Plane tickets were virtually for free, so I booked us a trip to the forementioned countries for next week with my girlfriend. Our plan is Skopje --> Matka Canyon --> Prizren --> Ohrid --> Skopje. We will rent a car. We like gastronomy, wine, architecture, history. Does anybody have any recommendations for things that a common tourist guide wouldn't mention? Also for restaurants, bars etc. please. Thanks in advance!
>>2893789BYOB - Bring your own bull.
Prizren is very strange they have trash rivers, gangs of dudes that drive around jeeps with giant saw blades attached, hundreds of shops selling animal carcasses, hundreds of empty shops selling weird formal trad wear and jewelry, loads of usaid money laundering projects, be careful i think its adrenochrome processing or human traficking area
>>2893789Matka is cool, Macedonia has some completely under-rated /out/ destinationsIf you are driving around that way why not Tirana also? I was only on the Albanian side of lake Orhid and was ok but I enjoyed Tirana more. Think actual Orhid town is a lot better than Pogradec.Would be adding a few more hours but Tirana has some neat stuff>>2893801I really liked Pristina, had cool cafe/nightlife scene. Was fun.Maybe it's where I was staying but seemed more like a uni town.Interesting to hear about Prizen, I never stopped off there. Some cities in the Balkans have serious garbage issues.
>>2893789Don't forget to end every review of the places you stay at and dine out in with KOSOVO JE SRBIJA in all caps.Can't let those Albanians get too comfortable.
>>2893801>with my girlfriend>btw im heterosexual>why do gays make their sexuality their whole personality
>>2893789>kosovo not worth it, even if it's free>north macedoniamostly not worth it, but can be alright if you got a good deal and it's piss cheap
>>2893825this
>>2893789Nice itinerary, but there are many other nice places in Kosovo worth visiting such as Peć / Pejë, Gračanica / Graçanicë, and the Visoki Dečani monastery. I also quite liked Pristina just because of how weird it is but that's probably a matter of personal taste. The mountain areas near Prizren (the Malet e Sharrit nat'l park) and Pejë (the ominously named Bjeshkët e Nemuna, or "Accursed Mountains") are also quite nice.In Macedonia, if you can, you should also definitely visit Tetovo (the painted mosque is absolutely worth a detour, probably the most impressive piece of Islamic art in the whole Balkans) and the Saint Jovan Bigorski monastery. Both are en route between Skopje and Ohrid.I went in the summer of '24 with a few friends as part of a larger Balkan road trip and we had a great time. I am attaching a sketch of our itinerary. Macedonian cuisine is surprisingly good and you won't have problems finding good restaurants, just stick to usual common sense (avoid ultra touristy areas etc.). Have fun and make sure to report back.
