More and more Poles are spending their winter vacation on exotic beaches. Instead of ski-resorts, they are choosing places that are warm, cheap and safe. Egypt was the most popular destination in the past, but now it is losing to the Canary Islands.
Poles have a tendency to complain even in mild winters. Which means that they also tend to go in search of summer in January or February. Travel agencies have been quoting a constant increase of interest in trips to the tropics.
The “Egypt of Today” - the Canary Islands
The Canary Islands have became the unofficial Polish Christmas islands. One out of four travel agency customers spent their Christmas Eve there. It appears that the Canary Islands are popular over winter vacation as well. According to Travelplanet.pl, 50% of travel agency customers choose to visit these Spanish islands.
- Everybody misses the sun during the winter. And it’s sunny all the time in the Canary Islands. Moreover, it’s quite close, cheap and safe. Let’s be honest - people who decide to go on a trip abroad, are mostly looking for safety – said Marta Puchalska, a traveler from Zielona Góra who runs a blog known as dalejniejade.pl.
Tempting exotics
Data from Polish travel agencies shows that other destinations which are also popular among Poles are Thailand, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Cuba. According to Travelplanet.pl, 21% of Polish tourists intend to visit exotic places and approximately 33% more intend to travel with travel agencies for this year’s winter vacation than last year.
When the weather is unpleasant in Poland, Thailand tempts with very favorable climate. The temperatures float within the range of 28-32 degrees Celsius. This gives you an opportunity to visit monuments and return beautifully tanned.
- If you’re thinking of going to India, you should do this sometime between November and April, when there’s no wet season – adds Marta, who was in Varkala last year. - India is warm and exotic. Moreover, it has tasty food and wonderful people. What more could you possibly want? You can experience a marvelous adventure. If you like relaxing on the beach, you will easily find a calm place only for yourself. I stayed at a house near the coast, which was located in a coconut forest. I will never forget it – said Marta.
Insurance and currency exchange
Apart from the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), you should also think of some additional insurance. This is because the EHIC only covers a portion of medication costs. Moreover, it may not include any visit to a specialist, for example. If you’re not traveling with a travel agency, don’t forget additional insurance. You will feel calmer, as well as save a lot of money, in the case of an unfortunate accident.
You should also exchange currency before leaving Poland. - You can save up to 512 PLN when exchanging 10000 euro – said Piotr Kiciński, vice chairman of the Board of the online currency exchange office, Cinkciarz.pl (currency exchange rates as given by Cinkciarz.pl on January 18 th, 2017).