Which country from the former Yugoslavia has the best tourist season at the moment? The answer depends on how it is measured, but not by traffic jams and crowds on the beaches, but by the funds generated and growth, states the podcast World of Finance, according to whose analysis of World Bank data – Macedonia is ranked second on the list for the summer season 2026.
The analysis states that the ranking is guided by parameters that showed that the best season is not the biggest, but that it is the one that marks growth, brings more revenue per guest and lasts longer than two months.
According to these calculations, it is emphasized that Macedonia is the “champion of momentum: the World Bank calls it the best in the region”, with over 40 percent more air arrivals.
Earlier this month, the State Statistics Office (SSO) said that in May 2026 alone, 131,723 tourists were recorded in the country, of which 106,756 were foreign and 24,967 were domestic.
The number of overnight stays in May, which would be considered pre-season, was 236,727, of which 75.8 percent were foreign and 24.2 percent were domestic tourists.
In the period January – May 2026, compared to the same period of the previous year, the total number of tourists increased by 2.6 percent. Among domestic tourists, there was a decrease of 4.4 percent, but among foreign tourists, there was an increase of 4.9 percent.
In the period January – May 2026, compared to the same period of the previous year, the total number of overnight stays increased by 1.0 percent. Among domestic tourists, there was a decrease of 4.1 percent, and among foreign tourists, there was an increase of 3.3 percent.
The largest number of foreign tourists in May was from Turkey (34,681), Germany (9,578), Serbia (7,605) and Bulgaria (4,858).
At the same time, Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski noted that according to the UN World Tourism Organization, Macedonia has become the “eighth tourism destination in the world” with a 22 percent increase in the number of tourists compared to last year. That is a giant leap forward, Mickoski said on that occasion.
The World of Finance analysis states that if momentum is the measure, then when asked “for now” Macedonia is also the champion. The World Bank declared it the best tourism performer in the region in the first quarter of 2026, with a 40 percent increase in air arrivals and almost 32 percent more arrivals compared to a year earlier.
“The country trades from a small base, so the percentages seem huge, but that is exactly the story of the season that is exploding now. Every new flight and every new guest in Macedonia means disproportionately much to the small economy that is still opening its doors to the world. This is a country in a phase in which the tourist map is still being drawn,” said the World of Finance.
In support of this conclusion, one can add the exceptional investments in the road infrastructure to the tourist destinations in the country. The increase in the number of passengers was already visible in the first half of this year, when in total over two million passengers were transported at the two Macedonian airports in Skopje and Ohrid.
Macedonia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Aleksandar Nikoloski recalled in mid-July that last year the threshold of three million passengers for the entire year was exceeded for the first time, so based on the indicators so far, expectations that a new record will be set this year are realistic.
