Things to do in North Macedonia

Mountains fill landlocked North Macedonia, and Skopje holds more than a quarter of its 1.8 million people. Ohrid lies 170 kilometres from Skopje by road. The first choice for tours in North Macedonia is which of the two to start from.

Skopje, the lakes and the interior

• Skopje. The capital, rebuilt after an earthquake destroyed most of it in 1963. The Old Bazaar, the Stone Bridge and Kale fortress lie along the Vardar. Vodno rises to 1,066 metres behind the city and carries a 66-metre cross.
• Ohrid. A town on the south-western edge of the country, on a lake 288 metres deep. UNESCO has listed the lake since 1979 and the old town since 1980. Saint Naum monastery, founded in 905, stands 29 kilometres south of the town, by the Albanian border.
• Prespa and Bitola. Lake Prespa is shared with Albania and Greece, and a road over Galičica national park joins it to Lake Ohrid. Bitola, on the Pelagonia plain, earned the name city of consuls in Ottoman times. The frescoes at Kurbinovo date from 1191.
• Kruševo. At 1,350 metres, the highest town in the country. Rebels of the 1903 Ilinden Uprising proclaimed a short-lived republic here, and the Makedonium of 1974 recalls it.
• The east. Kratovo is a hill town of old stone towers, Berovo lies by a lake, and the Koleshino waterfall falls on Mount Belasica in the south-east. The Tikveš vineyards on the Vardar close the circuit.

What gets booked

In Skopje the day is a six-hour private tour of the Old Bazaar, Kale and Vodno, with the cable car included. Ohrid and Saint Naum fill a long day, and one nine-hour trip comes in from Tirana in Albania. Two-day circuits cover the lakes or the east.

A twelve-hour private day links Prilep, Kruševo and Bitola from Skopje. Most circuits are private, by car with a driver-guide. Group seats exist only for Ohrid.

Practical

• Weather. July and August afternoons average 32C in Skopje and 28C at Ohrid. January afternoons reach 5C and 6C, and Skopje nights fall to -3C.
• Best months. The best time to visit North Macedonia is May, June or September, when Skopje afternoons run 24 to 29C.
• Distances. Skopje to Ohrid takes about three hours by road. The east is a two-day trip.
• Weekdays. Private circuits from Skopje run on set days, two or three a week. Fix the date first.
• Border. The Tirana trip crosses the Albanian border, so carry a passport.
• Monasteries. Working monasteries ask visitors to cover shoulders and knees.