In the 21st century, Poland is one of the safest countries in Europe,[5] frequently visited by tourists.
Poland, especially after joining the European Union in 2004 and acceding to the Schengen Agreement in 2007, became a place frequently visited by tourists. Most tourist attractions in Poland are connected with natural environment, historic sites and cultural events.
According to Tourist Institute's data, Poland was visited by 15.7 million tourists in 2006, and by 15 million tourists in 2007,[6] out of the number of arrivals 66.2 million.[7] In 2012, Poland was visited by 13.5 million foreign tourists (those who came during Euro 2012, but did not stay overnight, were not included in official statistics).[8] In 2013, Poland was visited by 15.8 million tourists. In 2016, the number of arrivals to Poland amounted to 80.5 million. 17.5 
of this number are arrivals considered for tourism purposes (with at least one night's stay). In 2019, Poland was visited by 21.4 million tourists, making it the 18th most visited country in the world.
History
The first Polish tourists were pilgrims traveling to shrines both within Poland and abroad. The development of commercial tourism began in the 19th century. The most popular regions were mountains, especially the Tatra Mountains, explored for example by Tytus Chałubiński. In 1873, the Polish Tatra Society and in 1909 the Polish Sightseeing Society were established to organize and develop tourism. The 19th century was also the time of the rapid appearance of spa resorts, mostly in Sudetes, Beskids and along the Baltic Sea coast, with some of them associated, since 1910, with the Polish Balneology Association. After Poland regained independence in 1918, Polish tourism boomed, and was encouraged by the government. The first professional Polish tour operator, Orbis, was founded in Lwów in 1923, followed in 1937 by Gromada tourist organization and tour operator.
After World War II all tourist organizations were nationalized by the new communist government. The Polish Tatra Society and Polish Sightseeing Society were combined into Polish Tourism-Sightseeing Society (PTTK) and most of the tourist infrastructure was handed over to the newly created Workers Vacations Fund (FWP). Tourism was limited to the Comecon countries. This was the era of governmentally-founded tourism, characterised by mass but low-standard tourism. A typical sight was a holiday campground with small bungalows managed by one of the state-owned companies. Holidays for children and teenagers were organized by Juventur.
After the fall of communism much of the infrastructure was privatized, although many company-owned resorts were downgraded because of their unprofitability. The early 1990s saw the foundation of many new tour operators. Some of them prevailed and strengthened their position on the market, being able to compete with multinational tour operators.
In the vicinity of Low Beskids lies a tourist resort that offers a blend of mountainous terrain and an aqueous environment, with Lake Rożnów in the centre.
Tourist infrastructure and facilities are abundant, especially in larger cities and in major tourist resorts. In large Polish cities, urban public transport is very well developed.
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