Montenegro has great potential for rural tourism development but has already developed the core of the offer with numerous examples in practice. In the north, these are ethno and ecovillages, as good examples of joining rural areas, homemade kitchens and the kindness of the local population, as well as catunas and classic households. In the central part, and especially in the area around the Skadar Lake, a good pie is wine tourism, while in the coastal area it is oleo tourism, says Dr. Ilija Moric, whose monograph "Rural tourism in Montenegro: Marketing aspect of development" is going to be promoted on Saturday within the Fall Colors Fair, at the Chedy Hotel in the Luštica bay tourist complex.
The Moric family is the first, and is still the only producer of olive oil in Montenegro that holds the certificate of organic production. Apart from taking part in family business, which, besides the production itself, also includes guest reception and the presentation of the legacy of Luštica, Dr. Ilija Moric is also a lecturer at the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality in Kotor, and a rural tourism expert.
Although apparently without direct links, agricultural production and rural tourism are closely related, says Dr. Ilija Moric.
"Rural tourism is unimaginable without agricultural production. In the short term, it may be possible to offer accommodation and attract a number of guests. The same effect may have some special attraction in the rural area. But true rural tourism, which inherits a rural lifestyle, must rely on traditional agricultural production because without it there is no sense. What is the basic feature of rural tourism and our villages is traditional agriculture, which defines the character of rurality, which is the basic thesis of my doctoral dissertation, a monograph which will be presented on Saturday.
What is most important for us is to preserve agriculture because it is the basis of the style and way of life that we had in our villages before. This specific way of life has to a certain extent been maintained to this day and as such is a kind of attraction, which should be preserved and nurtured as a basis for sustainable development.
In his dissertation, Moric identified over 140 examples of rural households in Montenegro by accompanying promotional material, listening, analyzing. "Some manufacturers have lost in the meantime, some new ones have emerged. The mortality rate of this business is high. Many get involved, so they quickly get out of this job. But, on the other hand, there is an even greater rate for those entering the market as new and that is what encourages us. Therefore, at this point, we can talk about more than 150 rural households in Montenegro open for visitors. But when you compare it with 40,000 households that deal with agricultural production in some form and scope, the percentage of rural householders involved in the tourism industry is very small. The same percentage other countries in Europe have," Moric said.
It seems that people in Montenegro are returning more and more to the village, but only a few are coming back to join the village in terms of their lives and work. The return that happens to us is most often related to the weekend stay in the village, which is, according to Dr. Moric, also good. "However, the true return to the village, what is now in Europe called re-naturalization, in the sense of reviving the village and restoring the character of the village, has still not lived here. Returning to the village cannot mean the urbanization of the village, which will change its basic characteristics, rather than the revival of the inherited qualities, of what is cultivated and how to regulate the landscape. The rural character of space should be preserved, and also because our villages are our identity. We can search for our identity in some other things, or want it to be elsewhere. However, in our villages lives our history and our identity, which should be preserved," emphasized Dr. Moric, whose family has never left the village, nor neglected the inherited culture of life. At a time when every activity has justifications only if it brings economic gains, rural tourism is a good "justification" to be dedicated to heritage, as the basic support of any sustainability.
Moric points out that the village of today is not the same as it was in the past. And it should not be the same. "In the first part of the monograph, I have highlighted the multifunctionality of the village. It's not just the place where it resides and produces. The village is a place for art, for science, for research, for tourism, for various projects, both commercial and non-commercial. It is not a village that remembers older generations, backward and demanding for life. The village, as it is today throughout Europe, in the true sense of the word can be a paradise for life."
Gornja Lastva on Vrmac, although it has only one permanent resident, is the real example of multifunctionality. In the village, they organize cultural events, different workshops, segments of national and cross-border projects, but the village also has a tourist character, both in terms of daily excursions and the longer stay of guests, so Gornja Lastva is such a literary example that we can all develop in our villages," explains Dr. Moric.
"There are different models of valorisation, there is no single recipe. If I talk about my family, I can tell you that we have long sought the prescription we will apply. It's not a decision that comes overnight. Also, things are changing and we have to adapt. In the book, at 425 pages, I have given one, it can be said, a brief overview of everything that can be developed in Montenegro in theory and practice. There are no detailed recipes - it is important that people have the will to go with it. That is, in a business sense, a typical business. However, rural tourism, apart from business, can also be a great pleasure."
The Moric family receives their guests from all meridians on their farm. "We strive to be good ambassadors. And at the Faculty of Tourism, we keep repeating to our students - all Montenegrin residents are our ambassadors because sooner or later they will come in contact with tourists. We who are directly in touch with visitors need to take into account how we present our offer and which image they bring with them because it will depend on the visit we will have in the future."
Dr. Moric's book is going to be promoted within the Luštica Bay Fall Colors Fair, on Saturday, 27 October at 11 am at the Chedi Hotel. The monograph "Rural tourism in Montenegro: Marketing aspect of development" was premiered on 27 September in Tehnopolis in Nikšić, marking the World Tourism Day. The monograph publisher is Tehnopolis - Innovative Entrepreneurial Center.
