Serbian Tourists Avoiding Lake Ohrid

According to the Serbian newspaper Vecernje novosti, many travelers are instead going to Greece, another popular destination for Serbian tourists.

Tour operators and hotel workers in Ohrid admit that there are “significantly less” visitors from Serbia this year. However, it’s not for financial reasons, they told Vecernje Novosti, insisting that they have “kept prices at last year’s level.”

According to the newspaper, the cheapest private accommodation in Ohrid costs seven euros per bed, while better rental apartments go for 20 - 60 euros a night, and luxury villas overlooking the lake up to 100 euros.

The hotel workers say that only neighboring Albania offers cheaper prices, and presume that the reason for the drop in Serbian tourism must lie elsewhere.

Last August ended tragically for 34-year-old Dejan Novakovic from Belgrade. While in a nightclub in the centre of Ohrid, he was brutally beaten to death for no apparent reason by several locals. The police soon apprehended the perpetrators, and this year they were sent to jail.

This is not an isolated incident. Vecernje Novosti notes that frequent attacks on tourists have continued.

Last week, three Serbian tourists were beaten at Ohrid Lake by a group of locals.

The locals were apparently ethnic Albanians who were unhappy that their favorite football team, Macedonian A league participant Shkendija, lost a match to Serbian Partizan that day.