Tourists from the Middle East have fallen in love with Zakopane. Oscypek, horse and a Podhale farmer are a sight they will gladly pay for, and not a little. – These are tourists who do not exceed 5% of the holiday season guests, so it is not a very large segment, but they are valuable due to the petrodollars they leave in Podhale – says Karol Wagner. . This is one of the reasons why they are desirable guests for the highlanders. They are delighted with the views and the weather and the unique folklore. – I like it the most when it rains – admits Basima from Dubai, who is visiting Zakopane for the second time, in an interview with Interia. – Nature, greenery, mountains, very nice people and oscypek – she enumerates. – We feel at ease here, we are not afraid – adds Basima.
. A shopkeeper with a basket of oscypek cheese dressed in a Zakopane scarf or a highlander wearing regional trousers are an attraction for Arab guests – They treat us like an amusement park, Disneyland, and not us treating them like freaks – says Karol Wagner from the Tatra Chamber of Commerce. With a slight pinch of salt, the entrepreneur from Zakopane draws attention to one more thing. – You could find a comparison somewhere far away. These are also pastoral peoples, just like the Vlachs, who were the first to come to Podhale. And these pastoral peoples respect their history, there is such a kinship of souls, they feel “mint” for each other.
. The beginnings were not easy. Stories about ritual slaughter in the farmer’s garden, flooded bathrooms in guesthouses or apartments requiring renovation after the visit of a large family from the Middle East have resonated widely. – A few years ago, there was a “clash” between the farmer and a guest from Saudi Arabia, who was moving 9 people into a 6-person house – says Karol Wagner. – The farmer suspected that they were cheating him and the Arab guests simply did not think that they could spend their time in any other way. It was not an attempt at fraud but a cultural need – he adds. Today, the highlanders already know how to satisfy the “whims” of this specific guest. Large spaces for a large family, modern interiors and high quality of services are what, according to entrepreneurs, they are most often looking for.
– I have five houses to rent. Last year, all of them were occupied by a sheikh from Dubai, one for each of his wives – recalls Andrzej. Last season, halal menus appeared in Zakopane restaurants, i.e. dishes prepared according to the rules of Islam.
This year . – Thanks to artificial intelligence, every restaurateur can make a billboard in 15 minutes without fear of offending anyone – explains Karol Wagner. Online translations that entrepreneurs used to use were not as accurate and sometimes a poorly translated word was offensive to Arab guests.
This year . Airlines, seeing the growing interest in the Zakopane destination, increased the number of connections to Krakow and extended the season. Interestingly, in Podhale you can meet not only Arab tourists. – There were 11 people in one of the shops in Kościelisko, 6 tourists from the Middle East and 5 Orthodox Jews – recalls Karol Wagner. This peculiar view is certainly not standard, but it shows the color and challenges that highlanders have to face.
. Unlike Arab guests, they choose quieter, out-of-the-way places. We are unlikely to see them walking around Krupówki, but in a villa on the sidelines, outside Zakopane, most often in Kościelisko. For this group of tourists, intimacy and high quality of services are important. The highlanders also face challenges related to serving Jewish guests. – We experience the need to increase services on Saturday, when it is Shabbat. – says Karol Wagner. – A deeply religious guest will not undertake any work on Shabbat, so he will not open the gate to the villa where he lives on Saturday. He will be waiting for the owner. We experience such challenges and adapt our services to a completely different guest.