Belgrade Travel Guide Introduction
Belgrade is the capital and biggest city of Serbia with nearly 1.7 million inhabitants. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula.
It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe and the World as well as one of the most important prehistoric cultures of Europe. Its history dates back the 6th millennium BC and goes through Celts, Roman, Slavs, Byzantine, Frankish, Bulgarian, Ottoman, Habsburg before becoming the capital of Yugoslavia and then Serbia.
It is the best place to enter Serbia with its international airport and has lots of nice sites to visit. A minimum of 2-days is mandatory if you want to get most of the city.
We visited Belgrade 2 or 3 times and often take a few days there on our way to Zlatibor, Tina’s hometown.
Table of Contents
Mapping the day
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Getting there
To get to Belgrade, the easiest is to use its international airport. From there you can just take a bus for around 3€.
Moving Around
Moving around Belgrade is super easy. The city has an extended network of city buses, Trolley buses and trams. Once in the city center, you can easily walk everywhere.
When to Visit
Belgrade can be visited all year round. But the best time is of course May/June or September. At this time the weather is great, not to hot, not to cold and you are out of the peak tourism season.
Where to Stay
- (€): Natalie’s Studio
- (€€): Belgrade Center Apartment II
- (€€€): Prezident Palace Belgrade
What to Eat
There are lots of Serbian food that you can try. Most of it won’t have a plant-based diet option unless you cook it yourselves:
- Serma: Stuffed cabbage leaves. Ingredients can be minced meat, rice or bulgur, various herbs, seasonings, red pepper, paprika, ground sumac, or tomato sauce.
- Borek: round pie filled with either cheese, potatoes, meats…
- Rakija: the local spirit. The most common versions are made from plums (šljivovica), William’s pear (viljamovka), quinces (dunjevača), apricots (kajsijevača), apples (jabukovača), grapes (lozovača/komovica).
- Punjena Paprika: made of peppers, stuffed with a mix of meat and rice in tomato sauce, the ingredients consisting of green or red capsicums, eggs, spices, salt, tomato, minced meat and rice.
- Kajmak: creamy dairy food similar to clotted cream
- Zlatiborska pršuta: traditional Serbian smoked ham hailing from the mountainous region of Zlatibor
- Čvarci: pork rinds or cracklings made by thermally extracting fat from the lard. The lard is then cut into blocks and fried in its own fat until it melts away and tough and crispy pork rind remain in the pot.
- Komplet lepinja: flatbread (lepinja) that is cut in half, coated in thick cream (kajmak), and topped with an egg
- Turkish coffee
Things to do in Belgrade
Belgrade Fortress
The Fortress is located on a ridge next to the crossing of the Sava and Danube rivers. The history of the fortress is old and deep. From a roman well to medieval gates. It is the most iconic and visit landmark of Belgrade, and it is totally free.
There are lots of things to see in its wall, and you shouldn’t miss the Military Museum and the Ružica Church located within.
Skadarlija
The second most visited spot of Belgrade. Skadarlija is an old, cobbled street and used to be part of the bohemian culture in the 1800s/1900s. At that time Serbian singers, musicians, writers and poets lived, worked and performed here.
Now the street is famous for its restaurant terraces, and it is a must to stop for a meal there. It is the best place to try some local food at night.
The picture dates back 2016!
Kneza Mihaila
This beautiful car free street is the “champ Elizee” of Belgrade. There, you will find lots of buildings and mansions built during the late 1870s with many shops on the ground floor.
Republic square
At the end of the Kneza Mihaila is the republic square. The main square of Belgrade where you can find the National Theatre and National Museum. As well as more than 20 lines of Trolleybuses.
Holy Archangel Michael Orthodox Church
This NeoClassical cathedral was built in 1830 and holds the relics of the 14th-century king and saint Stefan Uroš V as well as the tombs of national heroes like Vuk Karadžić, who reformed the Serbian language in the 1800s.
Church of Saint Nicholas
This beautiful little church is located in a big cemetery near the old city. It was raised in 1893 and is devoted to summer celebration of St. Nicholas Feast
St. Mark Orthodox Church
With its Neo-Byzantine design, it is one of the largest churches in Serbia and is still not finish (inside). Its structure was finished in 1930 but had some delay due to all the wars.
Sava Promenade
A great place is Belgrade to take a walk along the Sava and see where its join the Danube. It also has lots of street arts.
Avala Tower
This communication tower is the tallest building in the Balkan. Located south of the city, it is a really nice things to see. It offers an incredible 135m high view.
The tower was built in 1965 but razed during the NATO bombing of Belgrade in 1999. The 4-year reconstruction was finished in 2010
Monument to the Unknown Hero
Next to the Avala tower, you can also find the the Monument to the Unknown Hero, a World War I memorial located atop Mount Avala. The memorial was built in 1934-1938 on the place where an unknown Serbian World War I soldier was buried.
More Things to do in Zlatibor
More Things to do in Belgrade
Ada Ciganlija
This river island has artificially been turned into a peninsula and is the perfect location to stroll with nature and to chill on its river bank in a beach-like environment.
Saint Sava Temple
Also called Church of Saint Sava. It is the largest Orthodox Church in the Balkan region, and the second largest in the world. It is dedicated to Saint Sava, the founder of the Serbian Orthodox Church and an important figure in medieval Serbia.
Gardoš Tower
Located a bit outskirt of the old city, this Austro-Hungarian’s tower stands on the right bank of the Danube and was built in 1896 to celebrate 1,000 years of Hungarian settlement on the Pannonian Plain.
Konak kneginje Ljubice
Also known as the Residence of Princess Ljubica, it is one of the remaining building from the first reign of Prince Miloš Obrenović and dates back the 1830s, It was supposed to be a lavish seat for the Serbian court.
Museum of Yugoslavia
A big part of the Serbian history is actually the Yugoslavia history. This museum is the place to learn about it and was set atop of the mausoleum of former authoritarian President Josip Broz Tito.
National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia
A nice building to see on your way around. It used to be the Yugoslavia’s Parliament, and following that state’s breakup, the Parliament of Serbia and Montenegro.
Nikola Tesla Museum
This museum presents the life and work Nikola Tesla, a great physicist, inventor, electrical engineer and Serbian national hero. He is best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system.
Zemunski Kej
Another nice place to take a walk on the Danube. You can walk all the way from Gardos tower until the old city center.
2-day Itinerary in Belgrade
Day 1 :
- Belgrade Fortress
- Military Museum
- Ružica Church
- Kneza Mihaila
- Republic square
- Holy Archangel Michael Orthodox Church
- Church of Saint Nicholas
- Mark Orthodox Church
- Skadarlija
Day 2 :
- Avala Tower
- Monument to the Unknown Hero
- Sava Promenade
Kao mačka oko vruće kaše : Like the cat around the hot meal. (English equivalent: Beating around the bush)
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