SERBIA
Airport as a hub including many low- cost carriers such as Wizz Air, German Wings, FlyNikki and Norwegian Air Shuttle amongst others. The increase of visitors coming through the capital’s airport has meant an estimated 30% rise in air travel alone, following the relaxation of visa requirement for most European countries, and for Serbians themselves to travel around Europe visa free.
Belgrade Airport has recently completed a major refurbishment programme in preparation for its rapid expansion plans.
Serbia Beyond Belgrade
Belgrade is a vibrant cosmopolitan city with many attractions including the Royal Palace, Tito’s Tomb, the Kamalgden Fortress, cruises on the Danube, the largest Orthodox church in the world (St Sava) and numerous museums and galleries. The cost of a one day ‘hop-on/hop-off’ bus pass is roughly £8, and an open-top guided bus tour is £4 for adults and £2 for children. What’s more Belgrade is a party city with a varied nightlife that could give western European cities a run for their money. Serbia has more to offer than regular
city breaks, with options to cruise along the Danube; a vast number of cultural sightseeing excursions to monasteries, museums and galleries; wine tasting
tours in eight wine regions; eco-tourism in many of the National Parks including Zlatibor and Fruska Gora and a host of activity holidays including hiking and cycling. Wintersports are also offered at Kopaonik and the recently opened Stara Planina, a new ski resort on the Bulgarian border. Many festivals held throughout the
year act as a major tourist magnet and include EXIT – the largest music festival in South-East Europe – in Serbia’s second city of Nis; Guca, which attracts nearly one million people in search of the golden trumpet and Balkan beats; Nisville, a jazz festival in Nis; and Belgrade BeerFest, which each year attract hundreds of thousands of domestic and foreign visitors.
Serbia What’s new The Tourist Offi ce of Belgrade
has launched a successful heavily
discounted city break offer to its Utrade partners, which include travel agents. The deal, which offers a competitive incentive for the travel trade to package the destination, features a two-/three- night break in Serbia’s capital, staying in three- or four-star hotels, return fl ights with JAT Airways and a free sightseeing tour of the city. Two new fi ve-star hotels will open in Belgrade later this year: the Metropol in August and the Continental Crown Plaza in the autumn. There has also been a raft of new three- and four- star hotels opening this year already including The Piaf, Falkensteiner, Radisson Blu, Holiday Inn and Astron. The Marriott will open a new four-star hotel early in 2014. Newly open and a must for visitors to the city is the new Destilerija – a restaurant, museum and Rakia Bar – which offers more than 60 brandies through a tasting menu.
Belgrade is bidding to become the
European City of Culture in 2020 to highlight its diverse multi-cultural legacy: for example, with tickets to the opera or ballet ranging from £1-£7, cultural experiences are available at very reasonable prices. The Tourist Organisation of Belgrade
will shortly be launching a new website with dedicated and secure pages available to tour operators and travel agents in addition to developing iPhone and Android applications which offer practical guidance in exploring the city and provide information on places to eat, drink and shop (
http://www.tob. rs/en/
index.php). Among operators featuring Belgrade
and Serbia are Travel the Unknown, Explore, Ramblers Holidays and Worldwide Adventures, including cycling and walking tours.
asktheoperators
Andrea Godfrey Product Manager Regent Holidays
”Serbia over the past 12
months has sold well for city break packages, and people are now starting to travel beyond Belgrade to see what the rest of Serbia has to offer. “Our tailor-made packages offer a very good vehicle for travel agents to boost commission potential and new for this year we have packaged a series of tours to highlight gastronomy and festivals which take in other areas of the country. “Regent Holidays has a full-time representative on the road to equip agents with further product information on selling the destination to respective clients, which has greatly enhanced the number of bookings being made through travel agents. We will also launch a series of fam trips as part of its agents’ educational programme early next year. “We are getting more bookings for
Serbia and there is a need for more fl ights from the UK to accommodate this demand.”
David McGuiness Director
Travel The Unknown “We are seeing an increase
in bookings to Serbia as people are looking for an alternative to more mainstream European holidays. “As people travel further afi eld
and their quest for an alternative adventurous holiday is heightened, there are enormous opportunities for the trade to sell holidays to Serbia and the Balkans as a whole as it’s diffi cult for people to package the types of holidays we offer on their own.”
26 July/August 2012 •
www.sellinglonghaul.com
My stimulating Serbia... by Russell Stenhouse
“I have been to Serbia many times over the past 10 years and as a destination it offers something for everyone. Novi Sad is Serbia’s second city and is in complete contrast to the hustle and bustle of Belgrade. Located on the banks of the Danube, it’s a city with a laid-back Bohemian attitude. The impressive Petrovaradin Fortress with its 21 kms of underground tunnels is home to the city’s many artistes who have opened galleries within its walls and is the location for EXIT, the annual music festival. EXIT is a sure winner each year for the city; it offers a great value alternative to Glastonbury where the sun is guaranteed along with the line-up. This year (July12- 15) the line up includes Duran Duran, Guns N Roses and New Order. Four-day tickets are available at only £95 with access to 14 stages and a dance arena.”
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