Ulcinj set to become a new Regional Centre for Tourism By 2030

As Montenegro continues to recover from the global Covid Pandemic, posting strong visitor numbers of 740,000 tourists in July, the government met recently to discuss how they can further capitalize on increased demand for tourism to the country.

Recognising that Montenegro is becoming ever more popular for holidaymakers and International home buyers, having recently been voted in National Geographic as the second-best place to holiday in 2021, the government have now set their eyes on Ulcinj to become the newest Regional Centre for Tourism by the year 2030.

Following a meeting between the Deputy Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic, the Minister of Economic Development Jakov Milatovic, the Director of the Administration for Inspection Affairs, Chairman of the Board of PE and the Hoteliers of Ulcinj it was obvious that not only had the tourist season got off to a fabulous start, but more could be done to meet demand, and now was the perfect opportunity to start preparing for the years ahead. Abazovic commented ‘Ulcinj is Montenegro’s biggest development opportunity in 2030, and we want this city to become a large regional centre of tourism’.

Of the 740,000 tourists who were welcomed into Montenegro in July, 380,000 visited within the first 15 days, which is a 5% increase in 2019, and by the end of the Summer season, it’s hoped that total visitor numbers will have surpassed pre-pandemic levels which is very positive news indeed for a country who’s tourism industry accounts for around 25% of its total GDP.

Just on a final note, Montenegro’s growth has been huge, especially over the last 9 years. Looking at official stats from Knoema (https://knoema.com/atlas/Montenegro/topics/Tourism/Travel-and-Tourism-Total-Contribution-to-GDP/Contribution-of-travel-and-tourism-to-GDP-percent-of-GDP) in 2010 the Tourism Industry accounted for just 12.5% of its total GDP, and in 2019 it accounted for 21.7%, a whopping 9.2% increase, so with this upwards trend showing no signs of slowing down (apart from the impact of Covid) it’s exciting times, and the future looks bright, especially for Ulcinj!

30.08.2021