Tourists from Galicia in Dalmatia and Istria during the Austro-Hungarian period

This paper is a study of tourist travels from Galicia to the Adriatic Sea’s coast: to Dalmatia and Istria. Since the 18th century, the Kingdom of Poland was partitioned between the Austrian, Prussian and Russian Empires. When tourism became more popular in the 19th century, an increasing number of Polish (mostly) aristocrats from the Galicia decided to spend their free time on the Adriatic coast. It is worth emphasizing that it was the only sea Austria had access to. Thus, Poles created an original culture within the region during the period between 19th and 20th century. In Opatija (Abacja) they became owners of several hotels as well as exclusive apartments. There were working Polish doctors, hotels’ staff, etc. Some number of Poles bought private islands, like Ignacy Korwin-Milewski in terms of Santa Clara Island. It was even said in the region that the Adriatic was a ‘Polish sea’. This paper is a pioneer in jointly analyzing the influence of Poles, who, even though didn’t have an independent state, were able to expand far away from their homeland.