COTTAGES FOR MAY DAY BOOKED OUT SINCE LAST YEAR

Residents of Republika Srpska, as well as those coming from the diaspora, who planned to spend the Easter or May Day holidays in a cottage away from the city hustle and bustle, will find it difficult to find a good offer as, claim the owners, most of such properties are already booked for the upcoming days.

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The rental price for a cottage per day ranges from 50 to several hundred marks, depending on the number of guests and amenities. These cottages usually accommodate one family, while at some locations, spacious houses with pools and various additional amenities can be found, requiring up to 1,000 marks per day for accommodation in such villas.

This year, say cottage owners, there are also many foreigners calling more than in previous years, looking for a suitable cottage for vacation.

The owner of a cottage settlement near Pale says there is no more room for the end of April and the beginning of May at his place.

"We have already rented out cottages for May Day, and guests booked accommodation several months ago," said Nikola, whose phone has been busy these days due to calls from citizens and foreigners who want to spend the upcoming holidays in nature. He says that during the summer, in the last few years, there have been many guests from Arab countries.

Cottage owners in the Teslić area are also rubbing their hands contentedly, where, in some places, accommodation for the celebration of International Labor Day was reserved last year.

One of them is Miladin Aleksić, who says that reservations are made until October.

"I mostly rent the cottage to people I know, although calls come from all over. The years of uncertainty due to the pandemic and economic upheavals have led to everyone, even those who did not previously have that habit, going to nature and the countryside," said Aleksić.

Bojana Petković from the outskirts of Banja Luka says that in previous years she could not have imagined being so busy.

"I inherited the cottage from my grandmother and renovated it for my family to have a place to go on weekends. However, when the coronavirus appeared and cottages became enormously popular, I decided to start renting it out. Now I have guests almost all summer, and the rush for May Day and Easter holidays is beyond expectations," said Petković.

Rural tourism is no less popular in the Herzegovina region, where tourists abound.

"People call every day to book a cottage for the holidays because the nature is beautiful. My rental property is located at an altitude of 1,100 meters, and the shade and pine trees provide a special atmosphere. I mostly rent to families with children," said Maja S. from Trebinje.

Banja Luka resident Marija Đogo says she has been trying for days to find a suitable cottage to spend the holidays with her friends.

"I don't even know how many numbers I've dialed, but in vain. Either it's booked or the price isn't realistic," Đogo told Glas Srpske.