Assistant Minister for Tourism Renata Pindžo said that the arrival of foreigners to Serbia is important for improving the overall balance of payments of the country, but that the complete development of tourism requires that we accept and promote local tourism and improve the accessibility of tourist destinations, which was proved by the practice of many European countries.

She said for RTS that the “My Serbia” promotion campaign will show the level of willingness of local caterers to act in accordance with the market, and offer more affordable prices to domestic tourists.

Pindžo said that the aim is not only to mobilize domestic tourists, but also to continue with the promotion of Serbia as a tourist destination in international markets.

“The goal is to attract foreigners for the overall improvement of the balance of payments of the country, but on the other hand, anyone who works in tourism knows that no tourism development is possible without the development of domestic tourism and the promotion of tourist destinations,” said Pindžo.

She gave the example of Germany, which has a higher percentage of participation in the country’s GDP from tourism than from the automotive industry, and 70-75 percent of its revenues come from domestic tourists.

She noted that it is important to promote the local tourism offer, but the question is whether citizens are willing to spend part of their holiday in Serbia, and whether hoteliers are willing to offer slightly lower prices.

She said that our citizens leave a lot more money as tourists abroad, compared to tourists that visit Serbia.

“Hoteliers will have a very important role in the “My Serbia” campaign, they will have to make economic calculations whether it is better for them to have their capacities filled or not out of season,” said Pindžo and emphasized that it is important that citizens take care of the cleanliness of the place in which they live.