With almost two weeks left driving through Eastern Europe before heading back to my dad’s in Germany, I found myself driving through Serbia to get to Hungary. From Nis and Novi Sad, via Belgrade in Serbia, it was an interesting trip. So which part is better, choosing between Serbia South and North?
Once again I wasn’t really sure what to expect from Serbia and it probably isn’t on everybody’s ‘must see’ list however it had some positive surprises. First of all it is a safe country. I didn’t have this unsafe feeling I had in some other countries I visited. The roads are terrible (unless you are on a highway) but it is the first country (after many) where I haven’t seen any police. Driving through Serbia is therefore pretty good.
Although, the towns weren’t really very photogenic so I apologise for the lack of the photos.
Nis
First stop was Nis. I have read it was a great place to see and I stopped for a lunch break only. Luckily I did! Although it did have a small fortress inside the city, the city itself was pretty ordinary. Once again an ‘oversold’ place on all the blogs I have read. However it had nothing to show and not worth a stop in my opinion. Even more confirmed after seeing Belgrade and Novi Sad and no photos from Nis to show either.
Belgrade in Serbia
After the disappointing city Nis I was keen to see what Belgrade had to offer. I booked a small brand new hotel Garni D10 (find it on booking.com) in Zemun which is a great area. The hotel was an excellent choice (I don’t always get it right with the accomodations but that’s another story) and so I stayed two nights in Belgrade.
First afternoon I walked around Zemun along the Danube river. Zemun has a very charming feel and look and plenty of great restaurants to choose from. You should know though, that although there is a charm lots of the cities in Eastern Europe are still dirty and old on the outside. There are a few streets that give it the charm it deserves but the street next to it can be (and are) totally the opposite. I tried to capture it in my photos.
Second Day I went into the centre of Belgrade. What a great capital city of Serbia. It is a nice town that has a great city mall with grand buildings and wide boulevards. Definitely well looked after in the centre but very rundown as soon as you step out of it. I didn’t take too many photos in Serbia. I find some places and cities are really photogenic and some are not and Serbia just didn’t have the visual characteristics you can capture on camera. That said I would definitely recommend a stop in Belgrade.
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is another small town in Serbia that I read about. Driving through Serbia is definitely a great way to explore this country. Novi Sad was on my way to Hungary, so I stopped there the morning. It is such a great little town, with many streets to discover, grand buildings and clean feeling. You can see the Hungarian-Austrian influence in this town.It still wasn’t a very photogenic town so no special photos here, however I would definitely recommend to go and see it. As for myself, I did my steps walking around the streets and headed off to my next new country Hungary (which was amazing)!
Tips for Serbia
If you’d have to choose between Serbia South and North, spend most of your time in the top half (north) of the country. Novi Sad sits in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, located in the very northern part of the country (the Pannonian Plain) and the country side is just beautiful. I call it the golden fields of agriculture and it continues all the way to Hungary. Just stunning!
In addition I would also recommend to visit Belgrade in Serbia. It is the capital after all, and given the history of Serbia, pretty interesting to see.
