A veteran travelling couple offers the keys to a memorable romantic caper in Serbia. By Anurag Mallick & Priya Ganapathy
A cold Balkan nation may not be your first choice for a romantic holiday, but Serbia steals your heart as much as it blows your mind. We realised this shortly after our flight landed in Belgrade. My wife, Priya, and I found ourselves at the beautiful Republic Square. Crowds milled about the bronze equestrian statue of Prince Mihailo Obrenović III, who famously challenged Ottoman occupation and expelled the Turks from Serbia in 1867. Open-air restaurants spilled onto pavements as we walked hand-in-hand down Knez Mihailova, the cobbled path often described as the most beautiful pedestrian zone in southeastern Europe. The kilometre-long avenue is lined with beautiful buildings, shops, hotels, and art galleries, and is protected by law as the city’s oldest and most valuable landmark. We indulged in charming local traditions like taking a sip from Delijska Česma, a lovely water fountain and sampling a slice of Hotel Moskva’s signature šnit, a fruit cake made with almonds, cherries, pineapple, and a secret cream.
Much of Belgrade’s downtown belongs to the archaeological site of Singidunum. The Celts built the first fort, but it was the Romans who incorporated white Tašmajdan limestone into the structure. After numerous raids, the fortified city lay abandoned until it was resettled by the Slavs, who named it Beograd, meaning ‘White City’; even today, the fortress gleams white from afar. We passed through the Stambol Gate to reach the fort’s highest point, which overlooks the scenic confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. Pobednik, the nude statue of a victor atop a column, commemorates Serbia’s victory over the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires during the Balkan Wars and World War I, respectively. A sudden fanfare of trumpets drew our attention to a wedding party at the stunning Ružica (Little Rose) Church. Serbian flags were being waved, and a festive tune hung in the air. We peeped inside and gasped at the unusual ornate chandeliers made of bullets and shell casings. These were reportedly designed by troops, and Belgrade’s oldest church once served as an ammo dump.
We had more music in store that evening, as we caught starogradska muzika (old town music) at Skadarlija, Belgrade’s hip Bohemian quarter. Until the 1830s, gypsies occupied the abandoned trenches opposite the fort’s ramparts. Today, it is an entertainment quarter buzzing with cafes, breweries, and kafanas (coffee houses). Perhaps the most enigmatic is ‘?’ or Znak Pitanja (Question Mark) the oldest kafana in the city. In 1892, the tavern’s owner wanted to change the name to Kod Saborne Crkve (By the Saborna Church), but the Serbian Orthodox Church opposed it. In a huff, the owner put a question mark on the door as a temporary solution, which eventually became its identity.
We quickly discovered that the food in Belgrade is meat-heavy, the portion sizes huge, and most mains can easily become a romantic meal shared by two. You must try burek (a stuffed phyllo pastry), çevapi (grilled sausages), sarma (stuffed cabbage rolls), palacinke (pancakes), and the extremely popular pljeskavica (meat patty), which is avidly consumed with breads, kajmak (clotted cream), and ajvar (red pepper sauce). At traditional restaurants like Dva Jelena, musicians serenade you at your table—for a small tip. The ethno restaurant chain Zavičaj lays out a lavish Serbian spread, best consumed with copious amounts of rakija—a strong brandy made of various fruits, the most popular types being šljivovica (plum), kajsijevača (apricot), and dunjavača (quince). Belgrade’s legendary nightlife is split between its hip clubs and splavs—floating party clubs moored on the Sava and Danube rivers. The longest stretch of the mighty Danube is in Serbia, and a boat cruise from the old town of Zemun is spectacular. We ended our leisurely sunset cruise with a delightful seafood dinner at the riverside Šaran Restaurant.
The best part about Belgrade is that no matter what your interests are, you can find something awe-inspiring. History and architecture buffs should head to the Church of St Sava, one of the largest Orthodox churches in the world. Josip Broz Tito’s mausoleum, called House of Flowers, is set in a garden full of sculptures donated to the former Yugoslav leader, with a museum housing his gifts. If you are science enthusiasts, you can geek out at the Nikola Tesla Museum, dedicated to the physicist after whom the Tesla unit and Belgrade airport are named (besides a planet, a lunar crater, several companies, and a rock band). The museum has a short film and guided tour every hour with a live demo of science experiments like the wireless transmission of electrical energy.
If you’re into art, pop into the Museum of Contemporary Art (), the first contemporary art museum in Europe with a collection of 35,000 works ranging from Lichtenstein to Warhol. For a glimpse of ancient art, marvel at the murals of the 16th-century Krušedol Monastery, which is seen on the Serbian five dinars coin. Continue your art tour with a jaunt to The Gallery of Matica Srpska in the youthful university town of Novi Sad. The city was named the European Youth Capital in 2019 and shares the title of European Capital of Culture in 2022, thus becoming the first non-EU city to be bestowed with this honour.
When you’re in Novi Sad, visit the 17th-century Petrovaradin Fortress where couples like to fix a love lock at a bridge before sharing a lip lock.
Another popular activity is taking a selfie at the pijani sat (Drunk Clock), an unusual clocktower where the shorthand shows minutes and the long hand shows hours. This was no gaffe by an inebriated clockmaker but an intentional feature to enable sailors on the Danube to tell the hour from a distance. The clock mechanism’s notorious sensitivity to weather is another reason for its dubious nickname.
Novi Sad’s main plaza, Trg Slobode (Liberty Square), is surrounded by Baroque townhouses in pastel hues and charming heritage buildings in various styles. Dominating the square is the neo-Gothic Name of Mary Church, the Secessionist-style Bishop’s Palace, the neo-Renaissance Town Hall, St George’s Cathedral, and the Museum of Vojvodina. The main avenues in the old town, Zmaj Jovina and Dunavska Street are intersected by passages teeming with shops, cafes, and restaurants.
Take a 20-minute bus ride from Novi Sad (bus no. 61/62) to the quaint town of Sremski Karlovci, which boasts stunning buildings and the prettiest town square in Serbia. The Orthodox Cathedral of St Nicholas has rich frescoes and a dazzling iconostasis—a wall of religious motifs that separates the nave from the sanctuary.
The beautiful land sloping up from the Danube to Fruška Gora is prime wine country. Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Probus famously planted the first grapevines here. Sign up for a wine tour at any of the family-run vinarija (wineries) like Kiš, Vinum, or Bajilo Cellar in the heart of town, or Veritas Winery. The area is known for its Bermet, an aromatic dessert wine that is said to have been served on board the Titanic. Continue your wine trail at Aleksandrović Winery, and visit the mausoleum of Serbian royalty at Oplenac, in the town of Topola. The crypt is adorned with an exquisite mosaic that took our breath away.
If you’re a cinephile, Drvengrad (literally, Wooden City) in Western Serbia is as much a movie date as a pilgrimage. Acclaimed Serbian director Emir Kusturica had this town built as a set for his movie Life is a Miracle (2004), before opening it to visitors. Called Küstendorf after him, the quirky village has streets named after Kusturica’s favourite personalities—Maradona, Bruce Lee, Djokovic, Fellini, Bergman, Che Guevara, Tesla, and Nobel laureate Ivo Andrić—with an art gallery, library, cinema hall, gym, pool, guest rooms, restaurant, cake shop, and even a ski slope.
Kusturica also championed the cause of the picturesque Šargan Eight narrow-gauge heritage railway running between Mokra Gora and Šargan Vitasi that was part of the Belgrade-Dubrovnik railroad from 1920 to 1974. Peppered with photo stops and refreshment breaks, the three-hour journey covers five bridges and 22 tunnels, with a figure-eight loop to tackle the gradients. Look out for the restaurant carved into a rock at Šargan. The Golubiči station, built by Kusturica for his film, is best known for the nearby ‘Crazy Stone’. According to legend, if lovers touch this rock they stay together for eternity. So, make sure you leave a coin and make a wish of togetherness. We sure did!
Getting There
Many airlines like Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, and Air France operate flights from Delhi and Mumbai to the Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade. Novi Sad is 100 kilometres and Sremski Karlovci is 80 kilometres from the capital. To reach Mokra Gora, about 250 kilometres away, you can take a bus or train.
Stay
Metropol Palace is a stunning luxury collection hotel in the centre of Belgrade. Doubles from INR 9,644; Hotel Moskva is a five-minute walk from Knez Mihailova Street, Doubles from INR 7,744
Tours
Balkan Adriatic DMC specialises in tailor-made trips. Luka Relic is a local tourist guide with great insights.
Season
The Spring Wine Festival at Sremski Karlovci is held in April-May; the EXIT music festival at Novi Sad will be held from July 7 to 10 this year, and the Guča Trumpet Festival is held in August every year.
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