serbian spas & resorts
TRANSCRIPT
Serbian Spas &
Resorts
Potential, state, possibilities, ...
1st Balkan Spa Summit, Albena – Bulgaria, 21. – 23.09.2011.
Vladan T. Vešković, Serbian Spas Association, Secretary General
First assembly of Serbian Spas Association
Vrnjačka Banja Spa, 12. June 1970.
“Politika”, 1969.
„Work of our future association and whole
our idea will depend on us in the first
place, or of interests of the members and
incentives which we would give to this
association. Like in every job, if we agree
what our association should do, if we
create good working conditions, if we
choose right people, which will, with their
abbilities and enthusiasm, commit to work,
to lead this association, results certainly
will not fail.“
Bata Vuković
First president of Serbian Spas Association
Prof. Budimir Filipović, “Mineralne vode Srbije”, 2003.
Thermal resources of Serbia
Serbia have more then 500
springs of mineral, thermal
and thermomineral water.
This extraordinary fortune
is located throughout whole
country, but the most of
them are in the Central
Serbia.
From this number, about 250 springs
are capped, but just 35 spas are
urbanized.
Koviljača Spa
Ribarska Spa
Architectural plan of Vrnjacka Spa, 1931.
Vrnjačka Banja
Spa
Vrnjačka Banja Spa
Koviljača Spa
Ribarska banja Spa
Medical indication
◼ The most of Serbian spas have medical indication for rheumatism
and post – surgical condition on the loco – motor device. Rest of
indications (Other indications) are: injuries of peripheral and
central nervous system, diabetes, peripheral blood vessels,
sterility i gynecological diseases, metabolic diseases (thyroid
(gland)), lung diseases and blood diseases.
There are some rare phenomenon in our spas.
◼ Water temperature of Vranjska Spa’s spring has 110 C
◼ geyser in Sijarinska Spa is one of the few in Europe and
◼ Bujanovacka Spa has three natural healing factors at one place: water, mud and CO2
◼ There is also a salt lake in Rusanda Spa.
As far as accomodation facilities, 55% of all beds in Serbia are in spas and climatic places. From 64.025 beds in spas, 7.300 are in health rehabilitation institutions, 33.000 in hotels and about 23.000 beds in private accomodation. Of couse, these are official statistic data. We count that 40% of beds are in „gray zone“ or „not registered“.
Accomodation facilities
◼ Health institutions in spas are in property of the state, within Ministry of Health.
◼ Privatization in spas has not yet been conducted, but we hope that will stand, while the state come up with the idea (vision) how to successfully solve it. This come up with the fact that privatization in Serbia was not successful, even in spas was catastrophic – 90% of privatized accomodation facilities are now out of work, or work with reduced capacity.
◼ From 7.300 beds in heath intitutions for rehabilitation, about 3.200 (50%) is reserved for free rehabilitation. In our spas, pacients go to the spa with doctor’s referral, so they do not pay for accomodation and therapy.
Non – medical advatnages of Serbian spas
◼ preserved natural environment,
◼ healthy food and imaginative cousine,
◼ rich cultural – hisoric heritage and
◼ great geographical position
Medical advatnages of Serbian spas
◼ balneological tradition for 200 years,
◼ highly educated medical stuff,
◼ modern therapeutic and diagnostical equipment ,and
◼ low cost of traditonal and modern medical treatments.
Serbian Spas problems
◼ Communication and utility infrastructure.
◼ Additional (non – medical) content,
◼ relationship between local government and health institutions and,
◼ lack of state’s clear vision about further spa development
Suggestions for solving problems in spas
◼ finishing the Spa Strategy,
◼ finishing high – quality Spa law,
◼ successful privatization of hotel – touristic companies in spas, and
◼ finishing law on public and private partnership (PPP).