The beauties of eastern Serbia and western Bulgaria

This tour is, above all, for those who are curious and who want to explore astonishing landscapes, unusual people, and mysterious events from the distant past, as it spotlights the mystical, secluded, romantic parts of eastern Serbia. The position of this area makes it a little outside of the boom of travel & tourism happenings, but that actually gives it a special charm and makes an irresistible challenge for travelers. The deep mystique of eastern Serbia extends into a beautiful, dreamlike western Bulgaria, and together they from an inimitable unit that took centuries to create.

Tour plan - Itinerary:

Travelling distance: 50 km

The first day starts on arrival in Belgrade. We take a panoramic tour of the city, including an amazing walking tour of the historic part of the city, with landmarks like the Kalemegdan Fortress, the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, the Republic Square, the National Theatre, the Temple of St. Sava, the Parliament, and the Residence of Princess Ljubica. After a lunch break, we get a ride to our hotel and sort out accommodation. We will have a traditional dinner with music in Skadarlija, a famous bohemian neighbourhood of Belgrade. End of our activities and bedtime.

Travelling distance: 280 km

Departure from the hotel at 08:00. Ride towards to Pozarevac and further to Viminacium. Viminacium is a major city and military camp of the Roman province of Moesia, today Serbia, and the capital of Moesia Superior. It lies on the Roman road Via Militaris. We continue our journey to Golubac fortified town, one of the best preserved medieval towns in Serbia. It is located at the entry of Iron Gate Gorge on the Danube (the biggest gorge in Europe) and it is dated to 14th century. Lunch at ethno-complex on the hill above Danube. At the end of the tour, we will visit Lepenski Vir (Lepen Vhirl), Mesolithic archaeological site, the oldest urban settlement in Europe (between 9500/7200-6000 BC). After visiting cultural and historical sites, continue the trip to Kladovo. Accommodation in a hotel. Dinner. Overnight.

Travelling distance: 210 km

After breakfast in Kladovo, our tour continues to Vratna monastery. According to the legend, the monastery was established in the 14th century, and got its name from the Vratna River. The river in turn got its own name from the word meaning door (that is, bridges, gates, arches – natural archways). And it is precisely this river – together with its canyon, and the three grand arches created in ancient times by strong forces of nature – that leaves you breathless and makes you believe that a little bit of magic happened alongside natural processes. Our next stop is the breweries of Negotin – a complex of traditional wine cellars in the villages of the Negotin area (Rajac, Rogljevo, Štubik, Smedovac). Our hosts will greet us in one of the breweries – their home – and welcome us with a little of the local specialties and wine of very pleasant taste, color, and bouquet, and we’ll get to know some interesting stories about life in these breweries, and what the grape harvest season is like. We continue our trip into Bulgaria, and after border formalities, we take a brief panoramic tour of Vidin, where the Vidin fortress guards the picturesque riverbanks of the Danube. We then follow up to Magura Cave, known for cave paintings more than 8000 years old. Our final stop for the day is Belogradchik. There we will sort out our accommodation in a B&B type of lodging and have dinner there. End of activities and bedtime.

Travelling distance: 190 km

Breakfast. Tour of Belogradchik – the town is well-known with its Rocks and Fortress. Millions of years ago the site was bottom of a sea and so were sculpted the rocks in amazing shapes and sizes covering an area of 30km2. The local people call them by different names: Schoolgirl, Monk, the Bear and others. The journey continues to Montana, where notable is the rich collection of historical monuments in the Lapidarium. We will visit Berkovitsa, where can be visit the Ethnographic Museum and the house of Ivan Vazov, as well as the Clock Tower, rising in the city center. For half an hour from Berkovitsa can be reached the Klisura monastery. It was founded in 1240 when bore the name Vreshetski. The Monastery was destroyed three times by the Turks. Close to its current revival style Klisura monastery was restored in 1869 by contributor Archimandrite Antim Damyanov. Transfer to Sofia. Accommodation in a hotel. Dinner. Overnight stay.

After breakfast, we tour Sofia landmarks and sights – St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Sveta Nedelya Church, Saint Sofia Church, Saint George Church. Afterward, we start our way back to Serbia. During the trip back, we will take a tour of Jerma – a special nature reserve comprising valleys and limestone crags with imposing cliffs, incredible because of its exceptional floristic and phytocenological diversity. We will also make a stop at the Poganovo monastery from the 14th century, an immovable cultural property and a monument of immense significance. After stopping for a meal in a nearby restaurant, we continue on the road to Niš. When we arrive in the city, we will sort out our accommodation in a hotel. We will also have a traditional dinner with music in the Kazandžijsko sokače (Coppersmith Alley), a famous bohemian area of Niš. That is the end of our activities and bedtime.

Travelling distance: 190 km

After breakfast the day starts with a visit to a unique monument in the world, The Skull tower, it were declared Cultural Monuments of Exceptional Importance. After visiting this monument, we are back to the city center district. A walking tour: King Milan Square, Fortress of Nis, Jazz museum, Banovina building, Officers house, the oldest part of Nis, and Tinkers Alley-Bohemian quarter. We leave for the Resava cave, the best-known and the most visited cave in Serbia. The total length of all the cave’s passages is 4,5 km,  while the tourist passages are 800 meters long in total. Located in the Resava cave’s close vicinity is the Lisine waterfall, one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Serbia. Together with the source of the Vrelo river, it is protected as a natural monument of outstanding significance. Lunch break. After lunch we continue to Manasija, one of the most significant monuments of medieval Serbian culture, built between 1407 and 1418. After visiting Manasija monastery, we arrive in Belgrade in the evening. Accommodation in a hotel. Dinner. Overnight stay.

Breakfast. Transport to airport Nikola Tesla. Departure. End of the program.

Details:

  • Transportation comfortable van, mini-bus tourist class on the program
  • 6 overnight stays in the hotels 4*
  • Services 6 full board (traditional food)
  • Tickets for the sites according to program
  • Licensed guiding service
  • Travel organization expenses
  • Airfare tickets
  • Travel medical insurance
  • Individual costs and expenses
  • Optional transfers
  • Optional activities and excursions

This program is based on at least 7 applied people. If there occurs a change on the monetary market, commodity market and services, if there is not a sufficient number of travelers, the organizer retains the right to correct the price, change or cancel the program at least 3 days before the beginning of the program.  It takes at least 7 people from Nis or Belgrade for the departure.

The organizer of the trip is travel agency Nature Travel Office, licence number OTP 19/2023-A issued by the Business Register Agency as of 10 March 2023. Nature Travel Office is insured by an insurance policy against responsibility for travel agencies in case of insolvency and liability in case of damage to the traveller, number 3000001622, by the insurer MILENIJUM OSIGURANJE ADO Belgrade. The policy is valid from 13 February 2023 to 13 February 2024. In this program, travel agency Nature Travel Office applies their general terms and conditions of traveling, which are included in signing up for the trip.