Macedonian Prime Minister Christian Micic urges locals to vacation at home, then heads to Belgium

In early May, Prime Minister Christian Micic told Macedonian citizens to spend their summer holidays in the country's mountains and lakes, warning that new Schengen entry rules could cause long border queues. He highlighted Macedonia's "beautiful lakes, beautiful mountains" and urged people to protect the nation because it has no "second homeland."

Later, Micic announced that he and his family would travel to Belgium for a week, describing the trip as an "excursion" rather than a classic vacation. He said they would spend four days in Bruges and four days in Brussels, answering a journalist's question during a visit to a hospital in Bitola.

The contrasting statements have drawn attention to the government's tourism push and the prime minister's personal travel plans amid broader EU travel concerns.