The Christmas Market as an Attractive Tourist Product of Cracow

Purpose. The main aim of this article was to show that Cracow’s Christmas Market is an attractive tourism product, type-event. Method. The study was carried out with the diagnostic poll method. The author's questionnaire, which was prepared in cooperation with the Congregation of Merchants and the Institute of Tourism, was used. The simple random sample, which was selected from visitors who came for a Christmas Market, was constituted by 518 Poles and 56 foreigner tourists. Findings. The subjects had clearly indicated that Christmas Market is an attractive tourism product. This is confirmed by the fact that: 96.3% of them recommend the Christmas Market to their friends and 61% of them claim that the Christmas Market is the most attractive trade event in the centre of Cracow. The results also showed some lacks in the area of promotion and organization. However, this did not result in a low rating of the event itself. Research and conclusions limitations. The study was carried out on a simple, random sample. Due to the lack of previous research on this event, it is difficult to reference previous editions. Cyclical repetition of research with the use of the same methodology would allow deeper investigation of the phenomenon in the future. Practical implications. The research is a valuable contribution to the development of the Cracow Christmas Market. Visitors’ feedback gave organizers a chance to focus on elimination of weaker parts and to work on highlighting the most interesting elements and to improve the event in subsequent years. Originality. This is the first publication on the Christmas Market in Cracow as a tourism product. Type of paper. Original work, demonstrating the results of empirical research.