From January 1 of this year, citizens of Kosovo enjoy the right to travel without a visa. The abolition of visas has made trips abroad to increase, but so far the main destination is Greece, Fatos Shala writes from Pristina for Monitor. In recent months, the citizens of Kosovo have been spending most of their weekends in Greece, specifically in Thessaloniki. For two days spent in this country, it turns out that they are spending quite a lot of money. Even, according to the Kosovo Business Alliance (AKB), the citizens of Kosovo are spending over 1 million euros to visit Thessaloniki and other Greek countries. “Greece is becoming the most favorite place for Kosovo citizens to visit during the week, especially after January of this year, that on average in the past weeks, over 2,500 visitors have left for the weekend, to visit Thessaloniki and other countries in Greece, on average are spending over €1 million on consumption, car insurance and purchases”, according to a study by AKB.
According to AKB, these visits are also making possible the cheap offers of tourist companies. “This is also being made difficult by the various bus arrangements of some companies and tourist agencies with cheap offers from Kosovo to go to Thessaloniki for only 8 euros”. The Kosovar Business Alliance says that after the liberalization of visas, some countries that were traditionally visited by citizens until the 1991s are benefiting.
“From the liberalization of visas for Kosovo, the countries that traditionally were visited by Kosovars until around 1991, when the EU countries apply visas for the former Yugoslavia, are benefiting the most.” Ruzhdi Kurtishaj, owner of a tourist agency, has shown that the trips of Kosovo’s citizens have increased by more than 100% since January 1. According to him, the destinations are different, such as Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Austria. “I am taking Greece as an example, as it is the most frequented country. Last year, we traveled to this country once a week with a bus, while currently, we travel three times a week with six buses”. He says that the capacity of a bus is for 50 to 80 passengers, while the return ticket from Pristina to Thessaloniki – about 330 kilometers away – is 20 euros. If the calculation is made only with the figures of this agency, it turns out that at least 300 citizens travel to Greece every week and spend at least 6,000 euros just for tickets.
Data from the Kosovo Police show that from January 1 to this February, over 1.7 million citizens have left the land border of Kosovo, while over 1.6 million have entered. Meanwhile, at the International Airport of Pristina, they have shown that there is an increase in the number of travelers to and from Kosovo.
The total number in January was over 287,000, compared to over 266,000 in January 2023. Visa liberalization, however, cannot be used for employment purposes, only tourist visits. For employment in an EU country, a visa and a special permit are required. Kosovo was the last in the Western Balkan region to gain the right of free movement.
KOSOVA CITIZENS OCCUPINE 43% OF TOTAL INCOMES IN 2023
Albania has been the main destination of citizens from Kosovo due to its proximity, but also the impossibility of traveling to EU countries. According to INSTAT data, in 2023, about 4.4 million visitors entered from Kosovo with an increase of 67 percent compared to 2022. The arrivals of citizens from Kosovo accounted for 43% of the total number of foreign citizens. The latter reached a record in 2023, surpassing the figure of 10 million. Meanwhile, many citizens from Kosovo from January 1 are making tourist trips through Rinas, mainly in Italian cities, registering at the entrance as tourists coming to Albania! (Monitor)
