Poland lacks two- and three-star hotels with moderate prices, but preparations for EURO 2012 will contribute to development of this market segment – in the assessment of hotel sector experts.

- Poland lacks hotels with reasonable prices. We need first of all good two- and three-star hotels – said on Monday Józef Ratajski, the deputy chairman of the Polish Chamber of Tourism (PIT). This opinion is shared by Andrzej Saja of Chamber of Commerce of Polish Hotel Industry (IGHP).

According to the ministry of economy, the biggest benefits from hosting of EURO 2012 will be derived by undertakings in construction and tourism sectors – both the contractors and suppliers of building materials.

Experts stress that investments in the construction of hotels should also take into account the situation of the tourism market after 2012.

- In early 1990ties Poland had 600 hotels; currently there are over 1,320 categorized hotel facilities. In the recent years about 50 hotels were built annually in Poland - said Andrzej Szafrański, the author of the report “Report on the Hotel Market, Investments in Poland in 2007”. After announcement of the UEFA decision on hosting of EURO 2012 by Poland, investors announced their intention to build almost 220 new facilities. Our forecasts predict PLN 2 billion annually of investments in the hotel base – Szafrański continued. – As of today in the entire Mazowieckie voivodeship we have 145 hotels, including 60 in the capital city. This number is definitely insufficient to meet the needs of such an event as EURO 2012 – he added.

UEFA calculated that 70 new hotels should be constructed within a radius of 75 kilometres from Poznań.

The largest hotel chains are already getting ready for investments. The hotel facilities will be built wherever areas allocated to servicing functions are located.

Orbis Company is planning to build 33 one- and two-star hotels with the total capacity of 3,600 rooms by 2010. They will be constructed in such cities as Gdańsk, Gdynia, Katowice, Krakow, Poznań, Wrocław and Warsaw. Orbis will allocate PLN 500 million for this project.

Hilton intends to build over 10 hotels in the forthcoming five years. One of them is likely to be built in Poznań. Radisson chain and the Spanish Alstan Group chain also want to deploy investments in this city.

Sheraton is currently building a hotel in Sopot. There are also plans to expand the hotels located near airports.

Source: Głos Wielkopolski

The Management of the Sport Centre Authority (COS) will meet the minister of sport Tomasz Lipiec once again to talk about extension of the lease of X-lecia Stadium in Warsaw by Damis company – quotes Gazeta.pl. This is a result of Thursday talks between merchants of Europe Fair and COS management.

The talks will concern the timeframe for the lease of X-lecia Stadium by Damis company. On Wednesday the minister of sport informed that the decision on non-extension of the contract with Damis company, which holds X-lecia Stadium on lease, is irrevocable.

- The agreement expires on 30th June this year and this is the last day when the merchants can lawfully trade at Europe Fair. We are determined to recover this area for sport, particularly in view of the European Football Championships EURO 2012 – Lipiec said.

A few days ago the merchants issued a letter to a PiS MP Jolanta Szczypińska concerning the future of the merchants trading at X-lecia Stadium.

- Yesterday the letter found its way into the hands of PiS MPs and as of now it is considered by the Prime Minister. We are waiting for prime minister’s decision - said Lucyna Kwiatek, the president of „Stadion” association.

The merchants were supported by Warsaw councillors, who turned with an appeal to the prime minister Jarosław Kaczyński calling for urgent actions on transfer of another area for merchants’ use. This concerns areas in the neighbourhood of the capital city’s Eastern Railway Station. A resolution on that matter, at a motion from Platforma Obywatelska councillors, was adopted by the City Council during the Thursday meeting.

X-lecia Stadium is Warsaw’s largest sport facility, which is currently used as a fair – one of Europe’s biggest. As late as in 1980ties, country’s most important sport event was held there. The Stadium was also used for cultural and propaganda purposes: concerts, harvest festivals and official celebrations of anniversaries of importance for the People’s Republic of Poland were held there.

A modern National Sport Centre, which will be one of EURO 2012 arenas, is to be erected in place of X-lecia Stadium.

Source: Gazeta.pl

The government wants to accelerate construction of major Polish roads by as many as four years. According to „Dziennik”, the Ministry of Transport is adjusting the investment programme for the years 2007-2015 to account for the date of the beginning of the football championships EURO 2012.

The modifications will be submitted for interministerial consultations in the forthcoming days – Dziennik writes.

The new plans assume that 700 km of new motorways and 1900 km of new express roads will be constructed by the end of 2011.

As a result the motorways network will have the total of 1900 km, and the total length of express roads will reach 3100 km. But this will cost a lot: still before beginning of EURO 2012 we will spend on roads more than PLN 100 billion out of PLN 131 billion planned for the forthcoming 8 years.

Which investments will be accelerated by roadmen? First of all construction of A-4 motorway. By the beginning of the championships it must be ready in its entirety. It will become the most important road corridor for EURO participants and fans, connecting Poland and Western Europe with the other host of the football matches - Ukraine.

Due to the above, as early as in 2011 drivers will have the possibility to ride from Krakow to Tarnów, and then to Rzeszów and on to the state border in Korczowa.

At the same time construction will be completed of S-7 road from Gdańsk to Warsaw and partly of S-5 road between Bydgoszcz, Poznań and Wrocław.

It is also planned to complete works on S-7 road between Radom and Jędrzejowo as well as Lubień and Rabka. The section from Warsaw to Radom will be ready earlier - in 2009.

Source: „Dziennik”, Adam Woźniak, „Motorways are accelerating”

In Ukraine, there has been a surprise reaction to the news that it has been chosen to host the Euro 2012 along with neighbouring Poland.

The joint bid by the two former Soviet bloc countries had been considered as only having an outside chance of winning, while Italy had been the favourite.

Like Poland, Ukraine has never hosted a major sporting event before.

With tears in his eyes, the president of the Ukrainian Football Federation, Hryhory Surkis, said that for his country it was the greatest result in the history of the game.

Football has a passionate following here, especially since last year when Ukraine took part in the World Cup finals for the first time.

For many people, though, it was a real shock that Ukraine was chosen to co-host the Euro 2012.

“We all hoped for this, and - despite the fact that we had really very strong competitors - we hoped that the victory would be ours and, when this came true, it filled me with emotion,” one fan said.

“I am really surprised and very happy that such a big event will be held in Ukraine,” another fan said.

“A lot of people hoped that it would be held here, and I think it’s great for our country and I feel really proud,” she said.

Celebrations have been somewhat muted, as Ukraine is in the middle of a political crisis.

One TV channel said that it was a great joy for people amid the total craziness of politics.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, who took part in the presentation of the bid in Cardiff, said it was a chance for this county to unite.

He declared this was a beautiful opportunity for Ukrainians and Poles to put on an extraordinary sporting event.

Source: BBC News

Big screens carried the announcement live in Warsaw city centre.

There were similar reactions in other cities across the country.

Poland has never hosted an event like the Euro 2012.

And many people here believed they stood little chance against the experience of a country like Italy. Winning caught some fans by surprise.

“We assumed that Italy will win and actually it was a really big surprise for us,” one fan said.

“I am very happy and very proud. So, hopefully, we will be up to the task and finish building stadiums and all the stuff that is needed for the Euro.”

Poland’s crumbling communist-era football grounds are well below Uefa standards. And the country lacks the hotels and highways needed for such an event.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski said the infrastructure would be built but he added there were five years of hard work ahead.

For most people though, the announcement was simply a moment to celebrate.

As one of the country’s leading TV sports presenters put it, it was as if Poland had just beaten Brazil in the World Cup final.

Source: BBC News

Yes, against all the odds, Poland and Ukraine will be hosting the European Football Championships in 2012! Their joint bid was announced successful by UEFA chief Michel Platini in Cardiff on 18th April 2007, winning out over more favoured bids by Italy and Croatia/Hungary - and causing widespread jubilation throughout the two Eastern Europe countries.

The action will be spread over six cities in Poland: Warsaw, Gdansk, Poznan, Wroclaw, Chorzow and Krakow; and four cities in Ukraine: Kiev, Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk. Kiev’s Olympic Stadium, which hosted the football at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, is the proposed venue for the final.

Winning Euro 2012 could bring enormous financial benefits to both Poland and the Ukraine, with some analysts putting the figures as high as 3 billion US Dollars worth of revenue. The tournament will also help shift the balance of power in football, and bring in resources and prestige to help boost the games of East European countries which have traditionally made little mark in international competitions. Euro 2012 will be the first major footballing event held by a country behind, or formerly behind, the Iron Curtain since Yugoslavia hosted the European Football Championships in 1976. It will be the first major sporting event of any kind hosted by an East European country since Moscow Olympics 1980.

Great news then for this part of the world, and a fantastic chance for Poland and Ukraine to show the world what they’re capable of, both in terms of organising the event and competing in it! Of course, we’ll keep you in the know with all the latest Euro 2012 news, fixtures and results - and, if you’re coming to Warsaw to watch a match, we’ll give you the low down on accommodation for booking hotels and apartments, give you travel information and details on getting to and from the airport, plus provide you with a very handy map for tracking down those stadiums. Oh, and we might have a few titbits on pubs, bars and nightlife you might want to read up on!

If however you are travelling to Euro 2012 for matches in other Polish or Ukrainian cities be sure to call on our friends in Gdansk, Poznan, Wroclaw, Krakow, Kiev and Lviv for the most complete guides to the action and the cities.

source: warsaw-life.com