Montenegro’s Skadar Lake National Park generated around €671,000 from entrance tickets, water-use charges and fishing permits through most of September, but inspections found widespread irregularities as authorities struggle to formalise tourism activity.
The National Parks company collected about €615,000 from entrance tickets between Jan. 1 and Sept. 20 and another roughly €56,000 from water-use fees and fishing permits.
Paid admissions were around 20% lower year on year, yet the park remains an important tourism revenue source.
Authorities carried out 47 tourism inspections, with irregularities identified in 32 cases.
Officials also said some operators were bypassing ticket checkpoints, reducing formal revenue and complicating visitor management.
Around €115,000 has been invested this year in maintenance, buildings, vessels, engines and other equipment.
The figures highlight a wider challenge facing Montenegro’s tourism economy.
Visitor demand is strong, but formal revenue collection and enforcement often lag behind activity.
The same issue is visible in private accommodation, where the government is preparing a new national tourism information system to improve registration and tax collection.
Skadar Lake presents an additional problem because tourism growth must be balanced with environmental protection.
Boat traffic, fishing and visitor numbers can damage sensitive habitats if commercial activity expands faster than regulation.
That makes enforcement economically important as well as environmental.
Operators that pay fees and follow rules face unfair competition when others avoid checkpoints or operate informally.
Better control could therefore increase public revenue without raising charges.
The park also needs investment if it wants to attract higher-value tourism rather than simply more visitors.
Maintenance of access infrastructure, vessels and visitor facilities is part of that shift.
The revenue figures show there is already a meaningful commercial base.
The issue is how much of the activity remains outside it.
For Skadar Lake, the next stage of tourism growth will depend less on attracting additional visitors than on improving control, collecting existing fees and protecting the natural asset that generates the demand.
