Tourism in Serbia is officially recognized as a primary area for economic and social growth.[1] The hotel and catering sector accounted for approximately 2.2% of GDP in 2015.[2] Tourism in Serbia employs some 120 000 people, about 4.5% of the country's workforce.[1] In recent years the number of tourists is increasing. In 2019, tourism generated an income of nearly $1.698 billion, hosting 1.85 million tourists. [3] Chinese tourists were the most numerous visitors, followed by tourists from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Turkey, and Germany.[4] In 2022, tourism earnings surged to $2.71 billion and almost 2 million tourists visited the country.[5] Major destinations for foreign tourists are Belgrade, Novi Sad and Niš, while domestic tourists prefer spas and mountain resorts.[6] Eco-friendly and sustainable tourism has also become very popular among domestic tourists, with many visiting various nature reserves and parks in the western and southern part of the country.[7] Serbia is also known for gastronomic tourism, with Belgrade being the central meeting point with over 2000 restaurants, coffee shops, bars and nightlife venues.[8]
The origin of tourism in Serbia is connected to the abundance of thermal and mineral springs: so much so, that history of Serbian tourism is sometimes equated to the history of Serbian spas. (The Serbian word for spa, banja, became part of numerous toponyms.) Some of them had a wider historical and evolutionary impact as remains of the prehistoric habitats have been discovered around them. Wider, practical use came with the Roman conquest in the 1st century AD.[9] The Romans also developed other public activities as predecessors of modern tourism, especially around Singidunum, precursor of modern Belgrade. Hilly areas east of the city, along the Danube river functioned as an excursion area, with numerous villas and summer houses for more affluent citizens.[10][11] In the area of Belgrade's modern neighborhoods Ada Huja and Karaburma, which were outside of the city in the Roman period, numerous thermal springs were used for public bathhouses.[12]
The Byzantines, the successors to the Romans, continued to use the spas.[9] In the medieval Serbian state, some spas prospered. There are records of springs around Čačak, modern Ovčar Banja, where "magnificent" high domes were built, with a large pool, numerous smaller cooling pools (as the thermal water was too hot), and large living and dressing rooms.[13] They were opened for both the gentry and the commoners.[9] Serbia also inherited important Roman roads, like the Via Militaris, which in the Middle Ages developed into the Tsarigrad Road, with some additional trading routes developing in time. With numerous merchants and caravans traversing the country, hospitality services began to develop along the roads. They included large inns and caravan stations with spacious inner yards for keeping animals and storing goods. The inns had upper floors and sleeping rooms, and some were designated for merchants only. Emperor Dušan established an obligation called priselica by which the denizens were obliged to host domestic dignitaries and foreign representatives. It was compulsory only for the residents of the rural areas, since the towns had inns to provide the service. The innkeepers and [Word missing] were bound to pay for any damage or shortage during a caravan's stay in their facilities.[14]
Use of spas continued after the Ottoman conquest in the 15th century. The Ottomans added the specific architecture, which included Turkish baths, or hamams and specific oriental ornamentation of the spa objects.[9] After visiting Ovčar Banja in 1664, Ottoman traveler Evliya Çelebi wrote that 40,000 to 50,000 people visit during the summer ("watermelon") season, but also described the spa as the location of numerous fairs and as a major trading place.[13] Some of the hamams have survived until today, including that in Sokobanja, while several are still in use (Brestovačka Banja[sr], Novopazarska Banja).[9] Hills east of Belgrade remained popular excursion sites during the Ottoman period. The upper classes built numerous summer houses, especially on the Ekmekluk Hill, today known as Zvezdara.[15]
By the 2020s, the second most visited tourist attraction in Belgrade, providing one third of foreign currency income for the city, was the bohemian quarter Skadarlija, a vintage street dotted with kafanas.[16][17] The very first kafana in Belgrade, an oriental-style bistro, was opened in 1522 and was arguably the oldest venue of that type in Europe. It served only Turkish coffee, but later some offered nargile also.[18][19][20] Despite frequent Ottoman–Habsburg wars in the 17th and 18th centuries, and the change of occupying rulers in Belgrade and northern Serbia, the number of kafanas was always high.[21]
As Serbia remained on the main trading route connecting Middle East and western Europe, the hospitality venues along the roads continued to develop. During the Ottoman period, the caravans grew bigger, involving new animals, so the caravans of 500–650 camels were recorded. When Çelebi visited Belgrade in 1661, he counted 21 khans and 6 caravanserais. The largest was the Caravanserai of Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, which had "160 chimneys", while some of the larger ones even had harem sections.[14]
The origin of modern tourism in Serbia can be traced to the 19th century. The Serbian government, and the rulers personally, actively participated in development of the spas, by hiring foreign geologists to survey the spa waters and sending medics to the newly-formed spa centers. In time, they attracted foreign visitors, mostly from Austria-Hungary and Greece. Before World War I, Banja Koviljača, Niška Banja and Vranjska Banja emerged as the most visited spas, though Vrnjačka Banja, Sokobanja and Ribarska Banja are considered to be among the oldest. Also popular was one of the latest discovered, Mataruška Banja, which was founded in the late 19th century.[9][22][23]
Hospitality services in towns later diversified into numerous types: bistro, mehana, gostionica, han, saraj, lokal, krčma, bircuz, birtija, and later restoran and hotel, but until the mid-19th century they remained oriental-type venues.[24] In 1847, the ruling prince Alexander Karađorđević codified the work of the hospitality objects.[clarification needed][25] The first hotel in Belgrade, "Kod Jelena", was built in 1843. Later known as "Staro Zdanje", it had the first ballroom in Belgrade and introduced the European style of entertainment.[24][26] Construction of various modern hotels began in Belgrade, including "Evropa" (1867), "Nacional" (1868), "Srpska Kruna" (1869), "Pariz" (1870), "London" (1873), "Slavija" (1883), "Moskva" (1908) and "Bristol" (1912).[24][27][28][29][30][31]
Though the development of tourism was boosted by the burgeoning middle class,[9] many people were still unable to travel around the state so further excursion areas developed around the cities. The southern hills of Belgrade now became the main tourism area. Topčider Park began to be planted in the 1830s. After the Topčider railway station was built in 1884, and later the tram line No. 3 started, this park became accessible to everyone from downtown.[32] The neighboring forest in Košutnjak followed when the former royal hunting ground from the 1840s was adapted into a public park in 1903. Due to the beneficial climate conditions, the summer sanatorium for children was built in the forest.[33] Former artificial Lake Kijevo was formed in 1901. As Kijevo also had its own railway station, special tourist trains were organized for the inhabitants of Belgrade.[34]
A vital boost to the development of international tourism was the construction of the first railway in 1884. In general, development of transportation always pushed tourism growth, as in 1892 when public transportation was organized in Belgrade, and after 1903 when the modern street grid was built following the arrival of first cars.[35]
Major development of tourism in the early 20th century was halted by the outbreak of World War I.[9]
Interbellum
A map featuring some of the best-known tourist attractions in Serbia
In 1918 Serbia became part of the new state, the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later named Yugoslavia. In Serbia, spas remained the only proper tourist centers until after World War II. Villas of the royal family and wealthy industrialists and merchants boosted the construction of mansions and hotels. They became urban centers and small towns. Visiting spas became a matter of prestige and they remained immensely popular. In 1937, Vrnjačka Banja had five times more visitors than Dubrovnik, on the Adriatic coast (in modern Croatia), arguably the most popular resort in former Yugoslavia.[36] In 1922, there were over 2 million overnight stays in the spas of the Morava Banovina alone, which covered a minority of the present Serbia territory.[37]
In 1920, Belgrade became a stop on the route of the famed Orient Express. Also in the 1920s, the tourist traffic developed along major rivers, like the Danube, Sava and Tisza. Further growth of tourism was greatly influenced by the development of air traffic. State airline flag carrier Aeroput was founded in 1927, the same year when Belgrade's international Bežanija airport became operational. Yugoslavia soon developed a network of airports.[35]
Belgrade was declared a tourist place in 1936. Construction of the Belgrade Fair in 1937 helped turn the city into the international tourist hot spot and pushed for fast construction of numerous hotels and other hospitality venues and the establishment of the hospitality high school.[35] The first international fair in 1937 hosted exhibitors from 17 European, American and Asian countries. Over 310,000 people visited the exhibition, more than the population of Belgrade at the time.[38][39] This was followed by numerous other exhibitions, including the first motor show, the 1938 Belgrade Car Show.[40] In 1939, the Belgrade Grand Prix, precursor of modern Formula One, was organized in the city.[41]
Just as in 1914, this fast tourist development was cut short by the war.[35]
Post-war period
Tourism regained major economic importance only in the 1970s.[35] But by the 1980s Yugoslavia was an important tourist destination in the Balkans. Overnight stays were almost 12million per year, of which about 1.5million were by foreign tourists. The events surrounding the break-up of Yugoslavia led to a substantial decline in both leisure and business tourism.[42]
New Communist authorities after the war made spas much more accessible. Stripped of the bourgeois elitism, the spas became centers of healthcare tourism and sites of family vacations, with numerous workers' and trade unions' retreats being built.[36]
Number of tourists in Serbia from 1948 to 1999. Visitors from the rest of Yugoslavia (from 1992 only from Montenegro) were counted as domestic ones.[43][44][45][46][47][48]
In the twenty-first century tourism began to recover: the number of overseas visitors was 90% higher in 2004 than it had been in 2000, and revenue from foreign tourism more than tripled between 2002 and 2004, to about 220million US dollars.[42] By 2010 revenue from international tourism had grown to 798million US dollars.
By 2020, there were 35 officially proclaimed and operational spas. However, many additional ones went out of work during the international sanctions in the 1990s and the transitional period in the 2000s. For example, Jošanička Banja was closed, Niška Banja was effectively out of use, while Vrnjačka Banja and Sokobanja boomed. In spas, new hotels were built, so as many wellness centers.[36]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism industry in Serbia has faced multi-million dollar losses. The number of overall tourist arrivals in 2020 was the smallest in the past two decades, but it is expected to recover and stabilise within the near future.[needs update][49]
Čačak is a city and the administrative center of the Moravica District in central Serbia. It is located in the West Morava Valley. As of the 2022 census, the city within administrative borders has a population of 105,612 inhabitants.
Sokobanja is a spa town and municipality located in the Zaječar District of the eastern Serbia. As of 2022, the population of the town is 7,188, while population of the municipality is 13,199.
West Morava is a river in Central Serbia, a 184-km long headstream of the Great Morava, which it forms with the South Morava. It was known as Brongus in antiquity.
Senjak is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital city of Serbia. Located in Savski Venac, one of the three municipalities that constitute the very center of the city, it is an affluent neighborhood containing embassies, diplomatic residences, and mansions. Senjak is generally considered one of the wealthiest parts of Belgrade.
Košutnjak is a park-forest and urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is divided between in the municipalities of Čukarica and Rakovica. With the adjoining Topčider, it is colloquially styled "Belgrade's oxygen factory". The 1923 Belgrade's general plan, in which one of the main projects regarding the green areas was forestation of the area between Topčider and the city, envisioned a continuous green area Senjak – Topčidersko Brdo – Hajd Park – Topčider – Košutnjak, which was formed by the 1930s. This continual forested area makes the largest "green massif" in the immediate vicinity of Belgrade's urban tissue.
Čubura, Serbo-Croatian pronunciation:[t͡ʃǔbura]) is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. Located in Belgrade's municipality of Vračar, it is a synonym of the city's bohemian life.
Palace Albanija is a high-rise building in Belgrade, Serbia. Important construction and architectural innovations were incorporated into the project, which made Albanija an exceptional building endeavor in the Balkans. When completed in 1939, it was the first skyscraper in Southeast Europe. It remained the tallest building in Belgrade for 3 years, until being surpassed by BIGZ building in 1941. It remained the tallest building in the old part of Belgrade for the next 34 years, until being surpassed by the Beograđanka in 1974.
Ovča is a suburban settlement of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located to the northeast of the city, in the municipality of Palilula.
Skadarlija is a vintage street, an urban neighborhood and former municipality of Belgrade, Serbia, located in the Belgrade municipality of Stari Grad. Skadarlija partially preserves the ambience of traditional urban architecture, including archaic urban organization, and is known as the main bohemian quarter of Belgrade, similar to Montmartre in Paris. Since 1967, Skadarlija has been protected by law as a spatial cultural-historical unit.
Hotel Moskva is a four star hotel in Belgrade, one of the oldest currently operating in Serbia. The building has been under governmental protection since 1968. Originally operating as a 36-room inn within the multi-purpose Palace Rossiya, whose almost three-year construction and January 1908 opening represented a major investment of the Russian Empire in the Serbian economy, Hotel Moskva eventually expanded its facilities to take up the entire palace.
Terazije is the central town square and the surrounding neighborhood of Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in the municipality of Stari Grad.
Mostar interchange or colloquially Mostar is a major interchange and a surrounding urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Savski Venac.
Kuršumlijska Banja is a spa town located in the municipality of Kuršumlija, in south Serbia. Known for its springs already in Roman times, it was declared a royal spa in 1922, becoming one of the most visited and most developed spas in Serbia during Interbellum. As of 2011 census, the town has a population of 106 inhabitants.
Lion is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zvezdara.
The Ovčar-Kablar Gorge is a gorge in the western part of central Serbia, in the part of the composite valley of the West Morava river, within the geographical region of Šumadija. With over 30 monasteries built in the gorge since the 14th century, it is known as the "Serbian Mount Athos".
Belgrade Youth Center is a cultural center in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, dedicated primarily to youth.
Ovčar Banja is a village and a spa located in the city of Čačak, Serbia. Located near the Ovčar-Kablar Gorge in the valley of the West Morava, it is known as the "Serbian Mount Athos" because of the numerous monasteries situated in this area. As of 2011 census, it has a population of 122 inhabitants.
Kneza Miloša Street is a street in downtown Belgrade, Serbia. It was the main city's korzo (promenade) and today is one of the major traffic arteries of the city, location of some of the most important national institutions and a street with the largest number of embassies in Belgrade. It stretches through the territory of three municipalities: Stari Grad, Vračar and Savski Venac. Previously known as Topčider Road, it was later named after prince Miloš Obrenović, the first ruler of modern Serbia.
The vibrant and dynamic nightlife in Belgrade achieved international prominence in the early 21st century. Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, gained a reputation both due to the traditional nightlife, mostly represented by the kafanas, and the contemporary, modern nightlife, especially including splavovi, barges and floats adapted into the clubs and cafés. Belgrade often makes the lists of the cities with best clubbing and partying, discreetly shaping itself into the fun and accommodating metropolis.
1 2 Gvozden Otašević (January 2012), "Ovčar Banja dobila zvanje" [Ovčar Banja receives title], Politika (in Serbian)
1 2 Grozda Pejčić (2006). Угоститељско туристичка школа - некад и сад 1938-2006[Hospitality-touristic school - then and now 1938-2006]. Belgrade: Draslar Partner. pp.24–28.
↑ Slobodan Giša Bogunović (3 September 2011), "Biodiverzitet na roštilju" [Grilled biodiversity], Politika (in Serbian)
↑ Goran Vesić (26 April 2019). "Имена кафана говоре о друштву и менталитету" [Kafanas names testify about the society and mentality]. Politika (in Serbian). p.14.
↑ Branka Vasiljević (29 August 2015), "Okopnilo jezero koje je posećivao i Albert Ajnštajn" [Lake visited by Albert Einstein is drained], Politika (in Serbian)
1 2 3 4 5 Goran Vesić (12 March 2021). "Туризам града трећа срећа" [City tourism - third time's a charm]. Politika (in Serbian). p.18.
↑ Dušan Miljković, ed. (February 1989). Jugoslavija 1918-1988 - statistički godišnjak. Belgrade: Federal Statistical Office. p.342.
↑ Dragutin Grupković, ed. (August 1992). Statistical Yearbook of Yugoslavia 1992. Belgrade: Federal Statistical Office. p.328. ISBN86-7479-018-6.
↑ Dragutin Grupković, ed. (January 1993). "Statistical pocket book - Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1993". Statistical Pocket-Book, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Belgrade: Federal Statistical Office: 43. ISSN0351-4900.
↑ Dragutin Grupković, ed. (January 1994). "Statistical pocket book - Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1994". Statistical Pocket-Book, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Belgrade: Federal Statistical Office: 43. ISSN0351-4900.
↑ Milovan Živković, ed. (January 1994). "Statistical pocket book - Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1995". Statistical Pocket-Book, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Belgrade: Federal Statistical Office: 46. ISSN0351-4900.
↑ Milovan Živković, ed. (January 1996). "Statistical pocket book - FR Yugoslavia 1996". Statistical Pocket-Book, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Belgrade: Federal Statistical Office: 46. ISSN0354-3803.
Ana Nikolov (29 July 2005). "Beograd – grad na rekama". Institut za Arhitekturu i Urbanizam Srbije. Retrieved 2007-06-05.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
Scurlock, Gareth (4 November 2008). "Europe's best nightlife". London: Official site. Archived from the original on October 11, 2011. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
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