Fifteen years of dedicated work on the development and promotion of tourism in our city, a handful of creative ideas, innovative solutions, effort, commitment, and above all love for the work we do, have brought results that we can all be proud of. Some of them were measured by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia and the Port Governance Agency, and others were collected thanks to successful long-term cooperation with hoteliers, as well as by surveying tourists. Where we were when we started, and where we are now and how big that progress is, you can see from the lines that follow.
Tourist traffic from 2009 to 2022, tabular presentation
| Year | Arrivals | Overnight stays |
| 2009 | 83,981 | 161,709 |
| 2010 | 92,620 | 168,347 |
| 2011 | 106,433 | 213,549 |
| 2012 | 108,769 | 220,842 |
| 2013 | 122,472 | 252,717 |
| 2014 | 140,746 | 287,167 |
| 2015 | 151,372 | 297,097 |
| 2016 | 174,489 | 360,578 |
| 2017 | 195,054 | 367,569 |
| 2018 | 214,321 | 452,702 |
| 2019 | 221,848 | 425,149 |
| 2020 | 76,091 | 179,090 |
| 2021 | 134,267 | 335,738 |
| 2022 | 218,973 | 561,062 |
| Total | 2,041,436 | 4,283,316 |
Source: Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia
Graph of tourist traffic from 2009 to 2022
From the attached table, we can see that the number of arrivals in 2009 was below 100,000, and that in 2022 it exceeded 200,000. This represents an increase in the number of tourist arrivals by over 160 per cent. As for overnight stays by tourists, in the year when the Tourism Organization of the City of Novi Sad was founded, they amounted to just over 160 thousand, and in the year preceding this jubilee, domestic and foreign tourists achieved more than half a million overnight stays. The increase in the number of overnight stays was, therefore, 247 per cent.
The modernly arranged and superbly equipped info centers of the Tourism Organization of the City of Novi Sad are visited daily by domestic and foreign tourists. Despite all the information available online, the spoken word and recommendations of professionals, as well as a rich selection of free publications in 18 languages, are a lure for many visitors from all over the world. Our informants have the privilege of sharing their knowledge about Novi Sad and its surroundings with almost 10,000 tourists from over 80 countries in the course of one year.
We analyzed the attitudes and behavior of our tourists, their impressions of Novi Sad and evaluations of the tourist offer through several questionnaires. In the following text, we convey to you the most important conclusions.
The average tourist in Novi Sad is between 31 and 50 years old, highly educated and has an average income. If it is a foreign tourist, he most likely comes from: Bijeljina, Istanbul, Moscow, Zagreb, Ljubljana or Beijing, and if it is a domestic tourist, then, in more than 30 per cent of cases, he came from Belgrade. The main reasons for visiting Novi Sad are its cultural and historical heritage, natural attractions and a good price-quality ratio. In most cases, tourists stay in private accommodation or with relatives and friends, and usually stay for two days. They get information about Novi Sad on the Internet, via Instagram, as well as the official website of the Tourism Organization of the City of Novi Sad. The most attractive locations are: the city center, Petrovaradin Fortress, parks and Štrand. The average tourist would recommend his friends to visit Novi Sad, and he himself would come to our city again, because in 98 per cent of cases he is satisfied with his visit.
Written by: Slavica Lončar
