Party space in Cracow and Warsaw: partying and conflicts

Abstract

Central European cities became popular party tourism destinations after the enlargement of the European Union in 2004. Cracow and Warsaw became one of the most popular such destinations among Polish cities. With the increase in the number of tourists in both cities the incomes of local entrepreneurs increased, especially owners of restaurants, bars and clubs, but over time the presence of many drunken, behaving improperly tourists from abroad became the cause of conflicts with the local population and other tourists. These conflicts occur mainly in public spaces, near places with the highest concentration of bars and clubs. Such spaces can be called a before party zones (for bars and pubs) and party or clubbing zones (for clubs). This paper presents such zones in Cracow and Warsaw.

Urban party zones and their changes in former communist countries on the example of Polish cities

“…Similar zones appeared in many cities of former socialist countries, e.g. in Budapest, Cracow, Riga or Warsaw (Low, 2009;Smith, Puczko, 2010;Iwanicki, Dłużewska, 2018), but a few years later than they did in Western countries, because clubbing was non-existent in the communist environment, and Western electronic music was barely available. The fall of communist governments in Central and Eastern Europe in 1989 and 1990 was followed by political and economic transformations, as well as social and cultural changes.…”

“…The analysis was supplemented by identifying two additional clubbing zones: Nissi beach and ships moored in the eastern part of the city. Similarly, zones with the highest concentration of venues with dance music and bars in Warsaw and Cracow were delimited in a study on conflicts between partygoers and the local community (Iwanicki, Dłużewska, 2018).…”

Deconstructing the Overtourism-Related Social Conflicts

“…In 2011, Mika [121] identified the tourism-related conflict factors by stressing the Old Town's multifunctional character and the ensuing differences in the ways it is used, especially the conflict between the tourist and residential functions, overcrowding during the peak season, and contradictions among various forms of tourist traffic. Moreover, the short-term rentals' expansion [122] and popularization of the amenities for low-budget entertainment tourism [123] have exacerbated the situation. As a result, the touristic pressure on housing resources [124], in particular those due to the tourist rentals proliferation via the Internet platforms (such as Airbnb), impacts the entire Old Town Quarter and the adjacent areas, such as Podgórze [120].…”

Una aproximación geográfica a los impactos de la turistificación del ocio nocturno en el barrio de Cais do Sodré, Lisboa

“…Ante ello, la atención académica al fenómeno de la expansión del ocio nocturno comercial y/u orientado al turismo ha adoptado una trayectoria paralela a la multiplicación del amplio abanico de efectos negativos producidos por el llamado "turismo de fiesta" (Diken y Laustsen, 2004;Horner y Swarbrooke, 2004;Bell, 2008;Thurnell-Read, 2012;Iwanicki y Dłużewska, 2018;Smith et al, 2018;Pinke-Sziva et al, 2019;Mach, Connors, Lechtman, Plante y Uerling, 2022). De hecho, David Bell (2008, p. 293) afirmaba que, a inicios de la década de 2000, muchas ciudades europeas empezaron a promocionar áreas urbanas con una elevada presencia de locales de ocio nocturno como "zona[s] liminal[es] ambivalentemente regulada[s]", surgiendo como atractivos destinos de escape de la rutina urbana cotidiana en los cuales los turistas podían "recargar sus pilas y, por ende, volver a entrar en la sociedad relajados y renovados" (Ib.).…”