Before 2026 properly gets underway, and as you know, January will be particularly intense, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on 2025 from my perspective. I have not previously written a year-end recap, so please allow me to do this a little more personally.
Professionally, it was a genuinely strong year: full of challenges, interesting projects, business travel, trade shows and, above all, countless conversations about promoting Poland and delivering events of every kind across the country. It was also a year of change and new perspectives.
Writing articles
One moment that will stay with me is the June gala celebrating the 100th edition of THINK MICE. It was a powerful reminder of the industry’s unity and momentum, and it also marked a natural moment to summarise four years of my writing for the blog column. During that time, I published 11 articles in my monthly expert column. Thank you to the THINK MICE team.
IMEX digital team in Warsaw
The year always starts at pace with FBE, but for me, January 2025 also meant the presentation of recommendations for convention bureaux, PCOs and ITCs by the Polish Tourism Organisation’s Poland Convention Bureau (POT PCB). There was also one exceptional story that began earlier: a seed planted during a short meeting at IMEX America 2024, which delivered a great result in 2025.
The IMEX marketing team, including Suzanne Mulligan and Sophie Pink, came to Warsaw not only to deliver a session on digital marketing but also, together with the Warsaw Convention Bureau, to run a two-day city tour focused on creating content for event planners. To this day, on the IMEX Group Instagram, Warsaw is the only city, outside Las Vegas and Frankfurt, featured in their signature style, and the reels from that visit remain among the most viewed.
New openings and press trips
I will also remember 2025 through the lens of several outstanding venues. The opening of Highline Warsaw with a terrace on the 53rd floor of Varso Tower, plus a garden and event space on the 49th floor of what is currently the tallest building in the European Union, was particularly memorable. I had the opportunity to visit four times, each in a different role, including an April visit with a French journalist writing about Warsaw’s event proposition.
This year also stood out for its hotel experiences: Radisson Blu Sopot, a trip to Mövenpick Grand Hotel Wrocław (the first Accor city hotel brand of its kind in Poland), and voco Katowice, the first voco property in Poland, which is a great example of contemporary design while retaining key elements of the iconic former “Hotel Katowice” from the PRL era.
I also cannot overlook Pałac Kamieniec in the Kłodzko Valley, a place where the owners’ passion has restored and reimagined a once-declining property at the edge of Poland. Three different eras underpin these remarkable transformations.
Several multi-day familiarisation tours, including trips to Bydgoszcz and Lower Silesia, once again highlighted the strong potential of these destinations for hosting a wide range of events.
Although my family comes from Lower Silesia, it was the first time I visited a former Cistercian monastery in Lubiąż, Lądek-Zdrój, Złoty Jar in Złoty Stok, and Srebrna Góra Fortress.
Bydgoszcz surprised me with its musical heritage, the newly opened campus of the Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music, boutique restaurants, cruises on the Brda River, and the nearby Palace in Ostromecko.
Poland Convention Bureau
So much happened at the Poland Convention Bureau this year that there were weeks when it felt like working in a newsroom. We had an exceptionally high number of initiatives, events and successes to share with the media, as well as through our own websites and social channels. Discover it on our website, Meetings.poland.travel.
Laboratorium Twórców presentations and workshops
During the 2025 edition of Laboratorium Twórców, we hosted experts not only from IMEX, but also Dr Łukasz Sarna and Marcin Maciejewski.
I also had the opportunity to deliver presentations at the Polish Tourism Organisation headquarters for Erasmus students from the Tourism and Recreation Department of the Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw, as well as to our Polish industry community at:
- Hala Stulecia in Wrocław
- Czocha Castle
- during the first MICE-EXPO at PreZero Arena Gliwice
- and at an MPI Poland Chapter meeting
A completely new experience for me was speaking on stage during the ICCA CEC Meeting 2025 at Poznań Event Hub, and I am glad I could share practical best practices with our international guests in Poznań.
Trade shows and events
Each year, I feel proud to support our partners through the Poland Convention Bureau, represent Poland, and promote our destination at major industry events or dedicated workshops. In 2025, this included
For the first time, we also brought together a Polish group for the IMEX Run in Frankfurt, and I am counting on you again this year. Buyers and organisers are increasingly aware of Poland’s potential and are looking for concrete products and compelling storytelling they can build into their events.
MPI Mentor
The year ended with something new for me and a real honour: I was invited to become a mentor in the MPI Future Professionals mentoring programme. I have been matched with one mentee on the opening day, and I hope to share knowledge and experience that will support their development and career path within our industry.
Discover more: MPI Future Professionals mentoring programme.
If you would like to see 2025 and its places through my eyes, I invite you to visit my Instagram: @jaroslaw_marciuk, where you will find photos and reels that often say more than words.
These business trips across Poland, visits with international guests, and trade shows have taught me one thing: our industry looks completely different from the perspective of a presentation than it does from the perspective of lived experience. There is no better report on the MICE sector than travel, conversation and the people behind it. People matter most, and we have outstanding professionals.
Wishing you a successful 2026, and see you soon.
