Belgrade Multi-Day Trips: Drina and Danube
Belgrade Multi-Day Trips: Drina and Danube
A cabin on a rock in the middle of a river, a railway that loops in a figure of eight and a Roman legion’s camp: Serbia packs these into two trips that start from Belgrade and need a car, two or three nights and no hurry.
Circuit one: Western Serbia, two to three days
Day one, Bajina Bašta and Tara. Drive through the Drina valley to Bajina Bašta and look for the House on the Drina (Kućica na Drini), a tiny wooden cabin on a rock in the river, there since 1968. Continue into Tara National Park and hike to the Banjska Stena viewpoint, which looks over the emerald canyon of the Drina and Lake Perućac.
Day two, Mokra Gora. Ride the Šargan Eight (Šarganska osmica), a narrow-gauge heritage railway that climbs through tunnels in a figure of eight to cover a steep gradient. Nearby is Drvengrad, the timber ethno-village that film director Emir Kusturica built for his film Life Is a Miracle.
Day three, Uvac. If you have a third day, continue south to the Uvac canyon, whose looping meanders hold a nesting colony of griffon vultures.
Compare lodging for the loop on Booking.com .
Circuit two: the Danube and the Roman frontier, two days
Follow the Danube downstream from Belgrade. The first stop is Viminacium, a major Roman legionary camp and the capital of the province of Moesia Superior, with preserved baths and an underground imperial tomb. Next come Golubac Fortress, ten towers dropping into the river at the entrance to the Iron Gate gorge, and Lepenski Vir, a Mesolithic site dating from roughly 9500 to 6000 BC.
Spend the night in Kladovo, near the ruins of Trajan’s Bridge, and use the second day for Đerdap National Park. A hire car makes the schedule flexible; compare multi-day tours from Belgrade on GetYourGuide if you prefer a driver.
Planning notes
The sights on both circuits are spread out, so a car or a hired driver makes the most sense. Opening times for individual sites change by season, so check the regional pages at serbia.travel and the Belgrade tourist organisation at tob.rs before you set out.
Carry dinars, since village cafes, kiosks and small guesthouses often prefer cash. In Orthodox churches and monasteries, keep your shoes on, cover shoulders and knees, and take off hats if you are a man. Demonstrations happen in Belgrade and can escalate quickly, so avoid protest areas on the morning you leave.
Before you leave Belgrade
City buses, trams and trolleybuses are free, and the airport has an official fixed-fare taxi voucher from the e-kiosks in arrivals if you are starting from there. For a shorter option, see the day trips page or the 4-day Belgrade itinerary .
Tip: choose one circuit, not both. Leave Belgrade before 08:00, so the first long drive does not eat into the afternoon at your first stop.