On the other hand, in the nautical segment developments in the Middle East could even be one of the causes of the increase in the number of ships and passengers.
“What would not be good for Montenegro as a destination is a refugee route (as it was the case in Greece). It seems that the direction of the route is being changed towards Albania and Montenegro. However, as I could see on the map, it would be a route from the Bozaj border crossing, through Niksic towards Bosnia and Herzegovina. Those are some global trends, and something that we cannot influence,” Krcic said for Radio Kotor.
When it comes to nautical season in Kotor, it began on 3 March, a month earlier than it was the case before. As Krcic said, Berlin ship that sailed in on that day announced a nine month long nautical season.
“It should be noted that all these events in the Middle East affect changing ships’ routes. So far, there are about 30 ships that will come. Those are the ships which supposed to go to Turkey and were directed, among other destinations, to Kotor. Thus, more than half a million passengers, 200,000 crew members, as well as with arrivals from Dubrovnik and Budva and the visitors who will stay in Kotor for some time, will result in about one million arrivals here,” he added.
He pointed out the importance of intensive visits to fairs in the region during January, February and March.
“This year, National Tourism Organization (NTO) has recognised the special role of Kotor. The posters exhibited at fairs and in advertisements are mainly dominated by Kotor. The British guide Lonely Planet ranked Kotor within top-ten destinations to visit this year,” said Krcic.
When it comes to the fairs, Serbia is traditionally interested in Montenegro and the organisation’s stand was well visited, he added.
“Even the hosts said that the attendance was 20% higher. We also had two awards. One was a three-day stay in Kotor during the Sea Rock festival on 24 June and another was a stay in Kotor during Bokeljska Noc (Boka Night) festival. Winners of the awards are from Belgrade. In Addition to Belgrade, we also attended fairs in Vienna, Istanbul, Bratislava, Prague, Herning in Denmark and Budapest,” said Krcic.
He announced visits to Berlin 19–13 March, Moscow 23–26 March and Miami 13–17 March. Attending the fair in Skopje is planned in April. Kotor’s offer will be presented in Paris, Novi Sad, London and Warsaw in September.
