Exploring Belgrade, Serbia – The Traveling Kings

The Serbian capital of Belgrade, heart of former Yugoslavia was a surprise trip for us in November of 2020. This charming Balkan city had an old soviet charm to it. From the food to the history, Belgrade really impressed us!

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Transportation

Turkish Airlines: To get to Belgrade, we flew on Turkish Airlines from Istanbul to Belgrade. Turkish Airlines is one of our go-to airlines when traveling as their product is top notch with connecting options and hospitality. The flight time was just over 1 1/2 hours to get into foggy Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport.

Belgrade Street Car: These old Soviet street cars are similar to San Francisco’s famous cable cars. We unfortunately were not able to ride in one due to line work being done to the cables on the track.

Belgrade City Bus: We took this form of transportation when on our Communist Tour, to get from the city center to the Museum of Yugoslavia. This bus seemed easy enough and while we probably could have managed without a guide, it was nice to have someone to translate the stops and direct us.

Accommodations

Central Park Residence: In the Old Town area of Belgrade, this hotel is centrally located. It was just about a 20 minute drive from the airport and we opted to include the transportation from and to the airport in the room rate (we negotiated with the hotel to have the private car take us to the bus station for our departure). The hotel was clean and comfortable and for 3 nights was $161 total. We do suggest this hotel and would stay here if our travels take us to Belgrade again.

To-Do

Saint Sava Temple: This Serbian Orthodox Church is the 2nd biggest Orthodox Church in the Balkans and was extremely beautiful to explore. The golden mosaics and details inside were jaw dropping! It was free to explore the outside and inside of the church.

Republic Square: This square in the center of historic Belgrade houses some of the most beautiful and important buildings in Belgrade such as the National Museum, the National Theatre, and the Statue of Prince Michael. This square is a popular spot to meet tour groups or to grab a quick bite at a cafe.

National Museum: This national museum of Serbia was a highlight for us in Belgrade as we were able to learn about Serbian history from pre-historic to present day.

We saw a lot of old artifacts, such as art and old coins. The museum was not busy and we were able to enjoy it with peace and quiet. Tickets were 300 dinars (about $3) per person.

Nikola Tesla Museum: No this museum is not about electric cars! This museum is dedicated to the Serbian Inventor Nikola Tesla. This museum highlighted some of his inventions and with the price of the ticket it included a video which highlighted Tesla’s life and career.

We played with electricity and had a great time learning about Europe’s industrial revolution. The museum also has the urn which contains Tesla’s ashes. Tickets were 800 dinars (about $8) per person.

Yugoslavia Communist Tour: This tour, taken through Belgrade Walking Tours, was a great insight to former Yugoslavia during its communist past. We had an amazing guide show us around Belgrade, looking at both the good and bad of Communism. We saw areas of Yugoslavian art and architecture. We felt it was a very good value, since it was only 15 euros (about $17) per person.
- - - Walking Tour around Downtown: To start this tour, we walked around looking at Communist Buildings and Murals. While we stopped, our guide explained to us what purpose they served during the Yugoslavian period. A few of the buildings were bombed by the U.S., which still have not been repaired.

- - - Museum of Yugoslavia: After our walk around downtown, we took the bus to this museum.

The museum houses some of Josip Tito’s greatest treasures during his presidency of Yugoslavia. It also gives a timeline of the history between World War II and present day Serbia.

Some of the items found in Josip Tito’s Office

Belgrade Fortress: We visited this fortress on our last night in Belgrade and it was a great way to end our time in the city. This fortress was built in 279 BC as a way to protect the city.

It had amazing views of the city and was just neat to walk around and take in all the sights. Entrance was free so that was a bonus.

The fortress along with the Victor sculpture

Food

TULUM 55: After we dropped off our stuff at our hotel, we headed out to explore the city and we stumbled across this cute bistro.

We both had hot chocolate and a Serbian breakfast, which consisted of eggs, bacon, ajvar (bell pepper relish) and bread. It all tasted very good, especially the hot chocolate, which was some of the best we’ve ever had! Altogether, this meal cost us 2000 dinars (about $20).

Manufaktura: For dinner, we wanted some authentic Balkan food, so we looked up a well rated restaurant.

To start our dinner, we got some fruska gora (goat cheese) that they served with bread.

We wanted to try some rakia, which is a fruit spirit distilled in the Balkans. We tried both the plum and apricot ones. Jonah liked the rakia but it was too strong for Sierra.

For our entrees, Jonah had the Karadjordje steak (fried veal steak) served with thick potato chips.

Sierra had the chicken skewer in bacon, also served with potato chips. All of the food was very good. Including tip, dinner was 4000 dinars (about $39).

Snezana: After dinner, we walked around the city and found a place to have some dessert and drinks.

We got a few glasses of dessert wine from Serbia to go with our desserts. Sierra had the Moscow cake, which had layers of cream, nuts, cherry and pineapple.

Jonah got the trio colored cake, which had 3 layers of chocolate mousse and cake. The drinks and desserts were delicious. Including tip, we paid 2000 dinar (about $20).

Boutique 1-Restoran & Cafe: For breakfast on our 2nd day, we went to a place located right in Republic Square.

To drink we had the boutique fresh juice, which was a mix of apple, orange and carrot. The juice was fresh and tasty.

For our food, we had the boutique breakfast, which included eggs, pork prosciutto, feta cheese, cherry tomatoes, bread and ajvar (bell pepper relish). It was all really good! Including tip, we paid 2180 dinar (about $21).

Boutique Trojka-Restoran & Cafe: We weren’t planning on it, but ended up eating at another Boutique restaurant location.

For the main course, Jonah had beefsteak with romana stuffed dough. It was quite tender and flavorful.

Sierra had the pasta zucca, which was chicken, zucchini with a sour cream and cheese based sauce and homemade pasta. It was delicious!

For dessert, Jonah had the coko visnja (choco cherry), a chocolate cherry cake and mousse dessert.

Sierra had the cheesecake, which had an orange cookie crust and forest fruit jelly on top. With tip, dinner cost us 5500 dinars (about $52).

Dva Jelena: “The two deer restaurant”, this restaurant has been around since 1832 and was strongly recommended to us by our tour guide so we knew it was going to be good.

For our appetizer, we had bread with kajmak, a slightly aged, salted clotted cream. The kajmak was delicious and unlike anything we have tasted before. It was light and tasted similar to butter, but richer.

Jonah had the braised ox cheek with mashed potatoes. The meat was melt in your mouth tender and the potatoes creamy and flavorful.

Sierra had the grilled chicken medallions stuffed with ham and cheese, wrapped in bacon, with potatoes on the side. With tip, our meal came out to 5000 dinars, (about $46).

Grilled chicken medallions with potatoes

Kafana Suvobor: This restaurant serves traditional Serbian food and had a very homey feel. When we walked through the doors, we were warmly greeted and quickly seated.

For our appetizer, we shared some pazar’s kebabs along with fresh bread. Both were very good.

We shared a bottle of Belo Brdo pinot noir, a wine made in Serbia. We always try to get local wines whenever possible.

For our entree, we shared the potato moussaka, which consisted of layers of potatoes and ground meat baked in a creamy egg sauce. It was a huge portion so we’re glad we split it!