I love Zlatibor and everything it has to offer. Not to mention kajmak, komplet lepinja, roast meat, homemade schnapps, juice, soured milk and other treats. I did mention them after all. I really do enjoy them.

I love coming back to Zlatibor for the seventh, eighth, nineteenth time. I can never get enough of it. It’s a mountain for all seasons and for everyone. It has so much to offer….

Thank you to the lovely Marina for the accommodation. The apartment “Carolija” is the cutest thing. Surrounded by pine forest, ideal for couples in love or the ones trying to rekindle their love, for families with kids, even for single persons, tucked away in the settlement of Sloboda, only a ten-minute walk from the center of Zlatibor, fully equipped for uninterrupted and complete enjoyment. A picture is worth a thousand words.

Even if it’s pouring with rain outside, you can gather some split firewood from the terrace, light a fire in the fireplace, open a bottle of wine, play some soft music, cut some cheese and dry-cured ham…. At the moment, I cannot imagine greater enjoyment.

And what does Zlatibor have to offer…when it’s just a mountain for posers …well let me tell you …plenty.

You can start your day with a perfect komplet lepinja, some homemade soured milk and schnapps at “Krcma Gaj”. For all pastry and pie lovers, do not miss an opportunity to try homemade gibanica. I wouldn’t leave Krcma for days.

After visiting Krcma, only half an hour away, a generous gift of nature awaits you, Gostilje waterfall. I’ve visited it for the first time this year and I am really amazed by its beauty and how well-organized the entire area is. The entrance fee is RSD 150.  

After this feast for the eyes, you can continue to Sirogojno, an open-air museum “Old village”, where you can get acquainted with a lifestyle of people living in this area from the middle of the 19^th to early 20^th century. On the way there, you may bump into a herd of cows.

You can see over 50 buildings on 50 000 square meters of land, the architecture and internal organization, rooms where they slept, rolled tobacco, kept bees, made dairy products. The entrance fee is RSD 150. Revive yourself with some natural raspberry or cherry juice. It refreshes you and makes you happy.

From Sirogojno, 15 minutes further, you can get to Stopica cave, a place I’ve visited twice already and it makes me really happy to see how people, working there, continually make progress in digging the cave. Currently, visitors can see 280 meters out of total1692 meters. Three years ago, during my first visit, you couldn’t climb and see the tuffaceous baths. The situation has now changed and that’s the greatest treasure of the cave. The entrance fee is RSD 250.

You can end your day with lunch/dinner in Bajo restaurant in Mackat. I have never eaten better lamb.

Recommendation for restaurants with good food in Zlatibor: restaurant Rujno, Dunav and bakery/pancakes house Feniks.

What else can you visit in Zlatibor:

• Adventure park – newly opened adrenalin park for kids and adults. Children older than 5 can embark upon different adventures. There are 4 tracks suited for different age. In the center of the park you can get some refreshments in the on-mountain bar. This is something Zlatibor is very proud of and it’s worth visiting.
• Nature Park Sargan-Mokra Gora – Nature park Mokra Gora offers plenty of interesting things to do. One of them is the Sargan 8. Book a ride on Sargan 8 on time, it often happens that the tickets are sold out. You will regret it later. The timetable and the number for reservations you can find here. Drvengrad on Mecavnik is certainly something not to be missed, with wooden houses customized for today’s, contemporary requirements, squares and streets named after famous and reputable people. Here as well you can try homemade products. On Mecavnik you have the possibility to book accommodation which includes a trim track, a gym, tennis courts and other interesting activities. There’s no need to talk about Tara and all its beauties. It’s enough to mention Zaovinsko lake, and Banjska stena lookout and you wish you could go there immediately.

• Andricgrad in Visegrad is a little over an hour away from Zlatibor and it’s worth your attention, if not for anything else, for cevapi in “Kasaba”! From visiting the old bridge on the Drina (the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of the bridge on the Drina is our saying: “who doesn’t pay on the bridge, will pay on cuprija” – an old arch bridge) to a bakery, a pub, a gallery, a souvenir shop. Plenty of things on offer for maximum enjoyment.

• A place that immediately attracted me, the moment I stepped on its ground is Uvac, only an hour and a half drive from Zlatibor. Something you have to experience for yourself in order to believe the beauty and strength of nature. The visit to Uvac is on my wish list for this spring/summer, so I will tell you more about Uvac soon. Meanders, griffon vulture, unreal nature, Ice cave, are all reasons enough to surrender yourself to the charms of Uvac.

• Numerous spa centers in hotels “Iris”, “Mona”, “Olimp”. The most affordable is the spa center “Iva” in Cajetina.

The only thing left is to book accommodation in the “Carolija” apartment, pack your things, comfortable shoes and surrender to the nature’s beauties, interesting flavors, and fresh air.

All photos by: Danica, Vlada

Camera used: Nikon D3000, HTC 10