Wildlife & Nature in the Balkans

About Wildlife & Nature in the Balkans

By the ULTIMATE Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

The wild is never far away in the Balkans. This is our guide to the region’s wildlife and wild places, from the rivers of the capitals to the national parks.

Silhouettes at dawn

Get up early near the water and you’ll see the region’s oldest rhythm. On the Adriatic and the Danube, on Lake Ohrid and Lake Skadar, small boats are out at first light, fishermen silhouetted against a sky turning from grey to gold.

Wild in the city

Nature is never far away here, even in the capitals. In Belgrade, Great War Island, where the Sava meets the Danube, has been a protected nature reserve since 2005; almost 200 species of bird have been recorded there, among them nesting white-tailed eagles, Europe’s largest eagle. Across the water, the Zemun Quay is home to the city’s largest flock of mute swans, and they are a lovely sight on a cold, bright morning.

The quietest hour of the day is the best one.

Tirana has Dajti on its doorstep, its own mountain of forest and meadows, reached by cable car.

Forests, lakes and canyons

Tara National Park, above the Drina canyon in western Serbia, protects some of the best-preserved forests in Europe, home to brown bears, chamois, deer and many birds of prey. In Montenegro, Durmitor’s glacial lakes lie below limestone peaks of more than 2,500 metres, beside the deepest canyon in Europe, and the Bay of Kotor drops so steeply into the sea that it feels like a fjord.

Lake Skadar, the largest lake in the Balkans, shared by Montenegro and Albania, is one of the most important bird habitats in Europe: more than 270 species have been recorded there, among them the Dalmatian pelican, which nests on the lake. Lake Ohrid, shared by North Macedonia and Albania, is one of the oldest lakes in the world.

Further afield, Bosnia has Sutjeska, with the primeval forest of Perućica, and Una, a river of waterfalls; Croatia has Plitvice, sixteen lakes stepping down a valley in waterfalls; and Slovenia has the Julian Alps around Bled and Bohinj.

There is more water still. In Croatia, the Krka runs through a canyon of travertine falls, with boardwalks around Skradinski buk; near Mostar, the Kravice waterfalls tumble about 25 metres in a wide arc into a green pool; in North Macedonia, Lake Mavrovo lies at about 1,200 metres among forests and peaks; and in Slovenia, the Reka river runs through the vast underground canyon of the Škocjan Caves, on UNESCO’s list since 1986. In the far south of Albania, Butrint National Park keeps an ancient city among woods and lagoons.

When to go

Spring and autumn are the best seasons for birds, summer for the high mountains and the lakes, and winter for the swans on the Danube. In the national parks, check the park’s own website for opening times, weather and any rules before you set out.

Where to go next

Each of these wild places has its own page on our city guides, with how to get there.

Our advice

Our advice: bring binoculars, set the alarm early at least once, and keep to the marked paths in the reserves and parks. The quietest hour of the day is the best one.

Festival dates, opening times and seasonal services change, so please check with each place directly.