This year Poland is inviting clients to “Rendezvous With Culture.”
“Poland is a country of culture,” said Jake Wolosz, marketing
manager in the U.S. office of the Polish National Tourist Board.
Wolosz said the tourism effort focuses on Krakow, the former
capital, and particularly its Old Town. The area is considered one
of the best-preserved medieval city centers in Europe and has been
designated a U.N. World Heritage site. Krakow, which grew along the
banks of the Vistual River, has special music, theater and dance
performances planned through the year, along with exhibits and
events at Wawel Royal Castle, the heart of the city. The castle was
home to Poland’s monarchs from the 11th to the early 17th
centuries; and holds the work of artists and craftsmen from the
Middle Ages, Renais-sance and Baroque eras. The city also boasts
the Main Market Square, one of the largest medieval market squares
in Europe; the 16th-century Cloth Hall, a trading center still
surrounded by market stalls and cafes; and the Planty Garden Ring,
a linear park that follows the line of the Old Town walls. Wolosz
emphasized that there are now 13,000 tourist beds and more than 50
guides in Krakow, making it easier for clients to acquaint
themselves with the historic city. The towns of Wieliczka, with its
Royal Salt Mine, and Wadowice, the birthplace of Pope John Paul II,
are considered good choices for short excursions. Coach tours are
available to Auschwitz, the World War II concentration camp, and
its commemorative centers. Getting to Krakow is not difficult. The
expanded John Paul II International Airport in Balice is a little
more than 9 miles from the city center. And several passenger
trains run daily between Krakow and Warsaw, a 2½-hour tr
