Is water fun resistant to crisis - Serbia has no sea, but is abundant with aqua parks

For many citizens of Serbia, aqua parks are again this summer a sanctuary from high temperatures. However, regardless of the fact that there were more sunny days this year than in 2011, it seems that the financial crisis has contributed to a drop in the number of aqua land visitors. This is at least what Milan Slavinski claims, marketing director at NCA Consulting, which is the company that stands behind the aqua park at Silver Lake. Nevertheless, the popularity of water fun persists, given that new investments are announced in that field. As eKapija learns, one of the future investors is the city of Belgrade.

Slippery ground

- For all those involved in tourism and catering, this year is worse than the previous ones. Last year the aqua park at Silver Lake was visited by about 40,000 people. Considering the obvious influence of the crisis, the number of visitors will this year probably remain at the same level - Slavinski says to eKapija.

- The season is still underway. On average, the aqua park is daily visited by about 700 guests, which is a solid number, considering the size of the park. However, it is difficult to say whether we are satisfied with the season. The aqua park operates successfully, so we are neither unsatisfied nor oversatisfied.

People at Silver Lake hope that the aqua park will stay open to visitors at least until mid-September.

As Slavinski explains, a portion of this year`s profit will definitely be spent on a regular maintenance of the aqua park, but he also stresses that the amount of these investments will not be that big.

(Silver Lake aqua park)

The situation is similar in Backi Petrovac. The pompously announced opening ceremony of the largest aqua park in Serbia - Petroland, was much more successful than the first season. Although Petroland was visited by over 100,000 guests, its owners expected much more.

- The weather served us well, but the number of visitors could be much bigger. However, we are satisfied with the results in the first season. The problem is that aqua parks are not yet that popular in Serbia as they are abroad, where people go to aqua parks to take a bath in thermal water even when it`s cold outside - Zoroslav Brtka, director of Petroland, explains to eKapija.

The aqua park in Backi Petrovac is the only park in Serbia where all swimming pools are filled with thermal water. Now they plan to set up an inflatable pool cover, which will make it possible for lovers of this type of fun to visit it even on cold days. Opening of the aqua park in Backi Petrovac in April 2012 was only the first phase of its development, and it is going to get few more interesting amenities for visitors until the next season.

- Further development will start as soon as this season is over. There will be a couple of new water slides and several swimming pools, but the inflatable cover will not be ready for this winter season – says Brtka.

(Petroland)

According to his words, the amount of further investments will be known after the end of this season. So far, EUR 8.5 million have been invested in its construction. Once this complex is completely finished, which is expected to happen in two years, the total investment in the project will reach EUR 22 million. This aqua park will then be four times bigger than now (it now spans six hectares, and the plan is to span a total of 26 hectares once completed).

Water slide queue

However, although this year`s season is not so good for certain bathing resorts of this type in Serbia, there are also those that are quite satisfied. The aqua park in Jagodina, which had about 2 million visitors in five years and five seasons, is not affected by the crisis.

Jagodina-based aqua park was visited by between 3,600 and 4,000 tourists a day this season. Last year it attracted up to 7,000 guests a day, but there are more sunny days this summer, so that the final number of visitors will definitely be bigger this year.

Bojan Veljkovic, manager of the aqua park in Jagodina, says that they are satisfied with the season, especially considering the fact that several new aqua parks were opened this year.

- Last year the aqua park in Jagodina was visited by 220,000 people, and we are now close to exceed that number by 10 percent.

Thanks to the interest and a growing number of tourists, the aqua park in Jagodina has been operating positively from the very start, and a bigger number of tickets sold and higher profits will enable new investments.

A new, eighth swimming pool in this aqua park was opened in early August. As eKapija learns, the plan is to expand the park to additional 40 ares for the next season.

(full- aqua park in Jagodina)

Expansion and introduction of new water attractions and amenities is also in the pipeline at the aqua park in Arandjelovac, which operates as part of the luxury hotel Izvor. As Izvor Director Dragan Todorovic explains to eKapija, this aqua park will definitely get another swimming pool with several water slides.

- The aqua park, in which EUR 10 million have been invested so far, spans an area of 5 hectares, including a parking lot. The plan is to expand it by nearly 50 percent until the next season, which will require an investment of minimum EUR 1.5 million.

As eKapija`s interlocutor says, the park has so far had about 1,500 guests per day, while the total number of visitors amounts to 90,859.

- Aside from guests from Arandjelovac and neighboring Topola and Lazarevac, our aqua park also attracts visitors from Gornji Milanovac and even Jagodina, which has its own aqua park. The parking lot for 500 cars is always full, and it sometimes happens that 800 cars are parked on the parking lot of Izvor hotel.

(aqua park in Arandjelovac)

Belgrade finally gets aqua park

Todorovic says that 10 percent of guests are foreigners from foreign companies, embassies and those living in Belgrade. The citizens of the capital city of Serbia generally account for the largest percentage of visitors of this aqua park.

This is not surprising when we know that Belgrade still has no aqua park on its own. However, eKapija learns that one may be built soon in Obrenovac.

Obrenovac Mayor Miroslav Cuckovic has recently announced the construction of the first ecological aqua park in that municipality, while municipal officials reveal to eKapija that it will be built within the hotel Obrenovac.

- There are investors interested in buying Obrenovac hotel, who would also build an aqua park if they became the owners of this hotel. If this fails to happen, the municipality will take up the responsibility to build an aqua park.

In spite of the disappointment of certain investors, municipalities have continued to compete for who will build the most beautiful and most spectacular aqua park. Among the "contestants" are also Loznica, Kragujevac and Bor.

Zrenjanin Deputy Mayor Cedomir Janjic has announced the construction of an aqua park that will be a new tourist mecca in Vojvodina.

People in Sokobanja, where an aqua park was built last year, point out that it is "the most significant investment project in Sokobanja in the last 30 years."

Ivana Bezarevic