According to Serbian Economist, tourist arrivals to Montenegro in the first quarter of 2026 fell by nearly 4% amid a sharp drop in the number of visitors from Turkey and a continuing decline in the Russian segment, according to the statistical office Monstat.
In January–March 2026, Montenegro welcomed 169,419 tourists, who accounted for 1.079 million overnight stays across all types of accommodation. Compared to the same period last year, the number of tourists decreased by 6,400, or 3.8%, and the number of overnight stays by 41,000, or 3.7%.
The main factor behind the decline was the Turkish market. According to Vijesti, in the first quarter, Turkish citizens accounted for 60,359 overnight stays, compared to 114,477 a year earlier. Thus, the figure fell by 54,000 overnight stays, or 47%. A particularly sharp decline was recorded in private accommodations: the number of overnight stays by Turkish citizens fell from 95,043 to 44,744.
Tour operators attribute the decline to events in late October 2025, when, following an incident in Podgorica involving foreign workers from Turkey and Azerbaijan, attacks occurred on the property and businesses of Turkish citizens. Following this, the Montenegrin government temporarily introduced a visa requirement for Turkish citizens. In December 2025, the visa-free regime was restored, but in a reduced format: the length of stay without a visa was reduced from 90 to 30 days.
The Russian segment also continued to shrink. In private accommodations alone, Russian citizens recorded 317,000 overnight stays in the first quarter of 2026, compared to 370,000 a year earlier. The decline amounted to 53,000 overnight stays, or 14%. Over the past two years, Russian tourist arrivals to Montenegro have already declined significantly: in 2023, tourists from Russia accounted for approximately 3.7 million overnight stays, while in 2025, the figure was approximately 2.4 million.
Part of the decline was offset by other markets, primarily Serbia. According to Vijesti, the number of overnight stays by visitors from Serbia in the first quarter increased by nearly 50,000 compared to the same period last year. The number of overnight stays by tourists from Albania, Germany, and Bosnia and Herzegovina also increased, but this was not enough to offset the decline in Turkish and Russian tourist flows.
Serbia remains one of Montenegro’s key tourist markets. According to the National Tourism Organization of Montenegro, in 2025, Serbian citizens accounted for 18.1% of foreign tourist arrivals, ranking first among external markets. In private accommodation, the share of Serbian tourists by overnight stays in 2025 was 25.6%, which also makes Serbia one of the main sources of demand for the Montenegrin tourism sector.
Ukrainian tourists also constitute a significant group of visitors to Montenegro, particularly in private accommodations. According to Monstat data for 2025, tourists from Ukraine accounted for 4.7% of overnight stays by foreign tourists in private accommodations, compared to Turkey’s share in this segment of 4.9%.
Official monthly statistics show that in March 2026, Montenegro’s collective accommodation facilities recorded 56,306 thousand arrivals and 123,913 thousand overnight stays. Foreigners accounted for 71.9% of all overnight stays, with the majority occurring at seaside resorts—72.4%.
Among foreign tourists in March, visitors from Serbia led the way with 5,980 thousand arrivals, followed by Albania, Germany, China, Turkey, Russia, and Ukraine.
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Join UP!, an international travel brand founded in Ukraine, is shifting its business model from a traditional tour operator to a vertically integrated comprehensive travel service—Join Up! Travel Universe, the company’s press office told Interfax-Ukraine.
“We are moving to a new stage—creating the brand image of Join Up! Travel Universe, a vertically integrated model that combines all key elements of travel into a single seamless system centered on the customer. Our goal is to move beyond selling individual services and instead manage the entire customer experience: from the inspiration to travel to returning home from the trip,” commented Join Up! co-founder Alina Alba.
The change in the business model also means a change in the approach to the company’s development. While the growth strategy was previously focused primarily on scaling, the focus is now shifting to development “from within”: multi-service capabilities, quality control of the travel experience, and a seamless customer experience where all touchpoints are integrated into a single system (an omnichannel approach) to deliver the necessary service.
The foundation of the vertically integrated model will be: strategic airline partner SkyUp, our own DMCs (destination management companies that serve tourists in vacation destinations), traditional travel agencies (B2B sales), travel shops (offline B2C sales points), and direct online sales via the website. Consumers will be offered package and dynamic tours, hotel bookings, airline tickets, excursions, events, activities, vehicle rentals, and more.
This structure will enable Join Up! to better control quality at every stage of the customer journey and create a cohesive, predictable, and personalized travel experience. The new model also makes it possible to adapt travel solutions more quickly to changes in customer behavior and market conditions, as well as to attract a new audience—people who are accustomed to planning their own trips and organizing the entire travel process.
The new travel planning format will also allow travelers to literally “build” their vacation like a construction set and view all trip details in one place—in the mobile app or web version of the platform.
The updated platform is already available to users, though new services will be added gradually so that customers can receive personalized travel solutions tailored to their needs, budget, and lifestyle. For agents, this transformation opens up new opportunities to expand their product lineup, improve the customer experience, and attract a new audience that values a diverse range of services and seamless interaction.
In addition to transforming its business model, the Join Up!™ brand is updating its visual identity across all official digital platforms.
Over the past 15 years, Join Up! has evolved from a travel agency and local tour operator into an international travel brand. The company is currently represented in Poland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Moldova. Since its inception, the brand has served more than 8 million tourists across all markets and developed a partner network of nearly 10,000 travel agencies, according to internal data.
As reported, the travel company Join UP! LLC was established in 2013. The ultimate beneficiaries are Yuriy and Oleksandr Alby.
The company’s authorized capital is UAH 72.671 million.
According to Serbian Economist, low-cost carrier Wizz Air will open its first hub in Montenegro at Podgorica Airport on March 30, 2026, and begin a phased rollout of 17 new routes to European cities. This was announced by Montenegro’s airport operator, Aerodromi Crne Gore.
According to the published information, the new flights will be introduced gradually from late March through mid-June. Among the announced destinations are Malmö, Paris-Beauvais, Hamburg, Maastricht, Catania, Bratislava, Barcelona, Basel, Rzeszów, Rome, Baden-Baden, Cologne, Ljubljana, Poznań, Vilnius, Gdańsk, and Wrocław.
As previously reported, Wizz Air will station two Airbus A321neo aircraft in Podgorica. According to the company’s estimates, the new base will create about 80 direct jobs and generate approximately 700 indirect ones, as well as increase tourist and business traffic through the capital of Montenegro. Back in October 2025, the carrier stated that the launch of the base and new routes is expected to add about 1 million seats per year.
For Podgorica Airport, the project also has infrastructure significance. Aerodromi Crne Gore previously announced plans to invest €21 million in equipment and modernization in 2026, with the main focus on Podgorica, where traffic is expected to grow by approximately 50%, in part thanks to the Wizz Air hub.
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Revenues to local budgets from the tourist tax for January–February 2026 amounted to 72.5 million UAH, which is 25% higher than the figure for the same period in 2025 (58 million UAH), according to the State Tax Service of Ukraine (STS).
According to data published on the STU website, the largest revenues were traditionally generated by tourist-attractive regions: Kyiv took the lead (16.2 million UAH). Significant amounts were also received in Lviv Oblast (15 million UAH), Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast (11.8 million UAH), and Zakarpattia Oblast (5.9 million UAH).
“The tourist tax is an important source of revenue for local budgets. Thanks to these funds, communities have the opportunity to develop infrastructure, improve tourist sites, support the hospitality sector, and create comfortable conditions for both guests and residents,” the STU emphasized.
The agency reminded that the taxpayers of this fee are Ukrainian citizens, foreigners, and stateless persons who are temporarily staying in accommodations (hotels, hostels, guesthouses, etc.). Tax agents are business entities that provide temporary accommodation services—they are the ones who calculate and remit the fee to the budget.
Tourists spent a total of 3.09 billion nights in hotels, hostels, and rented apartments in the European Union in 2025, according to final estimates from the EU’s statistical office.
This is 2.2% (66.4 million) higher than the 2024 figure and represents a record.
At the same time, the number of overnight stays by foreign visitors increased by 3.4% (49.7 million) last year, while for EU residents, this figure rose by 1.1% (16.7 million).
An increase in tourism activity was observed in 24 of the 27 EU member states. The most significant growth in tourist numbers was recorded in Malta (by 10.1%) and Poland (by 7.2%), while the number of overnight stays in Luxembourg decreased by 2.4%, in Romania by 1.7%, and in Ireland by 0.4%.
The most popular tourist destinations for foreigners were Spain (513.6 million overnight stays), Italy (476.9 million), France (471.7 million), and Germany (442.1 million). The least popular destinations were Luxembourg (3.6 million), Latvia (5 million), and Estonia (6.7 million).
According to Serbian Economist, Iberostar has opened sales for its new Iberostar Selection Montenegro property on the Bar Riviera coast. The promotional offer is tied to the period of stay from May 1 to October 31, 2026, which indicates a launch at the beginning of the summer season.
Iberostar is located on the seafront and has direct access to a private bay/beach; The property is approximately 9 km from the old town of Bar, and the distance to Podgorica and Tivat airports is 45 km and 57 km, respectively. The hotel is located in the coastal area of Ratac, between Bar and Sutomore, and is advertised as “new for 2026.”
The key focus of the project is on leisure and wellness infrastructure. There will be indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a 3,700 sq m spa complex (saunas, hammam, steam room, cold room, massages and treatments), and a gym with sea views. In terms of accommodation, Iberostar is promoting rooms and suites with views of the Adriatic, as well as options with private amenities, such as terraces with jacuzzis and categories with private or swim-up pools.
Dining will include several formats, from the main restaurant to à la carte, cafes, and beach bars. An all-inclusive option and the Star Camp children’s program are also announced.
Iberostar is expanding its presence in the Adriatic through existing hotels in Montenegro, including Iberostar Waves Slavija and Iberostar Waves Bellevue in the Budva area.
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