Rising interest in foreign trips and changing behaviour of Polish tourists
During 2013, the interest of Polish people in travelling abroad increased. This was due to greater economic stability in Poland, which has had a positive effect in terms of increasing spending on travel and tourism. The preferences of many Poles, however, are clearly changing, which has manifested itself in the search for new destinations and at the same time in shorter holidays. Many Poles now go on holiday for shorter periods of time more often during the year. Consequently, the proportion of trips being taken over 14 days or more is declining, while the proportion of trips between seven and 14 days is rising, as is the proportion of short city breaks. Moreover, Polish tourists increasingly prefer spending their holidays engaged in activities, including additional attractions, excursions and even round trips.
Offers of schedule, low cost and charter airlines increasingly similar to each other
One phenomenon which is apparent in air transportation in Poland is a certain convergence between schedule airlines, charter airlines and low cost carriers. Poland’s leading domestic schedule airline PLL LOT SA has recently placed limits on its services, which means that passengers must now pay for in-flight meals, among other services. In turn, Poland’s low cost carriers are enhancing their services as Polish consumers have higher expectations in terms of quality of service. For example, Ryanair recently introduced a numbered seating, the option of bringing a second piece of hand luggage and business bookings, which entitles customers to make changes to their bookings for free. Higher levels of service are also being offered by charter airlines, with passengers of Nowa Itaka Sp zoo and Rainbow Tours SA, Poland’s two largest tour operators, now flying modern fleets of aircraft such as the Boeing Dreamliner on routes to Thailand, Kenya, Venezuela, Mexico and The Dominican Republic, with no transfers required.
Ongoing concentration in travel retail determines trends
The bankruptcy of several smaller tour operators in Poland between 2010 and 2012 resulted in the return of many customers to large tour operators which are able to ensure the full implementation of travel retail services. The products and services on offer from Poland’s large tour operators are perceived as more reliable in terms of quality and conformity with what customers are promised. Consumers are therefore willing to pay more in order to feel secure that they are able to enjoy their holidays without any unpleasant surprises. This cautious consumer behaviour has led to concentration in travel retail in Poland, which has manifested itself mainly in increasing value share for the country’s largest tour operators such as Nowa Itaka Sp zoo, Rainbow Tours SA, TUI Poland Sp zoo, Neckermann Polska BP and Exim SA. On the other hand, the positions of smaller tour operators are becoming increasingly difficult to sustain. These second-stage operators generally strive to maintain high levels of competitiveness by creating specialised or niche offers for customers with specific individual requirements.
Fierce competition in hotel industry
Hotels in Poland has recently become a very competitive category in terms of pricing levels and the quality of services on offer. This is due mainly to the dynamic development of travel accommodation in Poland in general over the review period as the country’s hoteliers are confronted with moderate increases in demand. As a result, the operators of the country’s leading hotels are consistently organising giveaways to maintain the required levels of penetration. Another major area of competition is making improvements to the quality of services on offer. The leaders in this field are generally chained operators which have comparatively high investment capacity. Consequently, this phenomenon has led to an increase in the levels of concentration in hotels in Poland in recent years.
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