Tourism - The highest recognition for the quality of a beach is the Blue Flag eco-label. It is awarded by an international jury composed of representatives of the European Union and World Tourism Organizations.
Tourism - The highest award for the quality of a beach is the Blue Flag eco-label. It is awarded by an international jury composed of representatives of the European Union and the World Tourism Organization. It is a symbol of strictly set environmental standards and quality sanitary and safety services. The blue flag implies that 27 criteria from four areas have been met: water (sea) quality; environmental education and awareness; environmental management; security and services. The flag is awarded upon fulfillment of all mandatory and the largest number of recommended criteria. It is valid for one season and each subsequent time the commission determines whether the award-winning facility deserves to receive the Blue Flag again. In 2004, Blue Flags were flown for the first time on six beaches in Montenegro.
(data from the official website of the Tourist Organization of Montenegro)
1-Dobreč, Lustica peninsula
2-Carine, Risan
3-Blue horizons, Pržno bay on Luštica peninsula
4-Mogren, near the Old Town of Budva
5-Miami, Velika plaza, Ulcinj
6-Tropicana, Velika plaza, Ulcinj
This eco-feature enriches the tourist offer and completes the image of Ecological Montenegro. One of the initiators of the action is Zoran Banićević, owner of the Dobreč beach and holder of the Blue Flag: "Since I have been dealing with the problem of ecology and nature protection for a long time, I regularly follow what is happening in the world, which is how I came across the Blue Flag award. I sent a proposal to the Ministry and the Marine Corps, that they consider the issue from their positions, and that I and my beach could possibly run for the Blue Flag. So last year we had a meeting where I received a certificate that I could compete, and this year I also received the Blue Flag''. Three years ago, Banićević started cultivating a pebble beach, accessible only from the sea, in the bay of Dobreč.
Dobreč is located on the Lustica peninsula, in a bay, at the very entrance to the Bay of Kotor. The exceptional peace and microclimate, created by the surrounding typically Mediterranean vegetation, influenced the name of the bay, but also the certain isolation of Dobreč.
"I was engaged in the same business before, I just had a beach in Žanjice and whenever I passed by here by boat, I thought that something could be done there.
Then, three years ago, I requested from Morski dobr that we visit this beach together, which at that time could not even be reached by boat, because there were a lot of rocks blocking the entrance to the bay, but we had to land a boat about fifty meters from the beach and then cross the coastal rocks to get here,'' says Zoran Banićević. Then, step by step, the conquest of wild beauty in the midst of civilization began, of course all guided by strict codes of ecology to which Banićević strictly adheres. As already mentioned, there is no access to the bay and beach of Dobreč from the land side. It means that the hinterland is untouched and unpolluted. Everything on the beach is built of stone and wood, which completes the ecological picture.
It is supplied with fresh water from a spring that flows into the sea under the rocks, and which Banićević captured. From it, he used a pump and a free fall to bring water to the showers, the bar, the kitchen and the toilet. The first smoking cabin in Montenegro is located on Dobreč beach.
The originality of Dobreč is also reflected in the offer. On the menu you can find fresh live sea urchins, live sea eggs, sea stone soup, and this summer's novelty, "Montenegro shark" soup, which is made from the fins of sharks that are caught in the clear sea.
Decorated with the Blue Flag, Dobreč beach, with its six hundred square meters of intelligently cultivated and preserved nature, is an example of what can be offered for possible high tourism, and it fits perfectly with the slogan "Montenegro - Natural Beauty".
Nebojša Mandić