Visas in Tourism

Visas in Tourism

  • Submitted By: antony2010
  • Date Submitted: 10/18/2013 6:43 AM
  • Category: Business
  • Words: 762
  • Page: 4
  • Views: 112

A brief overview
The articles are talking about the biggest problem Croatian tourism had to face in summer season 2013.
The 1st of April saw many changes in the Croatian law and one of the most controversial was the introduction of travel visas for Russians. In fact the move to introduce travel visas for Russian citizens was forced on Croatia as part of the European Union regulations. Croatia is set to become a full member of the European Union on the 1st of July this year and therefore the EU visa regime has come into force. This means that all citizens for a host of non-EU countries require visas to visit the country.
Tourists from Russia are not the only ones that will now require a visa, guests from the Ukraine and Turkey will now also need to take out the travel visa. Ironically tourists from these three countries have been on the rise in recent years, just last year the number of Russian tourists rose by 8 percent and in total they accounted for 1.6 million overnight stays.
Russian citizens are required to apply for a visa with the Croatian Embassy in Moscow or through various tourist agencies that have been accredited by the embassy. The introduction of visas for Russian tourists decreased in the number of tourists as well as a drop in the number of Russian investments. It also played into the hands of Croatia’s neighbors, such as Montenegro, where no such visa regime is in force.
Effects on my organization
The introduction of visa regime for Russian tourists has brought losses, by the end of August up to 27 percent less visitors for our hotel capacities. Hotel in order to prevail downfall of overnights had to decrease the price and accommodate guests who are not of such a good affordability. Specifically, Russian tour operators complained that Croatian hoteliers want to work with them exclusively under “empty for full”. In this way the tour operator takes risk of the business.
Some Russian companies began losing money; Ascent Travel withdrew...

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