The hills are alive with the sound of Gulf tourists
Nestled deep in southern Poland's Tatra Mountains is the small resort town of Zakopane, where thousands of holidaymakers from the region have flocked for alpine views and hiking trails.
"We've completely taken over the place," says Fahad Alayyash, a 38-year-old photographer from Saudi Arabia, standing on Gubalowka, as he gazed over the panorama of the Tatras, Poland's highest mountain range.
Below him visitors drink coffee, shop for souvenirs, take photos of cows and enjoy the view.
Zakopane has become a major summer draw for holidaymakers from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, with up to seven daily flights to the regional capital Krakow, about a two-hour drive north.
The boom started with a Saudi travel agency representative, says Agata Wojtowicz, head of the Tatra chamber of commerce. She said the official came to Zakopane to scout a new destination with a direct connection to the Gulf and "was astonished" by the town.
Emiratis become Poland's fastest-growing tourist group
Flydubai launched the first Dubai-Krakow connection in 2018 and Emiratis are now coming in droves - helped by their visa-free access to the European Union.
Last year they were Poland's fastest-growing tourist group, according to the tourism ministry, with numbers 66 per cent higher than in 2023.
Manal Al Anazy, a 45-year-old educational technology professor at King Saud University, said Zakopane is well-known among Saudis.
"When I told my dad and my brother that I'm going to Poland, my brother didn't like it. He said: 'It's all Gulf people there,'" she says.
Zakopane uses social media to attract Gulf tourists who have created "a snowball effect" of growing interest, says Wojtowicz.
Over the past three years, Arab influencers have been invited on promotional visits, according to Grzegorz Biedron, chairman of its tourism organisation.
Both Al Anazy and Abdullah Al Otaibi, a 30-year-old Kuwaiti ship captain, learned about Zakopane from social media.
"I saw on Twitter (X) a thread about Zakopane, and how it treats all people the same, and there is no racism about religions, so I liked it and I came," said Al Otaibi.
Halal menus and safety
Arab tourists cite the feeling of safety as one of Zakopane's key assets.
"It was dark and I was walking... I'm like, 'You're not in Poland, you're in one of the Gulf countries. Just look. Nothing will happen,'" said Al Anazy.
For Zakopane's business owners, the Gulf clientele has been a blessing.
"This year, around two-thirds are Arabs," Anna Stoch-El Einen, who owns a kebab restaurant and souvenir shop, said of her customers.
"We have very few Polish tourists in the region, perhaps because of the weather," she says.
The hospitality industry has adapted fast to the preferences of Middle East visitors.
Stoch-El Einen offers menus in Polish and Arabic, and has a "halal" certificate displayed over the counter.
"We also make sure that we have a halal menu," said Wiktor Wrobel, CEO of the region's Nosalowy hotel group.
Arab customers constitute up to 30 per cent of all summer guests at his five-star hotel in Zakopane.
City mayor Lukasz Filipowicz said "local entrepreneurs are very happy about the presence of tourists from the Middle East".
He said the biggest challenge was the difference in driving cultures, with visitors often breaking parking and entry laws.
"Every municipal police patrol is equipped with a handbook in Arabic ... so that tourists from the Middle East can understand and comply with the applicable regulations," Filipowicz said.
'Weather is perfect in Zakopane'
The day is rainy, but the drizzle did not deter Gulf visitors escaping the summer heat. Al Anazy initially wanted to vacation in Paris.
"I cancelled because the heatwave hit the European countries," she said, adding that "the weather is perfect" in Zakopane.
Wrobel said climate change is a reason behind the surge in Zakopane's popularity.
"The respite that visitors from Arab countries are looking for cannot be found in Italy or Spain, where temperatures have also risen significantly," he says.
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