SRFP Blog

Salaš Tatic – a Vojvodina tourist oasis looking to grow with IPARD assistance

Salaš Tatic is quick drive from Belgrade, only 1.5 hours on the road to Subotica, a few minutes to the salaš on secondary roads through Srbobran to the village of Turija. The salaš is spread across the bank of the historic Danube-Tisa-Danube (DTD) canal, a waterway which was the main commercial transport for goods from the early 1800s to the mid-1900s.

What is a salaš? In Serbian and Hungarian languages, it is a traditional type of farm common to the Pannonian Plain, particular to the Bačka region of Vojvodina. A salaš is usually remote from a city or village, consisting of a family house, farm buildings and granary, surrounded by arable land and pastures. They were owned and inhabited by a single family, who lived there for generations.

Danube-Tisa-Danube canal which flows in front of the Salaš Tatic property covers 110 kilometers from the Danube in Sombor to the Tisa river in Becej. Historically, the canal is called the Franz Channel after emperor Franz II who authorized its building under the Habsburg Monarchy.

Construction of the canal began in 1793 and continued nine years till 1802. The canal was the most important commercial transport system in that part of Vojvodina. The canal was especially important for regulating the water levels in the Bačka region. Its excavation significantly reduced the number of ponds, swamps, lakes and rivers that, occasionally or permanently, endangered the land of the neighboring cities and villages. As a result, the constant threats of malaria were significantly reduced. At the same time, the canal could irrigate the environment during dry periods.

Transport lasted on the canal of agricultural and non-agricultural goods till the 1960s, after which it fell into disuse. Today it is a draw for fishing, swimming and relaxation.

The village of Turija is across the canal from Salaš Tatic, home to 2,500 inhabitants. Turija’s claim to fame is the annual Turija Kobasijada which is held at the end of February andattracts 50,000 tourists. Turija holds the Guinness world record for the longest kobasica, which stands at 2 kilometers.

Driving into the salaš, the lane is thickly lined with trees and a well-cultivated vineyard, all stretched along and sloping down towards the DTD canal. Salaš Tatic is owned by Pavle and Sandra Tatic, a young Vojvodina couple with two children. Pavle has an Agricultural degree, with specialization in Bio-Farming, his wife Sandra, earned her undergrad and master’s degree in Tourism. At the time they got their degrees, they didn’t know they would be running a touristic endeavor such as a salaš; it was like they knew they would do this, but they hadn’t started yet.

Fifteen years ago, the Tactics bought the 4.5 hectare plot of land with a dilapidated house, the land was a cornfield and the canal in front was full of muck, weeds and reeds. The elderly owner had passed on and the descendants just wanted to get rid of the property. The land is poor. Before 100 years, much of the soil was removed to make bricks, people said the soil was no good, not suitable for farming. Nobody wanted to buy the property. Pavle told his father he wasn’t interested to grow corn on the property, but the soil may be suitable for growing grapes, fruits and a fish farm.

Over ten years the salaš took shape. They built fences, planted a vineyard and fruit trees. The plot is big and required a lot of work. In the beginning, they cleaned on weekends, having barbeques. Friends would come, bringing their friends, after a while they realized there was potential for a business here. Six years ago they built a restaurant. The house that was falling down had to be completely reconstructed suitable for guests. Just this spring, they built another two-story bar next to the canal. Everything they’ve done is sweat equity, earnings invested back into the business.

One hectare is dedicated to cultivated grapes, Italian Riesling and Chardonnay. The 2,000 liters produced is served in their restaurant. Another portion is dedicated to fruit trees - apricot, quince and pear, which the Tatics make rakija and fruit drinks from. Such as the wine, Pavle wanted to make his own rakija. The salaš also raises hogs, sheep, chickens, turkeys and fish (a large fish pond is behind the salaš) for use in the restaurant’s kitchen. Altogether, Salaš Tatic is quite self-sufficient.

Entry to Salaš Tatic. On the left are guest accommodations and to the right is a spacious restaurant seating up to 200 guests.

Salaš Tatic maintains their own vineyard and produces an in-house wine which is served in the restaurant. The property also has a fruit grove, stable for livestock and fish farm, all supplying the kitchen.

A view on the restaurant. All around the property is outdoor seating with a view on the canal.

Spring to autumn are busy times of the year. The weekends, starting in the spring, are full of guests. From Pavle’s estimation, they have 500 guests a week in better periods, 300 of these guests on weekends alone, many driving from Belgrade, Novi Sad and other afar places. It still amazes Pavle when people call to make a reservation saying they’ll be there in an hour. Pavle recounted one conversation with a guest, ”are you working? Yes. We’ll be there for an hour. Where are you coming from? Belgrade!”.

Srbobran Region at a Glance

  • 16,217 inhabitants
  • Srbobran, Turija and Nadalj are main settlements
  • Region produces wheat, corn, soybeans, barley, sunflowers seeds, sugar beets, fruits and vegetables
  • Agriculture, processing, wholesale/retail industries are primary employers
  • Turija is 66 kms from Hungary, 80 kms Romania, 135 kms to Belgrade, 77 kms to Croatia
  • 29% unemployment rate

The salaš hosts 10-20 weddings a year for 100-200 guests. They have held events for banks, music fests, dog shows, etc. Pavle would like to build a pool, as this would shift guest stays from 1-2 days up to five days, but this is all in the future.

Before COVID-19, the salaš was visited by many foreigners. People from Poland, Czech Republic and Ukraine driving to Greece stayed at the salaš since it was half-way driving to the Greek seaside and close to the autoput. Enthused with the nature, food and prices, they elected to stay on their trip home.
Based on this experience, and the recovery of the tourism industry, Pavle has the idea for ‘glamping’ to target these foreign but also local tourists. Glamping actually means ‘glamorous camping’. On the canal, he plans to build 10 semi-tent units, built of wood and tenting. Persons staying in these units would have access to a bar, restaurant, barbeque, fire pit in the evening, boats, toilets, showers and, of course, internet. To the left side of the property on the canal, they plan space for camping trailers and tents.

Salaš Tatic has applied for 300,000 euros through the European Union’s agricultural development instrument, IPARD. By Pavle’s words, IPARD is a game changer. His wife trained on IPARD and worked with Smart IPARD to fill out the application. With the funds, they will build another 11 hotel rooms with furnishings, install children’s playground equipment, buy a generator and a much larger lawn mower to cut down on the estimated 3-4 days it takes to cut the grass now. According to Pavle, the application process lasted one-year and was complicated. The good side to this story is that their bank had confidence in their IPARD application to finance the project. Once they get the permission from the municipality for the construction permit, the IPARD monitoring office will view the property and green light the process.

“It’s good to have a business and work something now. It’s just not that we have a field and build a restaurant, now we have the restaurant but we need more customers and guests, more space. This is not our beginning, just moving on with the business.’’

Interestingly enough, the next salaš is 24 kilometers from them in Termerin, another in Cenej (27 kilometers, close to Novi Sad) with 5-6 salašes. In the Vrbas-Becej region, they are the only salaš, which works in their favor, everyone comes to them.
Pavle and his wife know and can do a lot of things. They both speak foreign languages and know how to work. If they were not doing this, they would most likely leave Serbia where they can earn more. It’s good to see youth staying in Serbia, but more importantly, staying in the village to make a life.