WHY DO TOURISTS AVOID GRADIŠKA?

From the beginning of the year until the end of September, Gradiška was visited by 3,124 tourists, with 2,545 overnight stays recorded during the summer, according to data from the Tourist Organization of Gradiška.

The local portal Micro Mreža analyzed these numbers and the various events held in the city. Here is the full report.

While Banja Luka continues to break records year after year in both tourist visits and overnight stays, Gradiška struggles to position itself as a tourist destination. Considering that the same number of people cross the Gradiška border checkpoint in just one day, it becomes clear that Gradiška is either doing something wrong or failing to act at all in this area. There is ample room for improvement to encourage visitors to stay longer.

Despite hosting numerous events such as Zdravofest, the Roman Festival, the Wine Festival, the “Ljubica” Theater Festival, and several cooking competitions, Gradiška has failed to establish itself as an attractive tourist destination. Adding to this is the fact that Gradiška still lacks a hotel, even though there is a Ministry of Tourism representative from the area. This presents a significant problem for anyone trying to organize activities that include overnight stays.

What lies ahead is the Winter Town event, which, apart from a few concerts and stalls, will likely only attract attention for the first two or three days. The city administration needs to come up with better ways to attract tourists. One potential solution is extending the working hours of hospitality venues. This is especially relevant because, during weekdays, everything shuts down by 11 PM, driving tourists from Croatia and Slovenia to Banja Luka instead. Additionally, shopping tours could be organized with shopping malls since some products are still cheaper here than in the EU.

It’s also worth noting that Gradiška lacks concerts, even though some efforts have been made with events at the Arena sports hall. However, this is not enough. The Arena itself has great potential for sports tourism, but without a hotel, this potential remains untapped.

One area that could partially improve these statistics is religious tourism, with the completion of the Karanovac Monastery. However, there is still insufficient promotion of the potential offered by the surrounding villages.