Montenegro residents claim tourists are making life “increasingly difficult”
The historic coastal town of Kotor in Montenegro first emerged on the radar of many in 2006 when it featured in the James Bond movie Casino Royale. As a result, it has now become an unlikely tourism hub.
Over the last decade, Montenegro, perched by the Adriatic Sea, has grown into one of Europe’s most sought-after luxury destinations. In 2006, less than a million people visited Montenegro, but this number has grown exponentially since then, with over 2.6 million tourists making the voyage to the European country throughout 2023.
While the influx of holidaymakers to the region has been beneficial to Montenegro’s economy and is responsible for the creation of plentiful jobs, which has helped tourism become the country’s third biggest industry, it is now getting out of hand in certain regions that are struggling to cope with demand.
The population of Montenegro is only 600,000, which is significantly lower than the number of tourists that visit the territory on an annual basis. Furthermore, tourists are arriving in their droves to small towns such as Kotor, which has a population of 13,347, according to the latest census.
A major reason the level of tourism is increasing in Kotor is its picturesque seaside location, which has made it a hotspot for cruises. Several cruise ships are making their way through Kotor on a daily basis throughout the summer season, which is causing issues for locals due to the small vicinity of the area and its narrow streets.
Jovan Ristic, director of the local tourism board, has spoken out against the rise in cruises passing through Kotor, saying, “The life of our neighbours is becoming increasingly difficult during the tourist season.”
Ristic also shared his desire for Kotor to raise the current tourist tax for cruise ship visitors, which is currently €1 a day, noting, “All similar tourist destinations are working on reducing or selecting passenger ships and seriously collecting excursion fees.”
“Traffic jams are huge”
Meanwhile, Doris Dajkovic, who works at a souvenir shop in Kotor, claimed that “traffic jams are huge” because of mass tourism, which is causing issues for locals during their day-to-day lives.
In addition to causing problems to the streets of Kotor, which is irritating to locals who are attempting to go about their daily business, there is also a broader concern regarding the local marine environment, according to Milica Mandic, a scientific advisor at Montenegro’s Institute of Marine Biology, who said, “Such a number of cruisers requires a study to determine the maximum environmental load.”
It remains to be seen how Kotor plan to deal with the rising numbers of tourists to the town before it becomes even more unsustainable, but one possible solution is following the lead of Venice, Italy. In April, the Italian city raised the tax on day tourists to €5, which they hope would prevent many from making the journey.
