Montenegro’s tourism sector is facing significant challenges due to a lack of strategic management, unpreparedness for the season, and declining visitor numbers that are difficult to regain. Economic analyst Mirza Muleskovic highlights that Montenegro is not competitive on price, suffers from longstanding infrastructure problems, poor air connectivity, and rising taxes that push prices higher.
The official tourism statistics are misleading due to counting residents from Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey as tourists in previous years, making recent declines appear sharper than they are. However, the real issue lies in Montenegro’s failure to prepare adequately for the season — including unresolved ownership and readiness of beaches and ongoing highway construction causing congestion.
Muleskovic warns that Albania has become a serious competitor by improving its airport infrastructure and attracting low-cost airlines, while Montenegro lost its competitive edge by raising airport taxes and lacking air routes. There is also a chronic shortage of labour in the tourism sector and delays in legal reforms needed to address these issues.
He stresses that Montenegro lacks a cohesive strategic approach to tourism management and has failed to diversify its tourism products beyond the sea, missing opportunities in rural tourism and other markets. The country risks losing tourists permanently if problems like overcrowding and poor connectivity continue.
Additionally, Muleskovic critiques recent labour policy changes, such as the introduction of a seven-hour workday and non-working Sundays, describing them as populist measures that increase costs without economic analysis or solutions for the workforce shortages in tourism.
