Four Cities Join Forces Under Shared #CityWillWait Slogan

The World Tourism Organisation estimates that global tourism may lose between 30 and 50 billion USD due to the health and economic crisis caused by the SARS-CoV 2 coronavirus pandemic. This “tourist earthquake” has also hit Poland, which is why the tourism organisations of the four biggest cities (Gdansk, Warsaw, Poznan, Lodz) decided to join forces to work against the consequences of this developing crisis. The activities include a collaborative promotional campaign involving these four cities, advertised using the online channels (social media and tourism websites) of the tourism organisations or their members. These promotional activities aim to maintain interest in travel among visitors to their websites and fan pages, and to encourage them to choose Gdansk, Lodz, Poznan and Warsaw once the current travel restrictions are lifted. The campaign focuses on tourist products and attractions associated with municipal local tourism organisations, such as museums, cultural institutions, hotels and other accommodation facilities, amusement parks, shopping centres, art galleries and events. It also encourages people to discover the cities online, using virtual tours, panoramas and urban games.

The campaign was launched mid-March by the Gdansk Tourism Organisation under the #GdanskWillWait slogan. The initiative and slogan were then shared by other cities, with the organisations in Warsaw, Poznan and Lodz joining the campaign. So far, the four cities have put 56 posts on Facebook and Instagram, reaching 700,000 people. The #CityWillWait campaign is an open one, allowing other cities in Poland to participate at any time. Lublin is about to join while Torun has declared its desire to take part in the campaign.

It is a kind of promise to tourists that these cities will be ready for them after the pandemic ends. Another proof of the power of this campaign is the fact that the four tourism organisations represent a total of 500 entities from the tourism industry.

The coronavirus and resulting economic crisis definitely pose a significant challenge for tourism in Poland, perhaps the biggest one in its history. What can we, living in Poland, do in order to help tourism survive this difficult time? Let’s plan to take our vacations here in this country. Let’s choose Polish cities for short, weekend breaks. Let’s mark our calendars for events that take place in Poland. In doing this, we can help get our tourism back on its feet after the current crisis. Every crisis is followed by a period of stability, modernisation, development and progress. The post-pandemic period is the perfect opportunity to rediscover our country and the beauty of our cities. Certainly, the cities will wait #CityWillWait.

Useful quotes:

Lukasz Wysocki, President of Gdansk Tourism Organisation: “We are glad that so many tourists visit Gdansk and other Polish cities every year. However, their health and safety are always our priority. That is why the Gdansk Tourism Organisation launched the #CityWillWait campaign. We want to encourage people to visit us, but only after the situation improves and we are all safe again. Gdansk can wait a little longer for tourists. Well it is over 1,000 years old.”

Barbara Tutak, President of Warsaw Tourism Organisation: “As local tourism organisations we have been working together for a long time, but our links have never been so strong. The most important thing about this campaign is the mutual support we give each other and the solidarity with everyone who has been affected by this situation. Warsaw has been through a lot, and by sharing this message we hope to bring back its magical power of revival and motivate others to take action.”

Tomasz Koralewski, President of Lodz Tourism Organisation: “We would like to show that when we cannot invite people for a real tour, due to the coronavirus, we can wait patiently. Lodz is almost 600 years old, with 200 years of rapid industrial development to distinguish it from other cities, and this makes us proud. As soon as this crisis is over, we will be pleased to welcome people to our cities again.”

Jan Mazurczak, President of Poznan Local Tourism Organisation: “This campaign is all about cooperation on the local level, with a tourism industry suffering from this crisis, and with other cities. However, #WeWillWait is not just an image campaign, but also a reason to share experiences and initiate collaborative actions in the future. Finally, it is a method of communicating new dates for rescheduled conferences and congresses, which has received positive feedback from the hosts and participants because, in these difficult times, it helps us believe that we can enjoy such meetings in the future.”

More details can be found on the websites of each tourism organisation:

#GdanskWillWait
www.visitgdansk.com
www.facebook.com/visitgdansk.official
www.instagram.com/visit_gdansk_official
Point of Contact: Ewa Stolarek, Gdansk Tourism Organisation
tel. 888 163 702, e-mail: ewa.stolarek@visitgdansk.com

#WarsawWillWait
www.wot.waw.pl
www.facebook.com/WarszawskaOrganizacjaTurystyczna
Point of Contact: Magdalena Swiderska-Harrison, Warsaw Tourism Organisation
tel. 508 118 411, e-mail: magdalena.swiderska@wot.waw.pl

#PoznanWillWait
www.poznan.travel
www.facebook.com/Poznan.travel
www.instagram.com/poznan.travel
Point of Contact: Wojciech Mania, Local Tourism Organisation in Poznan
tel. 661 622 046, e-mail: w.mania@plot.poznan.pl

#LodzWillWait
www.lodz.travel
www.facebook.com/itlodz
www.instagram.com/lodz.travel