SPATA Zaprasza!
Miejsca ograniczone, RSVP Today!

The 2025 SPATA Annual Oplatek Banquet brought together the Polish Community on the first snow of the year. The event celebrates the Polish Catholic tradition of sharing the communion wafer, symbolically in larger numbers, representing forgiveness and reconciliation and welcoming the new year with optimism and togetherness. SPATA’s tradition of celebrating Oplatek dates back to the beginnings of the 65 years organization and through the years has become a popular annual event that invites Polish tourism organizations, members of media, celebrities, artists, and leaders of the Polish community together with all Polish people. Attendees begin the event in prayer, then enjoy Polish food, Polish music, and Polish culture in an exciting evening that puts a smile on everyone’s face.

This year the president of SPATA Honorata Pierwoła welcomed as guest of honor Paula Fanderowska, the new director of the Polish National Tourist Office (PNTO) for the United States and Canada. Paula is an accomplished diplomat for Poland, representing Polish interests as the Polish Consul in Caracas, vice president of the management board at Krakow5020 (ICE Kraków Congress Centre operator) that strengthened Krakow’s brand globally, president of the Conferences and Congresses Association in Poland, vice president of TUgether’s Meetings and Events Industry Council, and member of the Council of the Polish Tourism Organization. She was ranked one of the 100 most influential people in the event industry at Eventex 2021 as well as various other rankings that listed her among the 100 most influential people in the Polish tourism industry.

Paula is an experienced leader, MICE industry speaker, mentor and academic lecturer in business tourism, as well as author behind many industry publications. She is expertly active in Poland’s key cross-sector networks and regularly participates in some of the most impactful nationwide and regional consultations for the industry including the “Sustainable Tourism Policy of Krakow for 2021-2028.” In addition to the nominations above, she was recognized by the jury of MP Power Awards in 2018 and 2021, received a special recognition from the Deputy Minister for Sport & Tourism, Andrzej Gut-Mostowy “for merits to tourism” and was nominated for the UN’s prestigious Rise and Raise Others award in 2022. She is also highly accomplished academically, receiving an MBA in Integrated Management from the University of Economics of Krakow and the StGallen Integrated imt Business School. She is also a graduate of the Jagiellonian University and scholarship holder at universities in Spain. She also graduated in Management and Marketing at the Higher School of Management and Banking in Krakow and in International Relations and Diplomacy at Collegium Civitas in Warsaw, with an impressive track record in attracting large international conferences to Poland such as ICCA 2022, exploring new formats and innovating towards more sustainable/resilient, hybrid events.

SPATA is proud to welcome Paula to her new position and looks forward to collaborating on Polish interests in the United States and abroad.

SPATA Zaprasza na
Konferencje Turystyki Medycznej!

SPATA’s next initiative is collaborating with the Polish Consulate and the Polish Organization of Tourism (POT) on the Senior Care, Wellness, & Medical Tourism Conference at the Polish Consulate in New York City. This important event will present information about traveling to Poland for all services that have to do with your health, including medical procedures, world-class spas and wellness resorts, and rest & relaxation. The event will feature some of Poland’s top medical and wellness professionals and will answer all your questions about prices, preparation, options, and services. Learn how you can pay a fraction of the price to enjoy not just some of the top medical services and facilities in Europe, but afford a vacation to visit beautiful Poland and rest and relax while recovering.

RSVP soon as space is limited and this event will fill up!

Special USA Premiere!
History of SPATA Exhibition

Premiering internationally at The Hague, in the Netherlands, and featured at the Kongres Turystyki Przyszłości in Kołobrzeg, and now for the first time in the United States, the History of SPATA Exhibition by Miłosz Pierwoła, Esq., based on archives maintained by SPATA Secretary Zofia Strzałka, honors 65 years of SPATA’s achievements in promoting Poland and Polonia interests in the United States and across the world. The exhibition tells the story of a handful of Polish travel bureaus that created a dream in their bylaws which has manifested through the incredible hard work of hundreds of Polish-American travel agents into one of the most successful and influential Polonia organizations in the world. Learn about the incredible history of this organization as they organize the next stage of Polish tourism, medical and wellness services.