S eptember, 2007

De st i nat ion : Monte neg ro small countr y and g rand oppor tunit y

MOUNTAIN TOURISM
IN MONTENEGRO

openness and hospitality of the population

high expectations from tourism
WEAKNESSES
underdeveloped and partially still bad treatment of the environment
bad and unbalanced economic development
movement of the labor force to cities, weak demographic
structure
high unemployment rate
relatively uneducated staff
non-existence of spatial and urban plans, especially at the
local level
bad transportation, communal (energy deficit) and general
infrastructure
bad transportation accessibility of the ski centers
unfinished privatization processes
slow process of restructuring of economy in some municipalities and reorganization of industrial zones
gradual development of the tourist laws, legal regulations
and organizational structures in the public sector
non-existence of TICs n most of the municipalities in the
northern region

Strengths and Weaknesses

The political situation, with the disintegration of former Yugoslavia and the wars in the Balkan region, had significant negative consequences on the Montenegrin tourism, especially in
the mountain and central regions. These effects from the region
represent the cause of most of the shortcomings, which affect
the development of tourism, whereas one should bear in mind
that there is a bad transportation and other infrastructure, a low
purchase power of the local population, as well as the loss of
the foreign market. The Government of the Republic of Montenegro is legally, organizationally, project-wise and financially
supporting the development of tourism, appreciating primarily
the natural potentials.
Macro Environment and Natural Resources

STRENGTHS
rich and various natural resources: nature, mountains, rivers and lakes, fauna, flora, snow coverage, climate conditions, etc.
undiscovered natural attractions
high concentration of natural attractions in a small area
big labor force potential

52

S eptember, 2007

De st i nat ion : Monte neg ro small countr y and g rand oppor tunit y
Tourist Offer

STRENGTHS
Some well-known tourist centers in the wider region
natural and native food and beverages
hospitality of the employees
WEAKNESSES
undeveloped and badly maintained tourist accommodation
facilities
old skiing equipment and its bad maintenance
lack of order and control in the ski slopes
badly developed basic tourist programs
general focus on the winter offer and winter period
lack of financial resources for investments into maintenance
of facilities and improvement of services

Demand

STRENGTHS
the ones who remained are a smaller number of loyal tourists
connoisseurs of the natural attractions of Montenegro
WEAKNESSES
loss of the real international market
small local tourist market
low purchasing power of the local population
promotionally undefined tourism-promotional materials in
marketing terms
lack of financial assets for promotion and marketing

Additional Tourist Activities

STRENGTHS
inclusion of the local specialties of each of the tourist destinations into the tourist offer
WEAKNESSES
badly developed additional offer of trading goods, agricultural products, etc.
bad connections and complementary offer of the mountain
tourist centers
bad connections and complementary offer of the mountain
and coastal tourist centers

http://www2.undp.org.yu/

53