Is Belgrade a Good Choice for a Balkan City Break?

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Thinking about visiting the Balkans? Maybe you need a break from the Schengen Zone or just want a budget-friendly city escape. If Belgrade, Serbia is on your radar but you’re not quite sold, you’re in the right place.

In the spring of 2025, Steve and I spent six weeks in Belgrade (long story), giving us plenty of time to get to know the city. Here is what we found so you can decide if Belgrade deserves a spot on your itinerary.

All money is in U.S. dollars unless otherwise stated.

The Pros of Belgrade

The city is walkable

Old Town (Stari Grad) is very walkable, with several pedestrian-only streets. If you like walking as much as we do, you can reach many sights outside the center on foot too.

English is prevalent

English is widely spoken and appears on many signs. When it wasn’t, Google Translate had our backs most of the time. We got a few chuckle-worthy results though, like “boneless red grapes.”

Public transportation is free

Yes, you read that right. Public transportation is free as of January 1, 2025. Buses and trams ran frequently and got us close to almost everywhere we wanted to go. The only hiccup came during student protests when a few routes were canceled, leaving us waiting for rides that never showed.

Private medical care is good and affordable

Since we were in Belgrade for a while, we took the opportunity to address a few medical needs. A pharmacist pointed us to Euromedik, where I got treatment for a persistent cough. We both had bloodwork and dental cleanings done there as well, and we couldn’t have been happier with the care. You can read more about our experience in “Medical Care in Belgrade: Affordable, Easy, and Pleasant.”

Restaurants are good and reasonably priced

We cooked at home a lot, but we also found some great restaurants and I’m sure we barely scratched the surface. Here are a few spots we liked, some enough to visit several times:

Bromacvetam

Located in Četnička Trg (Flower Square), about an 18-minute walk from Old Town, this restaurant has a huge patio and cozy indoor seating. We loved their pizza and salads, especially the shopska salad, a refreshing Balkan mix of cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and mild white cheese.

Address: Njegoševa 5, Beograd 11000

Walter BBQ

Walter is a popular chain specializing in ćevapi, grilled minced meat sausages typically made from beef or lamb. They’re served with flatbread, raw onions, kajmak (a creamy dairy spread), and ajvar (a roasted red pepper relish).

Address of the one we visited: Strahinjića Bana 57, Beograd 11000

Cookie Beacon Brunch

Tucked away in Old Town, Cookie Beacon Brunch dishes up indulgent treats like carrot cake pancakes and banana bread French toast, and classics like eggs Benedict. Pair your meal with coffee, fresh juice, a smoothie, or a mimosa, and whatever you do, don’t skip the namesake cookies. Flavors range from nostalgic classics like chocolate chip to inventive combos like s’mores brownie.

Address: Kralja Petra 20a, Beograd 11000

Znak Pitanja (Question Mark)

Built in 1823, this is Belgrade’s oldest restaurant. The food was decent, but the real draw is the history. If you’re wondering about the quirky name, here’s the story behind it.

Address: Kralja Petra 6, Beograd 11000

Moskva Café at Hotel Moscow

This Art Nouveau hotel is a local icon, and its outdoor café is the place to try the famous Moskva Schnitt cake. Picture layers of cake, buttercream, cherries, pineapple, peaches, and almonds. A total tourist trap, but a classy one.

Address: Balkanska 1, Beograd 11000

Balkan Ekspres

We stumbled upon Balkan Ekspres, a charming riverfront restaurant while exploring Zemun (more on this below). We kept it light since we planned to walk back, but the food was good and the setting was peaceful.

Address: Despota Đurđa 22, Beograd 11080

If cafés are your thing, there’s no shortage of great spots, as you can see in this article.

The Cons of Belgrade

High grocery prices

We expected Belgrade to be budget-friendly, so we were surprised to find grocery prices similar to what we had just seen in Germany. U.S. travelers might still find them reasonable, but for us, it wasn’t the bargain we’d expected.

Non-food items were also pricey. We loved DM stores in Germany for their affordable personal care and cleaning products, but in Belgrade, the prices were higher and the selection less impressive.

The supermarkets were underwhelming

We weren’t impressed with the supermarkets. Even allowing for cultural differences, the variety was limited—one type of salad dressing if you could find any at all. We did find Tabasco sauce, which felt like a win until we saw the $6 price tag.

Few really impressive sights

We were impressed with a few of the sights, but several fell short compared to what we’ve seen in other Balkan cities. Here’s our take on the sights we visited:

Sights that made the grade

Belgrade Fortress

We first visited this on a fantastic walking tour through GuruWalk. Unfortunately, our guide is no longer listed, but we have always been pleased with the tours we booked through them .

We returned to the fortress a few more times. This massive complex sits atop a cliff where the Danube River and the Sava River meet. The fortress is surrounded by Kalemegdan Park. Inside, you’ll find two churches, museums, a tank and artillery display, shops, and incongruously, a dinosaur park. Vendors line the path through the park to the fortress.

Museum of the Nineties

This powerful new museum covers the aftermath of Yugoslavia’s breakup and focuses on the problems that resulted during the formation of the countries that emerged. The content is intense, but the presentation is clear, thoughtful, and well done.

The Church of St. Sava

This is a must-see. One of the largest Eastern Orthodox churches in the world, this towering landmark is still under construction nearly a century after it began. The real showstopper is the crypt, filled with glittering mosaics, golden domes, and soaring ceilings. It’s unlike any crypt you’ve ever imagined.

Sights that were okay

The Railway Museum

Housed in the stately Transportation Building, this free museum offers a surprisingly engaging look at the history of rail in the region. You can easily spend an hour or two here. Trust me—it’s more interesting than it sounds.

Tropicarium

Part aquarium, part reptile house, the Tropicarium gives each animal its own glass apartment. The creatures looked healthy, but all signage is in Serbian, so bring a translator app.

It’s not walkable from Old Town, but taking public transport partway drops you near Užička Street. From there, it’s a 16-minute walk through Belgrade’s wealthiest neighborhood, Dedinje, lined with embassies and stunning mansions.

National Museum of Serbia

The National Museum of Serbia is on Republic Square. The museum’s first floor is the highlight, covering prehistoric through medieval history with engaging displays. Unfortunately, the upper floors focus mostly on art, and we found the collections underwhelming. We were hoping for more on modern Serbian history.

Underground tour

This guided tour spans from Roman times to the Cold War. You’ll visit a military bunker, a wine cellar (prepare for the occasional drip on your head), and a Roman well. There’s wine and soft drinks at the end, though wine lovers might be underwhelmed.

The Roman well is intriguing—think spiral staircase descending into darkness—but unlike the one at Quinta da Regaleira in Sintra, Portugal, you can only peer into it, not walk down it.

A walk along the Danube from Zemun to Old Town

Zemun was once a separate town but is now part of Belgrade. It offers a slower pace and is easily reached by taxi or public transport. Or if you prefer you can take the almost two-hour walk. We didn’t visit the main attractions (you can read about them here), but we did explore Zemun Cemetery. With Catholic, Jewish, and Orthodox sections, it’s worth a stop for cemetery lovers.

After lunch at Balkan Ekspres, we walked along the riverside for 45 minutes. We saw swans, pretty river views, and plenty of cafes. One spot called Venecija looked especially lively, filled with diners enjoying Balkan music. If we hadn’t already eaten, we definitely would have joined them.

While the first part of the walk from Zemun was very nice, I consider this to be okay because we returned another day to walk the remaining stretch, and there wasn’t much to see.

Sights that disappointed us

Jevremovac Botanical Garden

I never miss a botanical garden, and I had high hopes for this one. Sadly, aside from a small educational area and a so-so Japanese garden, there wasn’t much to see. We also found it odd that there were “keep off the grass” signs, yet the only way to read the labels on many specimens was to walk on the grass.

The Museum of Contemporary Art

We went to see the David Hockney exhibit and left pretty underwhelmed. We’re not big on contemporary art, though I usually find at least a few pieces that catch my eye. Not this time. Unless you’re into the kind of art that makes most people mutter “WTF?”, you might want to skip it. That said, the building itself is pretty cool.

Nikola Tesla Museum

Our taxi driver extolled the virtues of this museum. Steve and I had been impressed by the  Nikola Tesla Technical Museum in Zagreb, Croatia, and were curious how this one compared.

Unfortunately it was a letdown. It’s tiny—just one floor in a rather modest building—and you can only visit with a guided tour. Ours was so packed it felt more like a cattle drive than a museum experience. Afterward, we were free to wander through the remaining exhibits, but by then, the spark was gone.

Other popular museums

The Museum of Yugoslavia

We tried to visit, but student protests disrupted the bus routes that day. It was too far to walk, and, honestly, we never got around to going back. The museum covers life in Yugoslavia, the breakup of the country, and has a strong focus on Josip Broz Tito, the leader of communist Yugoslavia.

It’s not the highest-rated (4.0 on TripAdvisor, 4.5 on Google), but if you’re interested in this era and have time, it could be worth a visit.

The Museum of Science and Technology

Highly rated (4.7 on Google), this museum features vintage computers, cameras, and appliances. Reviews often mention hands-on exhibits for kids, making it a good family stop.

Most museums we visited had helpful staff and clear English signage. Still, Belgrade’s museums didn’t match the quality of the museums we visited in Skopje, Tirana, or Zagreb.

A Few Things to Note

If you’re in the mood to shop, start with the stores along the pedestrian streets in Old Town. You’ll also find indoor shopping at Rajićeva Shopping Center right in Old Town, or head a bit further out to UŠĆE Shopping Center and Delta City, both just a short drive or bus ride from the city center.

Most stores are closed on Sundays and many shut early on Saturdays, so plan your shopping accordingly.

If you use Google Maps to find bus routes, the name of the endpoint probably won’t correspond to the name on the bus. Don’t stress, just make sure you have the right number and are going in the right direction. If you mess up, just hop off and try again. Remember, it’s free.

Taking out the trash is easy if you’re staying in Old Town (which we recommend). Just leave your bag next to a bin. No one touches it, not even dogs, and it appears to be picked up regularly.

What We Spent

Would We Recommend Belgrade?

Tough question. There are some things worth seeing, especially if you’re nearby. For a long stay, it came up short compared to other Balkan cities like Bucharest, Sofia, Plovdiv, Kotor, Tirana, and Skopje.

But if you need a break from the Schengen Zone or some top-notch medical care at bargain prices, it might be worth a stop.

Until Next Time

Steve and I love hearing from you! Have you been to Belgrade? Do you agree with our take, or did you have a different experience? And if you’ve been to other Balkan cities, how do you think Belgrade stacks up? Let us know in the comments.

Happy traveling,
Linda

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