Our devoted British readers will know that a “Highland Fling” is the national dance of Scotland. And a “fling” is a wild party! Now the Krakow international stag can combine the two for the first time.

About 100km to the south of the city are the Tatra Mountains, a huge natural barrier between Poland and Slovakia. These are the highest peaks of the Carpathian mountain range and resemble the Alps in terms of topography and climate. The one of the most popular peaks commonly accessible is Gubalowka at 1.126 m (3,694 ft) which overshadows the town of Zakopane.

Zakopane has long been the winter capital of Poland and, just 2 hours from Krakow by road, is a magnet for the many visitors attracted by the stunning scenery, mountaineering, skiing, hiking, caving, zorbing, snow mobiling and myriad other activities…

The Highland Fling is a package offering a great day out including the following:

• Roundtrip transfers
• Reservation in traditional local restaurant with superb views over the Tatras. Whatever the average order of the group, the stag will eat and drink free of charge
• Guide attendance and assistance
• First round of beer or vodka shot in restaurant
• Great discounts on winter activities

And the price? From just 29 GBP per person with accommodation package or 39 GBP/pp if taken as activity only.

Zakopane is also the centre of Goral (Highland) culture which is very different from others in Poland. The people are fiercely independent, have their own dialect, food and architecture (large wooden houses in which to cladding timber is insulated by plaited straw) and are singularly quirky! They are also hugely hospitable and very friendly until somebody offends them (or a family member or pet). There is one restaurant where an ancient tradition is practised in which guys wearing ties have them cut off with scissors! Most Krakow stags won’t be affected, however!

Activities to go with the Highland Fling package: Snow mobiling, snow rafting & tubing, thermal springs, rope park, zorbing- check the other articles to find out more about them ! Fing out more…

]]> http://www.partykrakow.com/kracking-blog/the-highland-fling.html/feed 0 http://www.partykrakow.com/kracking-blog/10-tips-for-organizing-a-successful-stag-party-in-krakow.html http://www.partykrakow.com/kracking-blog/10-tips-for-organizing-a-successful-stag-party-in-krakow.html#comments Sat, 05 Sep 2009 10:25:11 +0000 Kamila http://www.partykrakow.com/new-kracking-blog/?p=27

Organising a stag party abroad isn’t easy! Check our advice on how to begin and what to pay attention to

The organization of a good stag party especially abroad is a complicated and tiring business for a best man. It can involve him in writing literally hundreds of mails if a group is on the large side. There is also a good chance that he will never even have met some of the group members but will still have to organize a whole stag weekend’s entertainment for them. This can be a pretty thankless task. People will express praise and gratitude of things fall into place but will roundly condemn you if they don’t. We’re here to take the stress out of the job of organizing your stag weekend abroad and allow you to party in peace.

Here is some advice:

1. Look Ahead. Encourage members to book their flights to Krakow well in advance of the party date. There’s not a lot that?s more frustrating than negotiating a deal for a group and then having to start again because some of them left it too late and couldn?t find or afford flights and tell you this a week before you are supposed to leave.
2. Know your friends. Find an organizer that you trust and try to get a good rapport with him. At Party Krakow we normally like to give people making an enquiry a brief telephone call to introduce ourselves. This gives us the opportunity to get a feel for what your group requires and often saves a lot of email exchange. Our staff never uses this as an opportunity to try to sell you additional services. In this company one director takes individual responsibility of your booking from start to finish and we pride ourselves on our one on one service.
3. Save time and money. Give yourself plenty of time. 2 or 3 months sounds a long time but it simply flies by. Last minute bookings can also mean that certain services are unavailable or more expensive- remember that most popular central hotels and apartments in Krakow sell really well and fast. The same applies to most popular stag activities- they have to be booked in advance or otherwise you may find yourself in a situation where your preferred stag do activity is already taken at the requested time and date or at least convenient hours are already booked by the other groups.
4. Finish the formalities. We offer a simple booking service which involves an initial booking fee of 99GBP on behalf of the entire group. This gives the advantage of guaranteeing prices quoted against currency fluctuations. A second deposit is required closer to the date of travel to cover the prepayments that we make on your behalf for accommodation and activities. If a company doesn?t require a deposit, they cannot possibly be making these necessary prepayments so the services cannot possibly be properly reserved for you. So please try to get the initial deposit paid.
5. Keep things simple. This company offers a very wide range of stag do activities in Krakow and some extremely tasty krakow stag weekend packages. Our advice is that you have a look at them, write or speak to us about them and then make some kind of decision with the stag as to what you want to suggest to your group. Try to keep the list of activities simple otherwise your job will become open ended. Send this off to your colleagues as a package which is more or less agreed. Some best men spend weeks trying to get a common decision from people that they?ve never met just because a couple of them prefer one activity that the rest don’t like.
6. Stay fit. It’s a good idea to recommend all members private travel insurance. Failing this, getting an E111 or EU EHIC card is a great idea since it gives you access to the Polish health system (very good too). It can be obtained online.
7. Plod through the paperwork. Don’t forget to complete the questionnaire we send asking you for names and contact numbers of all travelers. This is to speed up your accommodation check in and for our combined security. If one of your number gets lost or into difficulties, this information makes helping them a lot easier.
8. Read the advice. When we send out advice on dos and don?ts during your Krakow stag party, please try to get all members acquainted with them.
9. Share our advice. Advise all members to leave passports and valuables in safety at their accommodation. A lost passport means a trip to Warsaw and the loss of a lot of time.
10. Deliver the details. When applying for a quote, it?s a good idea to remember the following:
    • include the number of travellers
    • include the dates
    • include a phone number, preferably a landline and suitable time so that we can contact you with any questions