Serbia breaks record in 2018 – 102,000 tourists arrive from China

Minister of Tourism of Serbia Rasim Ljajic said that 2018 was a record-setting year when it comes to arrivals of local and foreign guests and that the growth amounted to 11%.

– Unlike previous years, in 2018, we had an identical number of local and foreign guests for the first time, close to 1.7 million each – Ljajic said.

The biggest relative increase in the number of arrivals to Serbia was realized by Chinese tourists, of whom there were 98% more than in 2017, he said.

– Our country was visited by over 102,000 tourists from China last year, nearly twice as much as in 2017 – Ljajic said.

When it comes to the development of local tourist centers, the minister says that Sokobanja is for the first time one of the top 5 destinations in Serbia in the number of overnight stays and that the biggest growth of the number of overnight stays was also recorded in Sokobanja, by 90% compared to 2017.

Talking about the upcoming 41st International Tourism Fair, which will be held from February 21 through 24, Ljajic says that exhibitors from 45 countries are expected to attend.

Ljajic says that the partner-country at this year's fair is Bulgaria and that the Maldives will present its tourist offer for the first time, whereas Cuba and Indonesia will return to the fair after a break of several years.

Ministarstvo turizma i omladine Republike Srbije

Vlada Republike Srbije

International Tourism Fair

Rasim Ljajic

number of tourists in Serbia

tourism in Serbia

growth of number of tourists from Chine

tourists from China

development of spa tourism