The Grand Opening of 2025 Nautical season in Belgrade PHOTO

Director of the Port Management Agency Vuk Perović said that a double-digit growth in tourists arriving by boat is expected in Serbia this year.

Perović said that the largest number of nautical tourists comes from Europe, America, Mexico and Canada.

"We have good announcements from tourist operators. We expect a growth of three to five percent in terms of ship landings. I will remind you that the Port Management Agency has opened 10 international passenger piers, seven of them on the Danube and three on the Sava. We have expanded the offer and foreign tourists really have something to see in our country," Perović told Tanjug.

He added that the trends in the cruise industry have changed and that more and more tourists from China can be expected in the coming period, as well as that the nautical season now lasts longer.

"We have an announcement of three landings for the New Year, which is very good news considering that the season used to last from March to October, and now it has been extended from March to December," said Perović.

He pointed out that last year the Port Management Agency recorded 1,459 arrivals and 205,000 tourists at ports in Serbia, which showed that the number of passengers was 12.3 percent higher than in 2023.

Also, there were a total of 594 arrivals and 84,000 passengers in Belgrade last year.

The ship with American tourists docked today around eight o'clock, after which the passengers toured Belgrade and the sights of the capital.

The ceremonial welcome of those passengers from the cruise ship was organized at 12 o'clock in cooperation with the First Steamship Company, and after the tour of Belgrade, the passengers were treated to bread, salt, homemade brandy and gifts.

A folklore performance of the Cultural Center "Talia" was also organized for passengers who are on the seven-day "Jewels of Southeast Europe" cruise program.

The captain of the "AmaVerde" cruise ship, which sailed with 140 passengers to the "Port of Belgrade" international passenger pier, Pavel Pavlov, said that this is the first cruise ship that arrived in Belgrade this year from Budapest.

TANJUG/JADRANKA ILIĆ

"This is my fifth year sailing here and I can say that every year there are more and more tourists who cruise the Danube and Belgrade. Most of the guests on the cruise ship are from the United States and Canada, but we also have smaller groups of people from Great Britain and Scandinavian countries," said Pavlov.

Director of the Belgrade Tourist Organization, Miodrag Popović, said that TOB traditionally participates in welcoming the first cruise ship to the Port of Belgrade.

"This is a very specific segment of the tourist offer of the city of Belgrade. This is what we and our colleagues from the travel agencies who provide services here to those big operators who organize cruises have been persistently doing. Year after year, the results are getting better," said Popović.

He added that the tourists who come to Belgrade by boat belong to the older generations, and since they stay for a short time, they should be prepared with a quality offer in a short time window.

"In the meantime, the road network in this country has drastically improved, so then you have much more to offer. All in all, it's getting better every year and it seems to me that this year will be successful," said Popović.

He stated that he hopes for good weather and good results in tourism.

Also, he said that transportation by boat is more beautiful than transportation by other transport vehicles.

He pointed out that there is room for the development of nautical tourism in Serbia and that the fact that Belgrade attracts the largest number of tourists who may be interested in other parts of the country can significantly contribute to the development of tourism, as well as that the construction of a pier by the state downstream from Belgrade can contribute to it.

For the year 2025, 603 dockings have been announced, and the total number for all ports in Serbia is 1,376.

TOB announced the arrival of ships for the New Year (Nestroy, Viktoria and Rousse Prestige), as well as ships of the company "Viking River Cruises" with Chinese guests who stay longer and will have the opportunity to get to know the night atmosphere of our capital.