BELGRADE | NIS | NOVI SAD | PRISTINA |
Serbia is a country that was a founder and one of six republics forming the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It is located in the Balkans, in Southern Europe. It is surrounded by Montenegro, Albania to the south, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the west, Bulgaria to the southeast, Croatia to the northwest, Hungary to the north, Macedonia to the south, and Romania to the northeast. It controls one of the major land routes from Central Europe to Turkey and further on to the Near East.
Serbia is a lovely country, open for tourism all year round. In summer tourists love spending their time in Belgrade and enjoy the nature of many national parks throughout the country. In winter tourists are warmly welcomed to mountain resorts (one of the most popular being Kopaonik [featured on BBC as one of the best ski destinations in Europe]). There are also many spa resorts such as Sokobanja, Niška Banja and Vrnjačka Banja.
Serbs are warm people especially towards tourists. Most Serbs speak some English (seniors, however, are more likely to speak German and/or French), so you will be able to find your way around by asking directions. Most tourists come to Serbia in the summer and you will often hear German, Italian, French and English on the streets of Belgrade due to the number of tourists.
HOW TO REACH
By plane - Belgrade The main airport of Serbia is Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport (BEG), just a few kilometres from downtown Belgrade. Major European airlines fly to Belgrade. Serbian national airline Jat Airways flies to all major cities in Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East.
By train - Several international trains from Belgrade to Budapest and Vienna and to Zagreb-Ljubljana-München/Zurich. Usually, they should not be too late (seldom more than 1/4 of an hour). The night train to Budapest was very regularly overcrowded in summer 2005 (only 1 sitting car). Furthermore, there are direct (day or night) trains from Belgrade to Skopje - Thessaloniki (Belgrade-Thessaloniki 30 euro/seat+20euro/bed one way at 2 beds compartment). Trains to Sofia and Bucarest however tend to be often quite late (about an hour). Trains to Macedonia (Greece), Bulgaria and Romania are allegedly reported to oftenly consist of old, not very comfortable, cars.
By car - Be sure your Green Card has an uncancelled "YU" or "SRB" box. Coming in from Hungary, the Szeged/Horgos border crossing is notorious for its congestion. If crossing the border from Hungary, try the Tompa/Kelebija crossing point, about 20km west. On the two-lane E75 between Szeged, Hungary to Belgrade, please note that cars over-taking will often use the unofficial "middle-lane". Exercise caution and pull over to the hard shoulder on the right to let them through safely. The dual-carriageway should be completed in 2009 to eliminate this risk.
By bus - Vienna - Buses leave from Südbahnhof station almost every day. For destinations south of Belgrade, Zoran Reisen coaches leave at 3pm on Friday, and charge around 45 euros for a one-way trip (as at August 2007).
Hungary - When you take an international bus from Belgrade towards Germany, don't surprised when a collection is held inside the bus for paying the Hungarian border guards a fee to let the bus go faster over the border. This is what you would call a bribe. On your way into Serbia it seems 'cheaper', though the Hungarian border guards will demand all passengers sign a form declaring they 'offered no gift, cash or otherwise, to Hungarian border police' whether they paid a bribe or not.
By boat - There are boat tours, which pass through Belgrade. These are English Trafalgar Tours which cruise along the Danube and have a two day stopover in Belgrade.
By thumb - Hitchhiking across Serbia is still acceptable and most drivers will treat you like a friend. However, necessary precautions should still be taken. Generally, it is easy to hitchhike through Vojvodina and it's much more difficult to hitch a ride from Belgrade to the south, in the direction of Kosovo, or Macedonia and Montenegro.
STAY SAFE
Serbia is generally a very safe place to visit. The locals are incredibly polite and helpful in case you require any assistance. However, you should always be aware of pickpockets, mainly in crowded tourist places and on public transportation. Street robberies, murders, or attacks are highly unusual even in dark or remote parts of the city. One should always watch out for drivers, who can be very rude to pedestrians or cyclists.
RESPECT
Since many Serbs feel nationally frustrated by the defeats in recent historical events, it is best to avoid discussion of the 1990's Yugoslavian Wars, the NATO bombing of Serbia, and president Milosevic's administration. If someone brings the topic up, try to avoid giving any strong opinions until you can assess your acquaintance's views. Do NOT mention Kosovo. Due to the US's vocal support of Kosovar independence, in addition to the 1999 air strikes, there is some ill-will directed towards the West, particularly towards the USA (though unlikely on a personal level). On the other hand, talking about Socialist Yugoslavia and Tito will not raise as many eyebrows; as most will not hesitate in talking about it and some may even approach it with a strong degree of affection towards that more stable and peaceful era. Remember Serbia does not recognize the independence of Kosovo, but does maintain relations with Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, and Macedonia. Relations with Bulgaria have bittered over Kosovo as well.
When toasting in Serbia, as in the most of european countries, make sure you make eye contact. You may be invited to drink gallons, but are expected to be able to hold your drink. Being obviously drunk is a sign of bad taste, lack of character, and worse. It is always nice to toast in your companion's native tongue. Cheers is živeli in Serbian, gëzuar in Albanian (Don’t confuse these two!) and egészségedre in Hungarian.
The word molim is key to polite conversation in Serbian. It basically means please, but is also an appropriate response when somebody thanks you (and says hvala). It also means, What’s that? if you didn’t understand some word. Just saying Šta? (What?) can sound rude. It may be said that the use of the word molim is similar to the use of bitte in German.
