POLAND- GOLDEN CERTIFICATE

PLACES RECOGNIZED WITH THE GOLDEN CERTIFICATE OF THE POLISH TOURIST ORGANISATION

1.       GOLD MONE AND MEDIEVAL TECHNOLOGY PARK IN ZLOTY STOK – GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2015

The Gold Mine is visited by over 250 thousand tourists each year. In the Gertrude mineshaft, visitors can view and exceptional museum exhibition with a collection of maps, minerals and mining tools and a furnace for smelting gold. In the Passage of Death, they come face to face with the Gnome, and in the Black mineshaft they can admire the only underground waterfall in Poland. Additional attractions include: an underground boat ride on the Titannic, panning for gold and casting gold bars. It is only place in Europe where a faithful replica of a medieval mining village has been created, complete with working equipment.

2.       JURASSIC PARK IN KRASIEJOW- GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2014

It is Europe’s largest open air paleontological theme park. On the area of 40 hectares there are reconstructed about 200 unique full size dinosaur models. Visitors can discover the world as it was millions of years ago and stand face to face with prehistoric reptiles. Among the attractions which help popularize knowledge, there are: a 3D multimedia Time Tunnel, the Paleontological Pavilion displaying genuine dinosaur bones, a 5D Cinema, a 3D Prehistoric Aquarium and a multi media museum dedicated to the genesis of the human species.

3.       WOODEN ARCHITECTURE TRAIL IN LESSER POLAND- GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2013

The section of the trail which crosses through Lesser Poland is 1060 km long. It includes 251 unique masterpieces of wooden architecture, four of which have been inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage list. The trail is divided into 4 picturesque routes:

a)      Around Krakow

b)      Around Tranow

c)       Around Nowy Sacz and Gorlice

d)      Arava , Podhale, Spisz and the Pieniny mountains

4.       The Trail of the “ Eaggles’Nests- Golden Certificate 2012

The trail derives its name from the ruins of 14^th century castles and strongholds it passes by. Like eagles’ nest, they were built on inaccessible rocks, some of them even 30 metres high. The Trail begins in Krakow and ends in Czestochowa. Some of the castles were restored to a great extent, such the Ogrodzieniec or Bobolice castles, teeming with life like they did century’s ago.They become venues for interesting exhibitions and various kinds of events. The trail has a lot to offer for the soul, but also for the body, as it promotes active ways of spending free time (hiking, cycling, horseback riding, rock climbing, caving etc)

5.       WOODSTOCK FESTIVAL POLAND GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2011

One of the most recognizable events in Poland, the festival takes place every year in Kostrzyn on the order in late July and early August. It is a way of saying thank you to everyone involved in the January fundraising organized by the foundation “ Wielka Orkiestra Swiatecznej Pomocy “ ( Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity “, which has been taking place since the mid-1990s

6.       MANUFAKTURA IN LODZ – GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2010

Manufaktura is culture m entertainment, services and shopping, all rolled into one. Old factory walls are today home to one of Central Europe’s largest and most impressive shopping centres, complete with a luxury 4 star hotel, an entertainment centre (including a cinema multiplex with 15 screens , a bowling hall , an indoor climbing wall , a fitness club and a skate park) , as well as a cultural complex consisting of : the Museum of Art, Kinderplaneta, the Museum of the City of Lodz, Museum of the Factory ,The Experymentarium , the International centre for the Promotion of Fashion and the small theatre. Right in the middle of Manufaktura there is a 3.5 hectare square in which concerts, sports competitors and other events are organized. In the summer part of the square turns into a sandy beach and in the winter it becomes an ice skating rink. Sure to leave a lasting impression is the longest fountain in Europe, stretching for 300m.

7.       AUGUSTOW CANAL – THE PAPAL TRAIL – GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2009

The Augustow Canal is invaluable masterpiece of water construction, unique on the European Scale, dating from the first half of the 19^th century. It is one of the longest man made waterways in Poland and at the same time it is a historical monument of Polish hydraulic and at the same time it was marked out to commemorate the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1999. One can enjoy a picturesque boat ride as the Papal Trail goes through the most beautiful parts of the Augustow Primaeval Forest, paases over numerous lakes, the Czarna Hancza River and the Augustow Canal itself.

8.       THE INDUSTRIAL MONUMENTS ROUTE –GOLDEN CERTIFICATE 2008.

It is a thematic tourist car route, spanning across the whole region, of Silesia, from Czestochowa, through Upper Silesia as far as to the Beskidy Mountains. It is composed of sites connected with mining   and metallurgic tradition, power industry , railway engineering , communication , water production and food industry. The route guaranteed an unforgettable journey through mines, breweries , unusual museums and factories.It is aslo unique opportunity to take part in an underground boat ride, have fun at a concert 320 metres below the ground or stay overnight in beautiful apartments which were once working class settlements.