CHINESE TOURISTS ARRIVE AGAIN IN SERBIA

According to the latest data, the most numerous foreign tourists in Serbia are Russians, and guests from China are among the top five. The reason why there were not more of them in our country is that China was the last to open after the pandemic, but Serbia has recently been on their collective travel list. That is why it is expected that this year will be the most numerous in terms of the number of Chinese tourists, not only because of the visa-free regime, but also because of the fact that Serbia has two direct airlines to Beijing and Tianjin, a city of 15 million inhabitants. The Minister of Tourism and Youth, Husein Memić, announced that a major promotion of tourism will follow, as ten tour operators from China will arrive in Serbia, while the first group of Chinese tourists is expected by mid-April. And from the Association of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs HORES, after a recent meeting with the two largest Chinese tour operators “Kaiša Group” and “Utour Group”, they announced the arrival of Chinese tourists in significantly greater numbers than in 2019, which was a record year for Serbian tourism before the global pandemic. By the way, in 2019, more than 150,000 Chinese tourists were recorded in Serbia, who were among the top three countries in terms of the number of foreign tourist arrivals. Chinese partners, the association said, expect satisfaction with hospitality, hotels, restaurants and tourist facilities to be the same as before the pandemic. The representatives of China asked to be suggested hotels and restaurants where Chinese tourists would stay, with special attention to certified “Clean and safe” facilities, health and hygiene measures are one of the prerequisites for the safe stay of their tourists. The director of HORES, Dr. Georgi Genov, welcomed this initiative, and stated that hotels and restaurants in Serbia are ready to accept Chinese guests, and that it was agreed with the Chinese partners that objections to the quality of services in hotels and restaurants, with the aim of eliminating defects and improving quality.