In the first three quarters of 2019 our country was visited by 8.2% foreign tourists more than in the first nine months of 2018. The greatest growth rate was recorded in the South Korean market - 67.3%.  

Data covering the first three quarters of 2019 are highly promising. In the first nine months Poland was visited by 16.3 million tourists. According to forecasts for the whole year, 2019 was distinguished by a record-breaking number of tourists travelling to our country.

“We are especially glad to see the stable growth of the number of tourists from European Union member states, with particular emphasis on EU-15, that generate close to 57% of all foreign arrivals. The growth of 5.3% recorded in the first nine months of 2019 means that the number of tourists from the 15 countries increased by more than 460,000”, explains Andrzej Gut-Mostowy, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Economic Development.

Viewed from the perspective of the growth rate, Finland (8.6%) and United Kingdom (8.5%) lead the ranking. The 5% growth recorded by Germany, the largest market under analysis, is a particularly positive trend that translates into more than 250,000 arrivals. Still, the most optimistic growth-related data come from major overseas markets (US - 6.4%, Canada - 10.2%, South Korea - 67.3%, Japan - 7.5%, Australia - 11.8%).

“The growth noted by faraway markets is connected with, among other reasons, the dynamic expansion of the air route network operated by PLL LOT. We are talking about very important tourists, who on average stay more than 16 days in Poland and spend more than 5,500 PLN per person. Polish Tourism Organisation maintains an active presence in all of the discussed markets, with the exception of Australia. I would also like to draw attention to the number of tourists from China growing by more than 11% and the stabilization of the Israeli market. In the latter case, fewer flights did not affect the number of arrivals, which maintained a level similar to 2018”, analysed President of POT Robert Andrzejczyk.

Country/group of countries	Total number of tourists (in thousands)		2019 vs. 2018
	Jan-Sept. 2018	Jan-Sept. 2019
Total	15,041	16,272	8.2%
27 EU member states	10,505	11,024	4.9%
EU-15 member states	8,762	9,223	5.3%
Germany	5,080	5,336	5.0%
United Kingdom	714	774	8.5%
Netherlands	389	414	6.5%
Austria	317	327	3.1%
Italy	416	438	5.3%
France	426	448	5.2%
Sweden	285	296	3.9%
Denmark	183	194	6.1%
Belgium	201	211	5.2%
Spain	322	332	3.2%
Ireland	181	192	6.1%
Finland	153	166	8.6%
Portugal	49	50	2.0%
Greece	39	37	-6.1%
Luxemburg	9	9	8.1%
New EU member states	1 743	1 800	3.3%
Czech Republic	254	271	6.6%
Slovakia	159	171	7.5%
Lithuania	523	530	1.4%
Latvia	301	311	3.1%
Hungary	177	180	1.3%
Estonia	116	117	0.3%
Romania	107	111	4.0%
Bulgaria	44	45	1.6%
Slovenia	25	26	2.8%
Other EU new member states	35	39	9.9%
Non-Schengen neighbours	2,741	3,303	20.5%
Ukraine	1,438	1,944	35.2%
Belarus	602	629	4.5%
Russia	700	729	4.2%
Key overseas markets	632	697	10.3%
US	412	439	6.4%
Canada	82	90	10.2%
South Korea	31	51	67.3%
Japan	67	72	7.5%
Australia	41	45	11.8%
Other countries	1,162	1,248	7.4%
Norway	383	404	5.5%
Switzerland	143	146	2.2%
Turkey	49	45	-7.2%
China*	114	126	11.2%
Brazil	19	22	15.5%
Israel	219	218	-0.4%
India	25	27	9.2%
Others	211	259	22.8%

* Including Hong Kong and Macau

Source: Ministry of Economic Development – Statistics Poland - National Bank of Poland