again, the cleaning of the areas is coming to an end and what is needed is work so that tourist entrepreneurs and the residents of Lower Silesia employed by them have the means to deal with the effects of the great flood – says Ela Szumska from the Gold Mine in Złoty Stok. There are no formal contraindications to trips to Lower Silesia. The infrastructure functions without problems, and yet tourists are giving up on trips.
Tourists cancel trips to Lower Silesia. “Tourism disaster”
– For several days now, we have been receiving many disturbing signals from tourist entrepreneurs, guesthouses, national parks and resorts that tourists are massively canceling their reservations. The phones are ringing off the hook, but not to book accommodation in the beautiful Karkonosze, the Sudeten Foreland or Wałbrzych, but to cancel their arrivals until the end of the year in places that were not affected by the flood – said Wojciech Bochnak, Deputy Marshal of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, on TVP3 Wrocław. – This may result in a natural disaster followed by a tourist disaster – he added.
– Tourists are indeed calling and asking tourist information and directly at the facilities. We receive a lot of questions about whether the facilities are operating and whether the tourist trails are open – says the president of the Karkonosze Local Tourist Organization (KLOT), Grzegorz Sokoliński, quoted by TVP. Hoteliers have launched an information campaign in which they are trying to break through media reports of floods and convince that Lower Silesia is safe and tourism is operating normally.
Cities not affected by flooding suffer from the region's bad image
“On behalf of the Kudowa hoteliers, I ask the city authorities and the authorities of Kudowa to inform the media that Kudowa was not affected by the flood and that the city and the health resort are functioning without any problems and that it is possible to get to Kudowa. Since yesterday, many facilities have been receiving constant phone calls from nervous guests asking about the flood situation in Kudowa,” we read in an appeal by one of the hoteliers, published by a local portal. dkl24.pl.
Mateusz Jellin, Mayor of Polanica-Zdrój, joined this appeal. “I join the appeal of hoteliers, shopkeepers, owners of guesthouses and restaurateurs from towns that were spared by the flood, i.e. Polanica-Zdrój, Szczytna, Lewin Kł, Duszniki-Zdrój, Kudowa-Zdrój and Międzylesie. With our actions, we support the municipalities that suffered in the flood and we want people to be able to start functioning, working and rebuilding their lives as soon as possible. Our entrepreneurs are also their employers. This time, we fortunately avoided a tragedy. We invite you to visit us. Your presence also supports the economy of the entire region,” he invited to Lower Silesia.
We have previously described the appeals of the City of Polanica-Zdrój, which is also struggling with the problem of tourists canceling their visits, even though it was not flooded. We were sent photos of the city to confirm. They show that the city was not affected by the flood.
Polanica-Zdrój (Polanica-Zdrój Press Office)
The city of Świeradów-Zdrój also published a statement in which it encourages people to visit this mountain health resort. It lists, among other things, that the city functions normally, water, electricity and gas are working, access is easy, bike paths are passable and tourist attractions are open. Similar assurances are also made by other cities, hotels and museums.
Hoteliers appeal to tourists: “Come”
“In the face of the ongoing struggle in Lower Silesia, it is already noticeable that fewer and fewer people are visiting and planning to come to the tourist centre of Poland,” writes the Railway Museum. “We are trying to help each other to return to normal as soon as possible and be able to make our facilities available. Despite this, information is appearing in the public space that tourism in the region is dying out. Despite concerns and disinformation, we hope that tourists will understand that it is safe here and that Lower Silesia is really worth visiting in the autumn,” assures the museum.
“Dear Tourists, Guests, Travel Lovers, do not cancel your stays in Lower Silesia, because although the water brought terrible destruction to several points on the map, the remaining Lower Silesian hotels, guesthouses, monuments, and museums will be ready for you again in a moment,” encourages Joanna Lamparska, journalist and author of books about Lower Silesia.
“I'm talking to many people today who are involved in tourism in the broad sense of the word. They say that guests are canceling 90% of their planned visits in October, November, etc., fearing the poor condition of the roads, damage, etc. Even stays in places that have not suffered any damage are being canceled. It's a bit like when foreigners were canceling their visits to Poland because they thought that if there was a war among our eastern neighbors, there would be one here too,” the journalist compares.
This false belief of tourists actually deepens the already difficult situation in Lower Silesia. – The tourism industry of Lower Silesia, which suffered due to the flood, needs huge support. Our support. It is tourism that constitutes the economic foundation of the flooded areas. Lądek Zdrój, Stronie Śląskie, Bystrzyca and many others are the main attractions of this part of the region. Let's not cross these areas off our vacation plans – says Ms. Magdalena Piasecka, vice-president of DOT.
– Visit us, because we need it more than ever before – appealed Wojciech Bochnak. The Lower Silesian Tourist Organization has prepared and constantly updates the list of the availability of Lower Silesian tourist attractions in the difficult time after the flood [LINK].