 Montenegro, a tourist destination with a great future |
Almost all regions around the Mediterranean Sea have been discovered by tourism. They make big economic profit on tourists who are eager to enjoy sunny holidays and they moan under the heavy burden of environmental consequences that have been provoked by the annual migration. While some of them, like for example Mallorca, make efforts to transform the structures of their offer and try to reach new target groups, Montenegro represents one of the last white spots on the tourist map. With a large and economically interesting potential and with all chances of a new start! On November 2nd, 2001, the Montenegrin Government adopted a Master Plan for Tourism that defines the development strategy, taking into consideration both the experiences of competitive destinations and the tendencies of demand on all markets of Europe. The goal of the Master Plan is prudent development of Montenegro to one of the top-quality holiday destinations in the Mediterranean, with consequent consideration of durability and stability principles.
 - Ulcinj, Tourist resort of Ada Bojana -
The small country offers abundant potentials for tourism. The most important one is the summer climate, which is quite similar to the climate of Mallorca. It guarantees a long bathing season. Another potential is the most beautiful sandy beach of the whole eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, from the Italian border to the Albanian border. All over the world, a fine sandy beach has always been and still is the most popular prerequisite for the development of a tourist destination. But while hotel blocks on the Canarian Islands and along the coasts of Spain, Greece and Tunisia have been built in dense rows behind the sandy beaches, the Velika Plaža near Ulcinj is still untouched. This 14 km long beach, with pine forests and spacious, undeveloped surfaces behind it, forms the nucleus of tourist development. A second concentration is being prepared for the Bay of Kotor.
The Boka Kotorska unites the gentle beauty of the North-Italian lakes with the tremendous mountain massives of the Norwegian fiords. And the medieval towns of Kotor and Perast give this scenery a unique historical flair.
If compared to its Mediterranean competitors, Montenegro also offers other unique features. There is Lake Scutari, a true freshwater lake, abundant in fish and rare bird species; even pelicans build their nests in its reed belts along the shore. There are rough mountain ranges, cut by wild romantic canyons, whose tops raise into the sky at an altitude of more than 2,500 m. They are covered by snow until May. The combination of bathing and skiing holidays is one of the visions presented by the Master Plan.
- Mont Durmitor in its winter attire -
Similar to Switzerland, four cultural layers have created the image of Montenegro. The genuine Montenegrins were a people of modest warriors and mountaineers, who have never bowed their heads before the Turkish Sultan or the Austrian Monarchy. When the Berlin Congress proclaimed Montenegro as a kingdom in 1880, they built their miniature capital of Cetinje in the middle of their native country, hidden behind karst rocks. This made Cetinje the center of all Balkan intrigues of the powerful nations in those years. They used their embassy buildings for a competitive self-representation.
Even now it is a surprise to see the impressive collection of European architectural history in the sleepy mountain village that Cetinje still is, despite of all uproars and discords. Why would it be impossible, in the future, to transform the royal residence into an attractive conference center with attractive art, cultural and amusement programs? Both the international airport and the new capital of Podgorica are less than thirty minutes away by car.
- Boka Kotorska -
The merchants of Venice settled along the Boka Kotorska, in competition to near-by Dubrovnik, the ancient Ragusa. On the other hand, Oriental pirates watched for the mercantile sailboats behind the gray fortress walls of Ulcinj. In the continental part of the country, the visitor can find hidden Orthodox monasteries with ancient frescoes, and Pljevlja surprises with its mosque, a jewel of Ottoman art. The Romans left their temple ruins near Podgorica, and the Illyrians scattered their traces all over the country. Middle Ages, new age and ancient times - there is so much to discover. But hardly any cultural and historical monument has been opened to tourism. Also in this area the Master Plan shows the intention to open up the country to all market segments and to extend the season.
The multitude of religions, the different tribes and their traditional styles of living characterize the entire region of Southeastern Europe as relicts of a long history, in which this region was the most important bridge between East and West and, consequently, a subject of permanent fighting. While these contrasts lead to gaps, crises and wars in other places, the Montenegrins recognized them as their common cultural basis. Even during the last decade, all political parties and ethnic groups have strongly persisted in maintaining a consequent course of peace. This is another resemblance between Montenegro and Switzerland, which did not behave differently during the big wars in Europe and concentrated on tourism very early.
The abundance in scenery and culture, in fauna and flora, in history and stories as well as in the climate create the backbone of the tourist strategy. But decades of socialist planned economy and its heritage, monotonous hotel blocks, still represent a burden to the country. However, the laws, the way of thinking and behavior are gradually adjusted to the conditions of market economy. On the one hand, the Government's decision made on November 2nd recognizes the necessity to create attractive legal and fiscal basic conditions for investment. On the other hand, private initiatives are moving ahead everywhere. |
This already shows the strategic goal of the Master Plan. Authenticity of products and their specialization! For example, small restaurants and boarding houses draw from the typical national cuisine and the old architectural tradition. They reconstruct ruined water mills and Patrician palaces for other uses and already today these innovations represent the seasoning of a comprehensive offer for tomorrow.
This respect and use of old values and traditions in Montenegro is not new at all. Already in the seventies, local architects designed Sveti Stefan: within the walls of an abandoned fishermens' village they built a luxurious hotel, which provoked a sensation all over the world, attracted the jetset and became an example for Port Grimaud in southern France and Puerto Banus on the Andalusian Coast. It is only strange that this successful product remained the only one of that kind. Subsequently, many dull hotel buildings were constructed, as can be found in many other places. The fact that these hotels could easily be replaced and that the demand was defined by the price only, did not disturb the planners. The tourist strategists from Belgrade were keen on mass tourism in those days, and mass tourism depended on the prices. They only wanted to earn foreign currency and were not interested in business profit.
While this monostructure represents a heavy burden in the new orientation of tourist economy in Istria, in Montenegro it plays an insignificant secondary role. Namely, due to its geographic position, it was mainly spared from car tourism and hardly 20,000 hotel beds were available for the charter traffic, which started later. Thus, there were not enough accommodation capacities and a comprehensive charter network for mass tourism. As a consequence, Montenegro did not become a region with a high tourist concentration.
This should not change much in the future either. Quality is the strategic goal! The Master Plan anticipates 100,000 additional beds in categories from three stars up and in different types of hotels. As a comparison: Mallorca with about the same number of 650,000 inhabitants and a much smaller surface, but a longer coast, disposes of 580,000 hotel beds. Thus, Montenegro's demand for quality should not only be reflected in conveniences, but also in the density of tourists and in the individual environment, which has been anticipated by the Master Plan.
 - Lake Skadar -
There are two other aspects that make it impossible to reach compromises: the traffic efficiency and the infrastructure.
From the view of western, northern and eastern Europe, Montenegro is a charter destination in the first place. Consequently, the central airport of Podgorica will be reconstructed and updated. In order to make each resort on the coast accessible from the airport in one hour and a half of transfer time, the Sozina tunnel is already under construction. This tunnel penetrates through the coastal mountains that separate the airport from the Adriatic Sea.
Due to the concentration on one airport in the middle of the country, the planners do not only intensify charter traffic, which optimizes flight expenses, but also unlock the hinterland, i.e. continental part of the country to tourism.
In the same way as the centrally managed, strong and from the World Bank conceived supply and disposal infrastructure on the Turkish Riviera resulted in an economic boom as a consequence of tourist development, a similar system is being planned for the coastal area of Montenegro, which will interconnect all resorts and which should, first of all, prevent environmental damages.
The development strategy varies between urgent measures, short-term, medium-term and long-term steps. The urgent measures should protect the potentials, define the basic conditions, increase the quality of the offer and secure, first of all, that the first West-European guests in the year 2002 will be satisfied with their holidays.
Namely, after ten years of isolation - Montenegro, although without any war ambitions, was affected by the international sanctions in the same way as Serbia, being a member-republic of Yugoslavia - the three largest tour operators of Europe, TUI, Thomas Cook and ITS have included the country again in their charter programs. Those who are familiar with the long-term conceptions of tour operators are not surprised to see that, despite of the small number of accommodation capacities. A strategic paper of TUI explained already in the eighties: "The tourist future of (ex) Yugoslavia lies in Montenegro!". The tour operators were motivated by the knowledge of chances and potentials as well as by the efforts to take and utilize them. But they are aware of the fact that the present level of quality of the hotels cannot satisfy the demands of the West-European markets.
Of course, the low prices were of crucial importance as well. Montenegro ranges among the countries in Europe with the lowest price and cost level. While, for example, a hotel employee in Spain, Italy and Greece earns average monthly wages between 3000 and 4000 DEM, an employee of a Montenegrin hotel costs 500 DEM only. The management of the hotels and the building costs are advantageous as well. Thus, the involvement of tour operators does not only look understandable from the viewpoint of the tourist potential, it is also the logical consequence of a globally attractive starting point from the aspect of cost structure.
One of the reasons for the elaboration of the Master Plan was, inter alia, the fear of a wild boom. According to international experience, tourist development is hardly manageable when demand exceeds supply. This explained the importance that is given by the Government to the Master Plan by its Decision dated November 2nd. It follows an approximate goal: 100,000 beds in about 20 years, 70,000 new jobs in the total economy interconnected with tourism, increase of the individual income and of the general standard of living. It is also aware of the fact that the beach potential is not inexhaustible and thus, not a single inch may be wasted, in particular because of the fact that also the future generations must live from tourism and with it. Accordingly, the principle of durability and steadiness is not only a political saying; it was established in the constitution.
Not taking into account the urgent measures, the Master Plan in essence sets the general goals in a binding way. In its implementation, working teams of the concerned municipalities are elaborating, together with DEG (Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft/German Investment and Development Company) and its experts, regional pilot plans for the border areas of Ulcinj/Albania and the Bay of Kotor/Dubrovnik. With a view to providing supply and disposal facilities in the development zones that spare the natural resources, KFW (Kreditanstalt fuer Wiederaufbau/Credit Institute for Reconstruction) is involved in the required infrastructure. In this way, DEG and KFW give an important contribution to the economic growth of Montenegro within the Stability Pact of Southeastern Europe |
