Top ten things to see and do in Belgrade

Belgrade is my home city, a place where I was born and grew up. It was about time I wrote a blog post about Belgrade and I hope you’ll find it useful. This blog post is about top ten things to see and do in Belgrade.

 

1. Kalemegdan – Belgrade fortress

This is my favourite place since I was a kid when my grandpa took me there to the zoo, to play in the park and ride on a panorama wheel. During the years it became a place for walks with my husband and my dog and showing it to our friends that are in Belgrade for the first time.

Belgrade fortress is rising above the city with wonderful views over the confluence of two rivers, Sava and Danube.

Here you will also see the statue of Victor, one of the symbols of Belgrade. It was recently reconstructed and put back on its stand where it belongs.

 

 

Belgrade fortress has amazing history.

It was built between 2nd and the 18th century. It was destroyed and rebuilt many times. Zindan gate, which served as a dungeon, was built in the 15th century. Near the gate you’ll find Kalemegdanska terasa restaurant where you can sit outside if the weather is nice and enjoy the view. This is just one of the things you will see while exploring Kalemegdan fortress. Some other interesting things to see here are Roman well, Ruzica church, Nebojsa tower. 

 

 

It’s hard to put everything I want to say about Belgrade fortress in this post since there are other things to see and do in Belgrade, but I really hope this will be the first thing you see when you come to Belgrade. 

 

2. Knez Mihailova street

Knez Mihailova street is a pedestrian only street with many shops, coffee shops, restaurants, bookstores and art galleries. 

This street is one of the oldest and most valuable landmarks in the city. It got its name after Mihailo Obrenovic the Third, Prince of Serbia.

Here you can see the most beautiful buildings and houses built during the late 1870s. Some of those buildings are Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts’ building, Ruski Car cafe and restaurant, Greek Queen (Grcka kraljica) coffee shop, Srpska kruna hotel, Instituto Cervantes, Centre Culturel Français, Goethe Institute and many more. If you’re an architecture lover I’m sure you’ll find what to see in Knez Mihailova street.

 

 

Thousands of people stroll along the street every day. It is the shortest path from Kalemegdan fortress to Terazije street. It is also one of the best places to feel the atmosphere of Belgrade. You can sit and enjoy a coffee and a drink while watching people go by. You can always see street performers here.

This street is also a shopping area, with one shopping mall and many shops of world famous brands along the whole street. 

 

3. Republic Square – Trg Republike

Republic square in Belgrade was a meeting point when I was younger and it still is. It was recently renovated. 

There are two important buildings here which I also recommend seeing while in Belgrade. Those are National theatre and National museum. Let me tell you something about both.

 

 

 

4. National Theatre – Narodno pozorište

National Theatre was declared a Monument of Culture of Great Importance in 1983, and it is protected by the Republic of Serbia. 

In 1868. Serbian National Theatre from Novi Sad performed in Belgrade. Prince Michael was so impressed by the performances he saw that he invited Jovan Djordjevic, the founder Novi Sad Serbian National Theatre, to found a similar institution in Belgrade. The prince chose the location, on the present Republic Square. The area was cleared earlier, after the prince ordered the demolition of the Stambol Gate in 1866, one of the four outer gates into the Belgrade Fortress.

 

Here you can see some amazing plays, opera and ballet performances. The exterior and the interior of the building are beautiful and it’s definitely one of top ten things to see in Belgrade.

 

5. National Museum – Narodni muzej

The National Museum in Belgrade was opened on May 10th 1844. It was Belgrade’s first museum. Before building the National Museum, this place was occupied by a famous tavern called “Dardanelles”. It was a meeting point of cultural and artistic elite of the time. Demolition of the old tavern signified the beginning of the transformation of The Republic Square. 

It’s the oldest and the largest museum in Serbia. National Museum was declared a Monument Of Culture of Great Importance in 1979.

It is located in the center of the city, in the Republic Square, across the street from the National Theatre. The locations of the museum have been changing over the years and it moved to its present building in 1950. This building was originally built from 1902 to 1903, for the purpose of Fund Mortgage Bank, one of the oldest banking institution of Belgrade.

 

 

National Museum in Belgrade was under reconstruction for fifteen years (from 2003 to 2018). It was a long period of time but now tourists and locals can again enjoy seeing all the beautiful art this museum has to offer. You can see art pieces from all over the world and this is why National Museum is one of the top ten things to see in Belgrade.

Opening hours of the museum are kind of complicated so I’ll write them here.

National Museum is open on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm and on Thursday and Saturday from 12am to 6pm. The museum is closed on Mondays.

The entrance is free on Sundays and on other days the ticket prices are between 300 and 600 RSD (about 2.5 to 5 euro) depending on which collection you want to see. For more information about National Museum in Belgrade I suggest visiting their website by clicking here http://www.narodnimuzej.rs/?lang=en

 

6. Saint Sava’s Temple – Hram Svetog Save

If you’re following me on Instagram I know you know this building.

This is Saint Sava’s temple, one of the larges churches in the world.

It looks absolutely beautiful from outside as well as inside. Saint Sava’s temple is one of the first things tourists in Belgrade want to see. It is located in Vracar, one of the most beautiful neighbourhoods in Belgrade. It is dedicated to Saint Sava. Saint Sava was the founder of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the Medieval Serbia and its first Archbishop. 

 

 

Construction of the Saint Sava Orthodox Cathedral began in 1935, based on designs by the famous Serbian architects Bogdan Nestorović and Aleksandar Deroko. Due to Second World War and other political issues the construction stopped. It resumed in May 1985.

The church is 91 m long from east to west and 81 m from north to south. The dome of the Saint Sava Church in Belgrade is 70 meters high, while the main gold plated cross is another 12 meters in height, which gives a total of 82 meters of the height. Its domes have 18 more gold-plated crosses of various sizes. The bell towers have 49 bells. 

 

 

Saint Sava’s Temple has the surface area of 3,500 square meters on the ground floor, with three galleries of 1,500 square meters on the first level, and a 120 square meters gallery on the second level. The basement has a total surface of 1,800 square meters. It contains a crypt, the Treasury of Saint Sava, and the grave church of Saint Lazar the Hieromartyr.

The central dome of the Saint Sava Orthodox Cathedral contains the mosaic of Christ Pantocrator. Interesting thing is that his eyes are about 3 meters wide. 

These are some of the basic facts about Saint Sava’s Temple and I really recommend it as one of the top ten things to see and do in Belgrade.

 

7. Nikola Tesla Museum – Muzej Nikole Tesle

Nikola Tesla is one of the greatest scientists and inventors of all times.

He was born on July 10th, 1856 in the village of Smiljan (today’s Croatia, at that time it was under Habsburg monarchy). Nikola Tesla was born into Serbian family. His father was an Orthodox priest. He went to school in Croatia and later studied Technical Sciences in Graz, Austria.

Nikola Tesla worked all over the world and invented many amazing things. In 1887 he founded Tesla Electric Company. In 1890 he began experiments with high frequency currents. He was giving lectures in Paris and London and many cities in United States. Nikola Tesla became a citizen of United States of America in 1891. He was also a corresponding member of Serbia Royal Academy. 

Nikola Tesla died at the age of 86 in his apartment in New Yorker hotel where he lived for the last nine years of his life.

A memorial service was broadcasted live by Radio New York. Nikola Tesla was an amazing person and I highly suggest visiting Nikola Tesla Museum if you are in Belgrade and learning more about him.

You’ll find Nikola Tesla Museum in a peaceful area in Belgrade called Vracar in Krunska street. You can have a guided tour at the museum which takes about 45 minutes. There are tours available  in Serbian and English. Opening hours of Nikola Tesla museum are from 9:45am to 8 pm every day except Mondays. For more information you can visit Nikola Tesla Museum official website https://nikolateslamuseum.org/en/

 

8. Kosančićev venac

One of the most beautiful parts of Belgrade as well as one of the oldest parts is Kosancicev venac. Kosancicev venac got its name after Ivan Kosančić, who died in 1389 in Kosovo, according to the legend.

There are some very important buildings of Belgrade in this area. The first one worth mentioning is the Residence of Princess Ljubica, built in the beginning of the 19th century. Now it’s a museum and it’s worth a visit.

 

 

Another building you’ve seen many times on my Instagram profile is Cathedral Church of St Michael the Archangel.

 

 

In this area you’ll find the oldest kafana (restaurant) in Belgrade. Its name is Question mark and it’s open till this day.

Some people say that Kosancicev venac reminds them of Montmartre in Paris. Here you’ll find that beautiful green house you’ve seen on my Instagram profile. It is a house where Mihajlo Petrovic Alas lived.

You’ll also find a gallery and coffee shop called Makadam. In the gallery you can see some handmade Serbian products, some of them old and some of them very modern. After shopping you can sit out in their garden in the street and have a coffee while watching people go by. Even when there’s a lot of people, it is still one of the most quiet areas in Belgrade.

If you’re here in time for a sunset take a seat at Skica coffee shop and enjoy!

 

 

 

9. Skadarlija

Skadarlija is a bohemian quarter of Belgrade.

Some people say that if you haven’t visited Skadarlija you haven’t truly experienced Belgrade. Skadarlija is located in the Belgrade municipality of Stari Grad (Old town). Here you’ll find the houses of famous writers, painters and artists. Walk around its cobblestone streets and have traditional Serbian lunch in one of the restaurants (we also call them “kafana”). In the evening there will be live music in many of these restaurants and you can feel the atmosphere of old Belgrade. Skadarlija is definitely a place where you’ll have good time.

There are many poems and stories created on the napkins in these “kafanas”. Writers used this as a form of payment for food and drinks.

Some of these restaurants are gonna make you fall in love with Belgrade atmosphere. And I can recommned Zlatni bokal, Tri sesira, Dva jelena and Sesir moj.

Here you’ll find the house of Đura Jakšić, a Serbian writer and painter who lived his whole life in Skadarlija and died there as well. His house is now an art gallery.

 

10. Zemun

Zemun is a part of Belgrade with so much charm.

There’s a part of Zemun that goes down by the river and this is where you’ll find some great fish restaurants and the cutest coffee shops. If you walk the steep streets of Zemun (especially Gardos area) you’ll see houses in different colours, no big buildings and you’ll feel like you just came from the big city to a small town. It’s the perfect place to walk by the river, feed swans and sit for a cup of coffee and some fresh juice.

While in Zemun you have to visit Gardos tower. The view from up there is pretty amazing and the entrance is 2 euro. There’s also a nice coffee shop and a restaurant near the tower so you can take a break there.

 

 

Some of the restaurants I recommend are Šaran, Reka and Supermarket Talas. There’s a cute coffee shop called Cafeteria Gardoš, where you can sit and enjoy a cup of coffee after a stroll by the river.

Thank you for reading, your feedback means a lot! Also, if you have any questions feel free to contact me here.