Serbia Itinerary: 10 Days from Belgrade to the South

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Most visitors to Serbia see Belgrade and leave. That is a mistake, because the country south and west of the capital contains medieval monasteries with frescoes of genuine world importance, a river gorge with a Roman road carved into the cliff, and mountain villages where nothing much has changed in a century.

Ten days covers a proper loop without hurrying.

Days 1 to 3: Belgrade

Start in the capital. Kalemegdan fortress, Knez Mihailova, the Museum of Yugoslavia, the Temple of Saint Sava and an evening in Skadarlija will fill three days comfortably, with time left for coffee, which in Serbia is a scheduled activity rather than a drink.

Use the third day for Zemun and the riverside, or slip out to Avala for the view.

Day 4: Novi Sad and Fruška Gora

An hour and a half north, Novi Sad is the relaxed, Austro-Hungarian counterpoint to Belgrade, with the enormous Petrovaradin Fortress on the far bank of the Danube.

Behind it, the low green ridge of Fruška Gora holds sixteen working Orthodox monasteries and a scattering of small wineries. A car makes this far easier than public transport.

Days 5 and 6: Western Serbia

Head south-west into the hills. Mokra Gora is home to the Šargan Eight, a restored narrow-gauge railway that loops through the mountains in a figure of eight, and to Drvengrad, the wooden village built by the film director Emir Kusturica.

Nearby, the Tara National Park and the Drina river canyon offer proper walking, and the much-photographed little house built on a rock midstream in the Drina.

Zlatibor is the main mountain resort in the region: a good base with a lot of accommodation, a cable car and an easy pace.

Book your bases

Outside Belgrade, accommodation is limited in smaller towns, so book the mountain and monastery stops ahead:

Days 7 and 8: The monasteries

This is the part of the trip most visitors have never heard of and remember longest.

Studenica, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a twelfth-century monastery of white marble containing some of the finest Byzantine-influenced frescoes anywhere. Sopoćani, near Novi Pazar, holds a Dormition fresco widely considered among the great works of medieval European painting.

Žiča, painted the characteristic deep red, and Mileševa, with its famous White Angel, are both on the route.

These are working monasteries, not museums. Dress modestly, covering shoulders and knees, ask before photographing anything, and keep quiet inside the churches.

Novi Pazar itself is a good base, and a fascinating town: a largely Bosniak, predominantly Muslim city with Ottoman architecture, a very different atmosphere and excellent food.

Days 9 and 10: Niš and the east, or back north

Niš is Serbia’s third city and the birthplace of Constantine the Great. The fortress, the Roman site at Mediana and the grim Skull Tower are the sights, and the local grilled food has a strong reputation even by Serbian standards.

If you have a car and an appetite for driving, the Đerdap Gorge on the Danube, where the river narrows dramatically between cliffs at the Iron Gates, is one of the great landscapes of the region, with the ancient Lepenski Vir settlement nearby.

Return to Belgrade to fly out.

Getting around

Hire a car for anything beyond Belgrade and Novi Sad. The monasteries and mountain areas are poorly served by public transport.
Buses connect the major towns reliably and cheaply; the network is better than the railways.
The Belgrade to Novi Sad rail link is fast and modern and the exception to the above.
Roads are good on the motorway corridors and slower and more winding in the mountains. Allow more time than the distance suggests.
Fuel stations are frequent on main routes and sparse in rural areas; fill up before heading into the hills.

Frequently asked questions

Is ten days too long for Serbia?

No. It is the right length for this loop. You could do a compressed version in a week by cutting either the east or the western mountains.

Can I combine Serbia with neighbouring countries?

Easily. Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Hungary all border Serbia, and bus connections are good. Check border and visa rules for each.

Are the monasteries open to visitors?

Generally yes, during daylight hours, though times vary and some close over lunch or for services. Confirm locally rather than relying on published hours.

What about Kosovo?

The political and entry situation is complex and travel rules between Serbia and Kosovo have specific requirements. Check current official government advice before planning any route that crosses.