The Malta Tourism Authority welcomes ITAKA Poland in 2024

A leading tour operator for the Polish market to the Maltese Islands

In a prestigious event in earlier this year, the MTA Chairman Dr Gavin Gulia welcomed and thanked ITAKA Poland for their commitment to the market, for visiting and experiencing the Maltese Islands, and for hosting one of their conferences in our country.

Prior to this event, the VisitMalta Regional Office in Warsaw and ITAKA Poland had signed a collaborative agreement which establishes the promotion and marketing of the Maltese Islands, highlighting mostly the winter months among travellers. This agreement also covers the sales of package holidays to prospective visitors throughout the year.

Such collaboration will continue strengthening the promising numbers of the Polish market in the local tourism industry. Most importantly such exposure will add to the brand visibility of the Maltese Islands in the Polish market and the surrounding countries.

Since 2015, Malta has been strategically widening its tourist source markets for a more sustainable approach, without losing any of its previous tourist volumes from core markets. This has subsequently lessened dependency on certain markets and added tourist traffic from several other destinations. A few years later, in 2019, this strategy recorded tourism growth from secondary markets, with Poland in particular attracting more than 100,000 visitors.

This growth in numbers encouraged the Malta Tourism Authority to continue investing in Polish tourism. Hence, in 2022, a new regional VisitMalta office was inaugurated in Warsaw to serve as a hub for Poland and the neighbouring countries, and to cater for the ever-growing audience of the market.

The Polish market in the local tourism scene continued growing rapidly in the following years, with inbound Polish tourists exceeding 160,000 in 2023. These successes were due to the MTA’s specialised marketing strategies in the market, which included online and digital campaigns, print advertising, social media exposure, together with radio and other outdoor advertising campaigns, the hosting of social media influencers, and promotion of the Maltese Islands on popular Polish TV stations.

Other elements are currently being explored, from flight connectivity to agreements with several other tour operators and airlines. The Maltese Islands are already enjoying accessibility with direct flights to a number of airports in Poland. These factors contributed to the successful results obtained in the past year.

The collaborative agreement between the Malta Tourism Authority and ITAKA Poland will hence encourage more Polish travellers to visit Malta throughout the year. Whether for a short break, to learn English or for a relaxing family holiday, Polish visitors will find a warm and hospitable Maltese destination for their enjoyment. Malta’s diverse tourism product will offer an exceptional holiday experience for all ages and demographics.

During the event in January, Chairman Dr Gulia concluded that the MTA is confident that the influx of visitors from Poland and the neighbouring countries will persist in its growth over the upcoming years. The successful recovery of the tourism sector in Malta was also due to the emergence of new secondary markets, such as Poland, that are contributing to our Islands’ tourism.