Enjoy your holidays, where the best athletes train, and where you can experience the Olympic spirit yourself.

Poland is a country where anyone - even people with disabilities - can get involved in sports. This was clearly shown by this year’s Polish Paralympians, who have always trained in Poland to achieve their success (winning twice as many medals as their fellow Olympians!).

(Image: Polish Paralympic Committee) Good environment for passion

Poles finished the Paralympic Games in Paris with joy and satisfaction. What are the sources of this success? Apart from the intangible factors of talent and determination, it is also the measurable, material environment that matters - infrastructure and rehabilitation. And these are very well developed in Poland.

Paralympians from all of the world confirm it by coming to Poland to experience the multiannual know-how in supporting athletes with disabilities. Luckily, the inclusive sporting and tourist infrastructure in Poland is not reserved for the elite - it is available for everybody.

Special sporting energy can be found in regions famous for their sports centres - from Silesian Beskids with the key centre of Paralympic preparations - “Start” in Wisła; to Lower Silesia, where sporting activities focus in Duszniki-Zdrój; to Pomerania with its Central Sports Centre in Władysławowo, where many brilliant careers started. Importantly, all those objects are open for tourists, too.

Good infrastructure in all three regions, their charming landscapes and friendliness of the regional communities create a strong impulse for people with disabilities to start a new sport-centred chapter in their lives.

Wisła - a jewel in Silesian Beskids, loved by athletes

“Start” centre in Wisła has a long and proud tradition of training national representatives and it easily wins the hearts of all active travellers. Guests have access to a track and field stadium, football pitch, table tennis rooms, rooms for combat sports and fencing, swimming pool, as well as a professional offer of physical therapy and spa.

Inclusive infrastructure is not only a hallmark for the centre, but also for the entire region. Silesian Beskids are perfectly adapted to the needs of people with disabilities. Here, you will find a rich offer of hiking routes available for people with motion disabilities, carefully checked for availability for traditional and electric wheelchairs.

There are more than enough ideas for a hike. Wisła - a picturesque place in the heart of the mountains - is a perfect starting point for hiking. For those who have come to the region for the first time, it’s a good idea to start the adventure with a route known as the most beautiful site in Silesian Beskids: a walk through the valley of Biała Wisełka along the dynamic torrent to waterfall of Rodło Cascade.

The route is available for wheelchairs, trolleys and bicycles. Ambitious hikers may continue walking to the top of Barania Góra. 

(Image: Polish Paralympic Committee) Lower Silesia for body and spirit

Original landscape, a combination of mountains and lowlands, and Alpine atmosphere contrasted with vine-covered slopes - Lower Silesia constantly fascinates its visitors with wild nature, spa resorts and lively cities.

People with disabilities may enjoy the beauty of this region to the full. There are almost 180 tourist routes adapted to their needs, and the project “Sudetes with no barriers” organises multiple trips which allow their participants to climb atop several mountains in the Crown of Lower Silesia, and in summer, to watch Perseids in Izera Mountains.

Those who like intense exercising and true regeneration should travel to Duszniki-Zdrój with the excellently equipped sports centre (open for all guests, not only athletes). However, this historical town in the valley of Bystrzyca Dusznicka was first recognised in the history of European tourism as a spa resort.

It welcomed its first official patients in the 18th century. It is famous for its highly-mineralised alkaline acidic waters. Even nowadays, these waters support treatment of circulatory, digestive, respiratory diseases, treatment of osteoporosis and locomotor system disorders.

Pomerania - waves of active recreation

Those who love active recreation are attracted not only to the lovely shores of the Baltic Sea (in many places, equipped with convenient infrastructure, and elsewhere, wild and natural), but also hundreds of kilometres of hiking routes, two wonderful landscape parks, clean lakes, winding rivers, open-air museums and beautifully preserved monuments.

The region is very popular among tourists with limited mobility, because many beaches are accessible for them, and there are quite a few sightseeing tours adapted to their needs (e.g. water bus tour from Gdynia to Hel Peninsula, which is the northernmost fragment of the Polish shore, or cruise in the historic Gdańsk).

And if we want to see for ourselves where sporting talents are shaped and to experience the Olympic spirit, Władysławowo is the right place to go. The Sports Centre here is perfectly designed for athletes with disabilities and it offers a broad range of rehabilitation and recreation services for all guests. 

(Image: Polish Paralympic Committee) Mission: stimulate the sporting spirit

“Go outdoors, feel the space, feel the sport” -  at the Paris Games Kamil Otowski, a double gold medallist in para swimming stated clearly where the success originated. It all starts with a bold decision and choice to move. Of course, for people with disabilities, there’s nothing simple about simply going out.

However, Polish regions efficiently work to make everyday physical activity, beautiful places, and new experiences accessible for everybody. It’s really a perfect place to come to as the first step toward a passion for sports!