SERBIA: Serbia Becoming Tourist Heaven For Chinese

As of now Serbia attracts millions of tourists every year, despite being beset by political and economic difficulties due to its turbulent past during the 1990s.

The latest figures show that from January to August nearly 2.5 million tourists visited Serbia, a 6% rise from the same period last year. They include a large number of Chinese, Turkish and German tourists.

Lijana Stankovic, public relations manager of the National Tourism Organization of Serbia, said Turkey and Serbia share many cultural similarities.

What the Turks think about Serbia, they have shown by devising a slogan, 'Discover the Closeness,' because of their first impression when they come to Serbia. They also find nightlife in Belgrade very attractive.

Stankovic added that the Chinese who do not require a visa to visit Serbia are drawn by the unspoiled nature and cultural and historical sites.

Serbia's government signed an agreement with Fliggy, an online travel platform owned by Alibaba, for promotion of the country as a tourist destination.

Also, the tourism office has partnered with Turkey's national flag carrier Turkish Airlines (THY) for promotions.

Foreign tourists prefer spending their holiday in the big cities, while domestic tourists make a beeline for spa resorts.

The first choice of domestic tourists are spas, mostly Vrnjacka and Sokobanja – followed by the mountains of Zlatibor and Kopaonik.

Foreigners flock to the capital Belgrade or the cities of Novi Sad, Zlatibor, Vrnjacka Banja and Kopaonik, famous for its scenic views and hot springs.

The Iron Gate, Danube Gorde and Lepenski Vir, the first urban settlement in Europe dating back to 9,000 B.C. are not-be-missed destinations, she added.

We suggest walking the ancient paths of Roman Emperors on the UNESCO site of Gamzigrad Felix Romuliana, along with Vinimacium and Mediana.

Visit our UNESCO-listed monasteries of Studenica and Sopocani, and you will learn about the true values of life.

Make sure not to miss the impressive view from Belgrade fortress, the eternal guardian of our capital overlooking the confluence of rivers and nations for centuries," she concluded.

Serbia's second-largest city of Novi Sad is gearing up to become the European Youth Capital in 2020 and Capital of Culture in 2021.

It is home to the world-famous music festival EXIT which will celebrate its 20 years in 2020.

SLOVENIA: Slovenia Enjoying Tourism Growth Home Country Of United States First Lady Melania Trump

The Slovenian tourism industry has been boosted by the fact that it is the home country of new United States First Lady Melania Trump, preliminary figures of the national Statistics Office showed on Tuesday.

The number of overnight stays in Slovenia by American tourists jumped by 15.4 percent in December and 10.2 percent in the whole of 2016.

The total number of tourist overnight stays in Slovenia rose by 7.6 percent to some 11.1 million in 2016 versus a rise of 7.2 percent in 2015.

The overall number of foreign tourist stays was up by 10.3 percent in the whole year with most visitors coming from Italy, Austria, Croatia, Germany and Serbia.

Slovenia's government expects tourism to help towards a further boost to the country's economy which is seen expanding by 2.9 percent this year versus some 2.3 percent in 2016.

TURKEY: Antalya Records Less Russian Tourists With 81% Decrease

The number of Russian tourists visiting Turkey’s top holiday resort town of Antalya decreased by 81 percent, as their numbers plummeted to 2,427 in January from 12,870 of January 2015 while the total number of tourists visiting the city in January decreased 17 percent, according to official figures.

Numbers also showed that only a total of 97,601 tourists visited Antalya in January, the lowest for January in the last decade.

Antalya hosted some 135,010 tourists in January 2006 and 125,446 in January 2007. It saw its highest turnout in January 2008 with 140,306. In January 2009 and January 2010, Antalya received 106,539 and 140,019 visitors, respectively. After 2010, the number of tourists visiting the city reached a stable level, with 126,272 tourists in January 2011, 122,314 in January 2012, 111,485 in January 2013 and 116,974 in January 2014. Last January, Antalya’s total visitors stood at 117,746.

Antalya gathers millions of local and international tourists each year, with its luxury hotels usually overbooked especially in the summer seasons. Meanwhile in winter, tourism slows down due to dropping temperatures.

The Russian market experienced the largest decrease in the number of tourists visiting the city in January 2016, as Russia ranked 5th in 2016, compared to 2nd in 2015 in terms of countries with the highest number of visitors to Antalya.

Turkey was Russia’s number one foreign tourism destination for years but this came to an abrupt end following the shooting down of a Russian military plane by Turkish jets on the Syria-Turkey border on Nov. 24, 2015. Upon the incident, Russia imposed economic sanctions against Turkey and travel restrictions on Russian tourists visiting Turkey.

Turkey’s tourism industry also expects to see losses in other markets this year after an Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) suicide bomb attack in Istanbul’s top tourist spot Sultanahmet, which killed 11 German tourists on Jan. 12, highlighted security concerns for tourists planning to visit Turkey.

The loss in the German market stood at 16 percent as the number of Germans visiting Antalya decreased to 44,262 in January 2016 from 52,731 in January 2015. While Germans took the top spot for tourists in Antalya, the Dutch followed second. However the Dutch market has also decreased by 20 percent compared to 2015, as this year’s January number fell to 4,544 from 5,688.

The number of Israeli visitors saw a 122 percent increase, bringing it to third. In January 2016, the number of Israeli tourists visiting the city reached to 4,475, a huge leap from 2,008 visitors in January 2015.

Britain came fourth with a 14 percent decrease as Antalya only hosted some 2,965 English tourists in January. British tourists mostly like Antalya for its luxury golf club resorts in the Belek region of the province.

According to the statistics of Antalya’s provincial directorate of culture and tourism, among the 38 countries that send tourists to Antalya, only nine surpassed their January 2015 numbers. However, the surplus in the number of tourists arriving from these nine (which included Israel, Ukraine, France, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Estonia, Serbia and Syria) covered only 30 percent of the loss caused by the decrease in the Russian market.

UAE: Shurooq, Emaar And Eagle Hills Partner In New Venture

Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) has partnered with Dubai’s Emaar Properties and Abu Dhabi real-estate developer Eagle Hills to establish Omran Properties, which will develop commercial, industrial and real estate projects in Sharjah and beyond. Sharjah’s real estate market has seen a transformation with the recent construction of large-scale master planned developments and changes to laws allowing foreigners to purchase 100 year leasehold properties.

Sharjah’s real estate sector has strengthened over the last five years, whilst prices have remained competitive with neighbouring emirates. New property laws allowing foreign ownership have given the market a boost, with residential, commercial and industrial property being made available for sale to GCC nationals or long-term lease-hold to foreign expatriates. Meanwhile, the development sector has been supported by a massive development drive by Sharjah Department of Public Works to develop Sharjah’s public infrastructure. Real estate and business services account for about 20 percent of Sharjah’s economy.

Under the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed this week, Omran Properites will be headquartered in Sharjah. Shurooq will own 34 percent of the new company’s capital, while Emaar and Eagle Hills own 33 percent each. In addiiton to driving investment, commercial, industrial and real estate projects in Sharjah, the company will also establish new companies from time to time in order to achieve its goals.

One of the largest real estate developers in the Arab world, Emaar has ongoing projects in Africa, Asia, North America and the Middle East and is known for developing large scale residential and mixed-use projects. Emaar’s most famous developments are Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, and Dubai Mall, the largest shopping mall in the world. The formation of Omran Properites will mark Emaar’s first foray into Sharjah’s real estate market.

Eagle Hills was established in 2014 to create developments for urban centres globally. The company currently has projects in Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, Nigeria and Serbia.

Established in by Emiri Decree in 2009, Shurooq is the driving force behind the transformation of Sharjah into an investment, tourist and business destination. The authority’s current projects include economic initiatives, urban developments, tourism and leisure destinations, eco-tourism resorts, business destinations, historic restoration and archaeological sites.

Sharjah city is ranked as one of the top ten small and mid-sized cities lists for Economic Potential, Human Capital and Lifestyle, Cost Effectiveness, Connectivity and Business Friendliness fDI intelligence (a division of the Financial Times) in its 2014/2015 Global Cities of the Future report.

KOSOVO: Man With A Heart For Kosovo

A pilot from Kosovo visited Samoa to say thank you for recognising their independence.

James Berisha was in the country for three days.

Kosovo declared independence in February 17, 2008 from Serbia by Kosovo’s former Prime Minister Hashim Thaqi. However, not many countries recognised the independence of Kosovo.

That‘s when Mr. Berisha started a mission called “Flying for Kosovo,” to raise awareness about Kosovo’s independence.

“The main reason why I started the mission was to help the people of Kosovo and the nation to get on their feet and to spread the word to the rest of the world that Kosovo exists and that they are independent,” said Mr. Berisha.

His mission was mostly voluntary and self-funded in the beginning and it began when he was residing in El Paso Texas.

“I purchased a small airplane and painted the flag of Kosovo on the sides with the saying “Please recognise the independence of Kosovo.”

“And I wanted to do only the Western Hemisphere countries. I thought that I would do just that then I’m done. And I did this by talking to the media and having press conferences and being in constant communications with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. And it took me a year to finish all the countries in the western hemisphere.”

When Mr. Berisha returned to Kosovo, his popularity grew and the government and the people of Kosovo were “impressed” with his work.

“The government asked me to continue my mission and they will provide funding for the mission, and will try and get people to help me,” he said. “People came on board and they helped me on the mission and of course a lot of donations from people. And we got to finish all the countries in the African continent which consists 54 countries.”

For the mission, Mr. Berisha has covered 97 countries and has convinced them to recognise the independence of Kosovo.

“Because you need 2/3 of the countries to recongise your independence in order for your country to have a seat in the UN. And it is very important for countries to recognise the independent of your country.”

According to Mr. Berisha, the recognition of a country’s independence means there will be trade, importation and exportation of goods and services.

“Not forgetting sharing of ideas and aiding for other countries needs and wants.”

The ‘Flying for Kosovo’ mission did not come to Samoa. But Mr. Berisha said Samoa was one of the first countries to recognise the independence of Kosovo in September 2008.

“There are 194 nations on the globe based on the UN, and from that 194 nations, we didn’t have them recognising our independence and it was bad. But Samoa did recognise our independence the first year we declared our independence and we are grateful to the government and the people of Samoa for that,” he said.

And now he has come to Samoa, Mr. Berisha said he is amazed by the beauty of Samoa.

“This place is absolutely beautiful,” he said. “The natural surrounding is amazing and you have such loving people.

“I am here to visit and see the island. The globe is my home so I am very attracted to the nature, to different cultures, backgrounds, lifestyles and the different people. And coming here and being in contact with the people of Samoa, I’ve loved the experience.

The people of Samoa are really extremely nice. They welcome the outsiders to their homes and treat them very nice and respectful, and for me, that is very touching. One thing that impressed me about the people of Samoa is that they are very hard working. You know it’s a small island, but you see people working hard in trying to keeping the country clean and beautiful.”

“Take this from someone who have been around the world and have been to 140 countries in my lifetime aside from the mission. And I have seen the different and the uniqueness in the people of Samoa from all the other nations. I will definitely come back and will spread the word to the people of Kosovo so that they could also come to Samoa.

“Every country has its unique way of life and its unique lifestyle.

“In Samoa, everybody is so friendly and hard working. The roads are very beautiful. And I know that the government of Samoa is doing a great job with the developments of this country. I’m sure every government have their own problems but the thing I like about Samoa is that the country is very “live”. You see progress and see that everything is moving.”

He also confessed that he wished the people of Kosovo could be friendlier like the people of Samoa.

“Our people are not as friendly as the people of Samoa. I wish I could take this aspect of the Samoan culture and take it with me to Kosovo.”

The 44-year-old started flying in 1993. He is married to Zoga and they have two children.

Asked to describe Kosovo, he said: “Kosovo is a beautiful country with high mountains and fertile lands. It has four seasons and wealthy minerals.

“Tourism is not big and has a population of less than 2 million. Their culture is more like the European culture and agriculture is the main source of income.

“The Albanian language and English are the main languages used by the people of Kosovo.”

CROATIA: Croatian Tourism And The Migrant Crisis: What You Need to Know

Croatia. So where is it exactly anyway? And is it safe?

Located somewhere in Eastern Europe, Westerners have often had trouble with the geography of Croatia. A part of former Yugoslavia, the newest version of Croatia - the modern independent one - is less than 25 years old, and given the trauma in the region in recent decades, tourists comfortable in destinations like Spain and Greece can be excused a certain level of ignorance.

The recent terror attack in Paris, and the confirmation on November 16, 2015, that a passport alleged to belong to one of the bombers had passed through Croatia on October 8, has raised - in some quarters at least - questions about the safety of Croatia as a tourist destination, specifically in terms of emails to this portal after we published the story earlier today. Despite the tragic recent events, I will confess to a wry smile when the first email came in.

The year is 2002. An Englishman working as an aid worker in Somalia has just returned from two holidays on his accumulated days off. The first - to Mumbai just as a major nuclear stand-off with Pakistan was escalating - was followed by seven days in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. The Englishman, a veteran of the Rwandan genocide, had (incorrectly) the label 'war zone junkie' written all over him, and several of his friends expressed concern when he announced he was buying a house on an island in Croatia in 2002.

Croatia? Wasn't that part of the Balkan quagmire and too dangerous to visit? Indeed it had been seven years hence, although the island itself suffered no direct action save a blockade and a couple of cursory bombs on the cleared strip of a UNESCO World Heritage Site which passes off as the island's 'airport'.

As this war zone junkie fielded email after email advising me to get psychiatic help, I responded in the only way I could - by sending pictures of the house, town and heavenly island I had discovered off the beaten track. My friends - shocked at the beauty and tranquility, having assumed I was seeking something else - begged for more information. My house was completely full in my absence that summer, and several friends are now home owners on Hvar.

I mention the story for to me it is similar to what is happening today. Croatia has been in the news more than most countries regarding the migrant crisis in recent weeks, not so much because it is a dangerous and violent place, more because it is a country which has shown its humanity - partly the result of its own painful recent past, perhaps - where neighbouring countries have shut their doors. It would have been easy for Croatia to follow the example of Hungary, erect a fence, and ignore the migrant misery on its borders.

Croatia chose not to, and while I have issues with the current government, their handling of the crisis has been humane and exemplary, and it has done much to enhance Croatia's reputation internationally. As long as Germany has kept its open door policy, Croatia has argued that it is merely a transit route to the final destination. And what are the statistics?

Almost 400,000 migrants and refugees have now passed through Croatia in recent weeks. Just 10 (including two Cubans and a Russian) have applied for asylum, meaning 399,990 or so have - or are in the process of - passing through. There have been two refugee births and one death from natural causes, and no major incidents of crime or violence. Migrants and refugees enter the country from Serbia, pass by a transit camp, and they are then escorted to the Slovenian border and onwards. What tensions occur tend to happen at border crossings, far away from the beaches of Dalmatia.

What does this have to do with Croatian tourism? Absolutely nothing, apart from one thing - if, like me, you have been impressed by Croatia's humane handling of the crisis, you might consider vacationing here to find out more about the country's exceptional hospitality.

For such a huge amount of temporary visitors, the effect on everyday life has been minimal, especially in the tourist areas, for two reasons. Firstly, it is winter, and as 99% of Croatian tourism is based on the summer and shoulder seasons, the crisis has not really impacted the tourist season in terms of timing. The migrant crisis is an EU crisis, and one would hope that a solution to the current status quo must be found in the coming weeks. And secondly, the bulk of Croatian tourism takes place on the Adriatic coast and islands, a different world from the migrant route, and akin to being in St Tropez and hearing about the horrors of events in Paris.

Croatia is safe. Croatia is stunningly beautiful. Croatia is humane. And looking forward to your visit.

SERBIA: Air Serbia Is Double The Size Of Its Predecessor Jat Airways

At the end of last year, Air Serbia received the Route of the Week Award in recognition of the airline’s launch of services between its hub in Belgrade and Zagreb in Croatia. Dane Kondić, CEO, Air Serbia commented on the award win by saying: “This award is highly symbolic for us, as it recognises the importance of the Belgrade-Zagreb route from the perspective of an international industry expert and for this we are thankful.” Currently, the link between the two cities is the carrier’s 12th largest route.

After its first full year of operations in 2014, Air Serbia recorded a net profit of €2.7 million, while total revenue increased by 87% to €262 million, and passenger traffic grew 68% to 2.3 million. During 2014 the carrier also introduced eight new A319s and two A320s into its fleet, and refurbished five existing ATRs. Formerly called Jat Airways from 2001-2013, and Yugoslav Airlines before that, Air Serbia was born when the former agreed a strategic partnership with Etihad Airways and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on 1 August 2013 as a direct result of the then ailing carrier trying to find economic support. Etihad signed a five-year contract for management of the newly founded airline, in which the MEB3 carrier would obtain a 49% equity share of the now Air Serbia. The aim of the new carrier is to become a regional leader, and to resume its place among the world’s best airlines.

Air Serbia is twice as big as Jat
Over the past 12 months, Air Serbia has only recorded a growth in capacity of 1.6% based on OAG data. However, between 2013 and 2014 for the same time period analysed, the carrier grew by 48% meaning that over the past two years, the financial support of Etihad has helped the airline double in size in relation to its predecessor, Jat Airways. Overall, Air Serbia has nearly a five times bigger operation than Serbia’s second largest carrier Wizz Air, whereas two years ago, the then Jat Airways was only 1.8 times bigger. The result demonstrates just how much of an effect Etihad’s financial support has had in making sure that Air Serbia has reached its aim of becoming the regional leader in Serbia.

Zurich zooms to #1 position
With a total of nearly 8,500 monthly seats on offer from Belgrade, services to Zurich have become the number one route for Air Serbia, helped by Paris CDG, which was number one last year, seeing a decrease in capacity of nearly 13% which is approximately just over 1,000 seats. Of the top 12 routes, the number one for growth was Ljubljana which now has an extra 1,700 seats a month according to OAG Schedules Analyser data. Overall, Air Serbia’s capacity is up 1.6% when compared to the same time period of last year, with Zagreb being the only new route.

Budapest and Larnaca services to end
Despite a major turnaround and rebrand, it’s still not enough to make services to Budapest and Larnaca financially viable, with both routes ending on 25 October. In a statement about the cancellation of both routes, Dane Kondić, Air Serbia CEO, commented: “Air Serbia continuously evaluates its network to ensure it is in line with passenger demand and is commercially sustainable. These decisions will enable us to place greater focus on key areas of the business that demonstrate the strongest potential for sustained long-term growth”. Services to Budapest launched on 30 March last year, while Larnaca operations were inherited from Jat Airways’ network, where it had been a main feature for more than a decade.

Croatia is the best performing market for growth
After recording growth in seat capacity of nearly 55%, Croatia is the best performing country market for Air Serbia in relation to growth this October. The only country market to see a growth close to this percentage is Albania. The 25th most popular country market for the airline from Serbia has recorded a growth over the past 12 months of 54%. At the other end of the spectrum, the worst performing country markets for growth are Macedonia and Romania, both of which are down 65% and 73% respectively. The only two country markets which see over 10,000 seats a month on offer from Serbia are Germany and Montenegro. Last year Greece, which then was also the second most popular country market, was also served by 10,000 plus seats per month based on OAG Schedules Analyser data. However by witnessing a nearly 14% decline in seat capacity, the country market with Serbia is only served by 9,600 seats.

Services to Budapest, which launched on 30 March 2013, will cease to operate after 25 October. The short 303-kilometre service was operated daily using the carrier’s 62-seat ATR 72-200s. The airline Belavia will continue to operate services between the Hungarian capital and Belgrade according to OAG Schedules Analyser data.

More Refugees Will Invade Europe If Wars Don't Stop

Macedonia's Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki has said that his country might follow Hungary's example and build a border fence to stem the influx of refugees trekking through the Balkans to reach Western Europe.

The news comes as foreign ministers from four Central European nations are meeting in Prague on Friday, amid a growing rift over the refugee crisis.

The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia reject quotas proposed by the EU Commission, which proposed 120,000 additional asylum seekers per year to be shared out between 28 member states.

"We too will need some kind of physical defence to reduce illegal border crossing. Either soldiers or a fence or a combination of the two," Poposki was quoted as saying in an interview with Hungarian business weekly Figyelo on Thursday.

He said his country was currently forced to let the 3,000 to 4,000 migrants who arrive in his country on a daily basis continue their journey to Serbia and Hungary unimpeded.

"There is no European consensus on how we can handle this question," he said.

As of 0600 GMT on Friday, an estimated 7,600 refugees had already crossed into Macedonia from Greece in a 24-hour period, according to the UN refugee agency.

Peter Salama, UNICEF's regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said millions of people in Syria could become refugees and head to Europe if there is no end to the war.

Refugees from the border between Greece and Macedonia on Friday, said the situation has settled down after tensions.

At the border crossing station, from where our correspondent was reporting, about 1,500 had crossed on Friday morning. They are reportedly being organised into groups of 50 people.

From there, public transportation will then take them to the border with Serbia, our correspondent said.

But overnight, the situation was tense, with "impatient" refugees facing off with the police.

"Macedonian border police had blocked their path and frustrations grew once more," she said. "This is not the first time for the Macedonian border guards to use force."

Syrian refugees Bassem, his wife Marwa, and their child Ali, were among those in the crowd. They left Syria 25 days ago, entering Greece through the island of Rhodes.

Bassem and Marwa said that they feared Ali would not make the Mediterranean crossing.

"We know it's going to be difficult here, we know some don't want us, but it's still much better than Syria," Bassem said.

Along with neighbouring Serbia, Macedonia has become a major transit country for tens of thousands of refugees who trudge up from Greece, after risking their lives crossing the Mediterranean Sea crammed into makeshift boats.

The majority are heading for Germany, which has pledged to welcome hundreds of thousands more refugees having already taken in 450,000 to date since January.

So far, more than 160,000 have already crossed through Macedonia on their way to Serbia and Hungary this year.

Last month, the small Balkan nation declared a state of emergency as it struggled to cope with the relentless stream of people.

Reports overnight said that Hungary's government is considering declaring a state of emergency within the next week.

Hungary completed a razor-wire barrier along its 175km border with Serbia in late August, but it has failed to stop distraught refugees from scaling the barrier.

The central European nation is building another fence four metres high that it aims to complete by late October or early November, and the government has said it will be manned by the military.

Some 85 percent of those hoping to eventually reach wealthy EU nations such as Germany or Sweden are not merely in search of a better life, but have been forced to leave because of wars in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, according to the UN's refugee agency.

Hungary to deploy army to stop refugees from crossing border, so the Hungarian government announced.

On Friday, the wife of an Austrian politician said Hungarian police have been feeding refugees "like animals in a pen" inside a border camp.

Michaela Spritzendorfer filmed the footage of the refugees surging forward against the fences surrounding them as officers toss food packets to them.

It reportedly happened at a makeshift camp in the Hungarian town of Rozke.The incident was filmed on the same day the UN commissioner on refugees said conditions were getting worse there.

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama has ordered his administration to increase the number of Syrian refugees allowed into the country.

The United States has taken in just 1,500 Syrians since the civil war began in 2011.