Montenegro’s collective accommodation sector recorded only marginal growth in the first half of 2026, with tourist arrivals increasing by 0.4 per cent year on year as the country entered the main summer season. Registered hotels and other collective accommodation facilities recorded 614,697 tourist arrivals during the first six months of 2026, compared with 612,500 arrivals in the same period of 2025. Overnight stays increased slightly faster, rising 1.5 per cent to 1.86 million, compared with 1.83 million a year earlier.
Foreign visitors drive tourism activity
Foreign tourists accounted for the majority of registered tourism activity during the period. Foreign arrivals reached 535,445, an increase of 0.5 per cent, while foreign overnight stays increased 1.9 per cent to 1.60 million.
Domestic tourism recorded a decline, with domestic arrivals falling 0.4 per cent to 79,252. Domestic overnight stays also decreased 0.4 per cent to 258,987. June recorded stronger results compared with the first-half average. Collective accommodation facilities hosted 206,990 tourists during the month, including 189,266 foreign visitors. Total overnight stays reached 793,956 in June, with foreign guests accounting for more than 90 per cent of overnight stays.
Coastal destinations remain dominant
The coastal region continued to generate the majority of registered tourism activity. Coastal resorts recorded approximately 1.59 million overnight stays during the first half of 2026, representing an increase of 2.2 per cent compared with the previous year. Mountain destinations registered 70,872 overnight stays, up 11 per cent, while other tourism resorts recorded growth of 12 per cent.
Podgorica recorded a decline in overnight stays, falling from 160,318 to 140,882, a decrease of 12.1 per cent. The decline in the capital occurred despite slight overall tourism growth, indicating weaker demand for business, conference and short-stay urban tourism compared with coastal leisure destinations.
Registered accommodation data show limited volume growth
The first-half figures cover collective accommodation facilities and do not include the full private accommodation market. Private apartments, individual rental units and informal accommodation represent a significant share of Montenegro’s coastal tourism capacity, meaning the registered accommodation data provide a more detailed view of hotels and other collective facilities rather than total visitor activity.
Average length of stay increased only slightly during the period, while overall arrivals remained almost unchanged. Tourism revenues may be affected by changes in accommodation prices, restaurant prices and visitor spending, although visitor volume growth remained limited.
Tourism sector focuses on efficiency and capacity management
For hotel operators and investors, limited arrival growth increases the importance of factors including revenue per available room, operating margins, labour costs and the length of the tourism season. Montenegro continues to expand and upgrade accommodation capacity, but additional supply entering a market with nearly unchanged visitor numbers can increase competition unless demand expands beyond the main summer months. The sector is increasingly focused on managing yield, infrastructure capacity and service quality.
Peak-season tourism places pressure on airports, roads, water supply systems, wastewater treatment, waste management and electricity networks. The first-half 2026 figures show that Montenegro’s formal tourism market remained stable, while the number of registered guests remained almost unchanged despite continued investment and growth in accommodation capacity.
