Belgrade at bottom of shopping tourism list

Hey, at least Belgrade made the list. Where are Ljubljana, Zagreb, Tirana, Podgorica, Skopje? They are all either in E.U. or have E.U. candiate status.

I'm not surprised really. I don't know why items, such as clothing, are so expensive in Belgrade. Not a good destination for shopping but for entertainment, culture, hospitality and partying it is world class.

@ Zoran. High import taxes is the answer.

Hey, at least Belgrade made the list. Where are Ljubljana, Zagreb, Tirana, Podgorica, Skopje? They are all either in E.U. or have E.U. candiate status.
(robert1899, 22 November 2011 17:58)

It's about European cities and metropols, and not about towns and villages.

Zoran is right. Belgrade is a very nice city to visit, but for shopping it`s really not the best destination.

You don't go to Belgrade to shop. You can shop at home. You go to Belgrade for fun, great cafes and nightlife. You go to Belgrade to visit Kalimegdan Park and Belgrade Fortress and look upon the Sava River and the mighty Danube. You go to Belgrade to visit your friends and family and take in the grey unspoilt but solid architecture and the history and culture as well as the wonderful and tastful cuisine. You go to Belgrade to feel Orthodox and buy icons, crosses and incense. Love it!

suzi with all due respect there are actually people living in Belgrade. We do shop here, Belgrade is home.

It worries me deeply to think that some people don't appear to understand that a country / city means a lot more than their own personal experience of it as a visitor.

Michael Thomas this is what many of us have been saying for years, but there are others. What you won't hear from those that support the right is that both Miskovic and Beko financed Kostunica and Seselj, as well as Nikolic and Tadic.

High import taxes is mostly the answer, but not all of it. The other problem is a lack of competition and alternatives for average Serbs. Mark my words that once (eventually) paypal comes to Serbia, prices in shops will drop, and some of those overpriced shops will go out of business. But not if our 'patriotic' businessmen have anything to do with it, they will be fighting against anything that makes prices cheaper for Serbs, because it will reduce their profit margins.

So they take out insurance - they finance politicial parties instead - and nothing changes...

Serbian retail is dominated by two oligarchs, Miroslav Mišković and Milan Beko. While they are around, prices for clothing and household goods will be higher in Belgrade than they are in London.

Down with Mišković and Beko!

Bganon.

Don't be so rude. Everyone knows that Belgrade is all about the icons and incense and feeling Orthodox :P

As for your prediction about paypal, I'm not sure how true that is. Items still have to get here, therefore import taxes in the mail, which by my personal experience are astoundingly high. I've been charged over 100% the value of the goods. Also, since paypal will likely be linked directly to people's bank accounts, expect some sort of transaction tax.

Prices will probably drop a little, you're right, but I wouldn't expect anything astronomical.

Danilo, for sure items still have to get here, but if you are talking about postage fees some of the time we will be ordering from neighbours already in the EU, who have goods for cheaper.

Concerning import taxes that can be a big problem, if one is planning to purchase items exceeding 50 euros or so. I wouldn't necessarily find myself in that category. No, my desires on paypal are mostly alturistic I already have paypal tied to my foreign bank account, but I don't see why ordinary Serbian citizens should be at a disadvantage.

Its always the rich and the foreign within Serbia that don't appear to care about the poorest citizens rotting. And within the foreign category I include those born in other countries but have blood ties here.

'Give the poor simpletons their churches and don't grumble about the extortionate prices they have to pay in the shops. They are a traditional people who are not materialistic and its better that they get completely screwed by their own kind rather than getting partially screwed by foreign investment.'

Can you hear the ghoulish laughs of Miskovic and Beko?

bganon,

I completely agree with all your sentiments. When I first came here I was shocked that people couldn't use paypal and had such poor access to financial instruments which work online.

What I'm talking about, however, isn't postage but tax you have to pay to the postman when receiving a package. I had to pay 60 euros to get my Vonage router in the mail. This wasn't postage, which was paid by the sender. The value of this router is around 25 euros, and it was being sent to me for free. I don't think I've ever paid less than 10 euros tax (and that was for a poster), when receiving packages from abroad. I don't receive mail in Serbia anymore. If I really need something, I'll fly somewhere and have it delivered to my hotel.

who knows, maybe I was being scammed by my local post-man.

All I'm saying is with these exorbitant import taxes that the post charges, the price-gap between Serbia and the rest of the world, isn't going to get as small as you hope.

Hey, at least Belgrade made the list. Where are Ljubljana, Zagreb, Tirana, Podgorica, Skopje? They are all either in E.U. or have E.U. candiate status.
(robert1899, 22 November 2011 17:58)

It's about European cities and metropols, and not about towns and villages.

I'm not surprised really. I don't know why items, such as clothing, are so expensive in Belgrade. Not a good destination for shopping but for entertainment, culture, hospitality and partying it is world class.

Hey, at least Belgrade made the list. Where are Ljubljana, Zagreb, Tirana, Podgorica, Skopje? They are all either in E.U. or have E.U. candiate status.

Zoran is right. Belgrade is a very nice city to visit, but for shopping it`s really not the best destination.

You don't go to Belgrade to shop. You can shop at home. You go to Belgrade for fun, great cafes and nightlife. You go to Belgrade to visit Kalimegdan Park and Belgrade Fortress and look upon the Sava River and the mighty Danube. You go to Belgrade to visit your friends and family and take in the grey unspoilt but solid architecture and the history and culture as well as the wonderful and tastful cuisine. You go to Belgrade to feel Orthodox and buy icons, crosses and incense. Love it!

@ Zoran. High import taxes is the answer.

Serbian retail is dominated by two oligarchs, Miroslav Mišković and Milan Beko. While they are around, prices for clothing and household goods will be higher in Belgrade than they are in London.

Down with Mišković and Beko!

suzi with all due respect there are actually people living in Belgrade. We do shop here, Belgrade is home.

It worries me deeply to think that some people don't appear to understand that a country / city means a lot more than their own personal experience of it as a visitor.

Michael Thomas this is what many of us have been saying for years, but there are others. What you won't hear from those that support the right is that both Miskovic and Beko financed Kostunica and Seselj, as well as Nikolic and Tadic.

High import taxes is mostly the answer, but not all of it. The other problem is a lack of competition and alternatives for average Serbs. Mark my words that once (eventually) paypal comes to Serbia, prices in shops will drop, and some of those overpriced shops will go out of business. But not if our 'patriotic' businessmen have anything to do with it, they will be fighting against anything that makes prices cheaper for Serbs, because it will reduce their profit margins.

So they take out insurance - they finance politicial parties instead - and nothing changes...

Bganon.

Don't be so rude. Everyone knows that Belgrade is all about the icons and incense and feeling Orthodox :P

As for your prediction about paypal, I'm not sure how true that is. Items still have to get here, therefore import taxes in the mail, which by my personal experience are astoundingly high. I've been charged over 100% the value of the goods. Also, since paypal will likely be linked directly to people's bank accounts, expect some sort of transaction tax.

Prices will probably drop a little, you're right, but I wouldn't expect anything astronomical.

Danilo, for sure items still have to get here, but if you are talking about postage fees some of the time we will be ordering from neighbours already in the EU, who have goods for cheaper.

Concerning import taxes that can be a big problem, if one is planning to purchase items exceeding 50 euros or so. I wouldn't necessarily find myself in that category. No, my desires on paypal are mostly alturistic I already have paypal tied to my foreign bank account, but I don't see why ordinary Serbian citizens should be at a disadvantage.

Its always the rich and the foreign within Serbia that don't appear to care about the poorest citizens rotting. And within the foreign category I include those born in other countries but have blood ties here.

'Give the poor simpletons their churches and don't grumble about the extortionate prices they have to pay in the shops. They are a traditional people who are not materialistic and its better that they get completely screwed by their own kind rather than getting partially screwed by foreign investment.'

Can you hear the ghoulish laughs of Miskovic and Beko?

bganon,

I completely agree with all your sentiments. When I first came here I was shocked that people couldn't use paypal and had such poor access to financial instruments which work online.

What I'm talking about, however, isn't postage but tax you have to pay to the postman when receiving a package. I had to pay 60 euros to get my Vonage router in the mail. This wasn't postage, which was paid by the sender. The value of this router is around 25 euros, and it was being sent to me for free. I don't think I've ever paid less than 10 euros tax (and that was for a poster), when receiving packages from abroad. I don't receive mail in Serbia anymore. If I really need something, I'll fly somewhere and have it delivered to my hotel.

who knows, maybe I was being scammed by my local post-man.

All I'm saying is with these exorbitant import taxes that the post charges, the price-gap between Serbia and the rest of the world, isn't going to get as small as you hope.