Belgrade
Belgrade's summer secret is the splavovi — floating clubs moored along the Sava and Danube, pumping everything from techno to turbo-folk until sunrise paints the water.
- Best forNightlife · Budget travellers · Groups of friends
- In January6°C · 12 rainy days
- Ideal stay3 nights
- Approx. flying time~12h 50m from Los Angeles
- CurrencyRSDSerbian dinar
- LanguageSerbian
- Local time15:081h ahead of the UK
- PlugsType C / FBring an adapter
- Drive on theRightOpposite to the UK
- Dialling code+381
Why go
Two rivers meet beneath a fortress, and the city that grew around them has been rebuilt so many times that the architecture reads as a timeline: Ottoman traces, Habsburg facades, brutalist blocks across the water in New Belgrade. It is scruffy, warm-hearted and cheap, with a social life that starts late and treats hospitality as a point of honour rather than a service industry.
Three nights is enough for the city, and it works as a stop between Budapest and the Balkans. Summer moves nightlife onto floating clubs on the Sava and Danube; winter drives it into basements and courtyards, and the party barely notices. Prices remain among the lowest in Europe for a capital. Visitors expecting a polished, museum-lined city break will find something rougher and more interesting.
- Ideal stay
- 3 nights
- The vibe
- Raw, riverside, relentlessly sociable
From our guides
Belgrade parties harder than anywhere at these prices, and the rakija makes sure you know it. Beyond the summer river clubs, the year-round action fills Cetinjska Street — a former brewery compound of courtyard bars and stages — and the arty warehouses of Savamala. Dinner first in cobbled Skadarlija with tambura bands between tables sets the tone. Nothing meaningful starts before midnight; a full night rarely clears twenty euros.
Featured in Ten cities where the night never really ends and Ten budget party cities where your money goes further
Things to do
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Kalemegdan Fortress
A vast park and citadel on the bluff where the Sava joins the Danube, layered with Roman, Ottoman and Austrian fortification. The sunset view over the confluence is the city's best.
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Skadarlija
A cobbled nineteenth-century street of kafanas where tambura bands move between tables and dinners run to several hours. Touristy, and still genuinely good fun.
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Zemun and Gardoš Tower
A former Austro-Hungarian town now part of the city, with a riverside promenade, fish restaurants and a millennium tower on the hill above.
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Nikola Tesla Museum
The inventor's archive and ashes, with live demonstrations of coils and wireless lighting that go down well with older children. Small, and reliably memorable.
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Church of Saint Sava
One of the largest Orthodox churches anywhere, its interior now finished in gold mosaic across the dome. The scale inside is difficult to photograph and worth seeing.
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Cetinjska
A former brewery compound off the main pedestrian street, now a stack of courtyard venues and stages. The year-round centre of the city's after-dark life.
Getting there
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Fly to
Belgrade (BEG)
Nearest airport to Belgrade, about 11km away as the crow flies.
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Then
To Belgrade
About half an hour by taxi from Nikola Tesla (BEG) into the centre, using the fixed-price zone taxis from the official desk. An airport bus runs the same route more slowly.
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On the ground
Getting around
The centre, Skadarlija and Cetinjska Street are walkable, while the river rafts on the Sava and Danube are a short taxi ride and effectively require one home at dawn.
Public transport: Buses and trams cover the city cheaply, with limited night lines; taxis are inexpensive and are what the nightlife runs on.
Flights
Los Angeles Belgrade, Serbia
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Roughly 12h 50m in the air from Los Angeles (LAX), estimated from the distance — check for a direct route. Pick a month to see every available flight with live prices.
Check dates and prices
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Flight times are estimates; prices open on Google Flights.
When to go
Daytime highs run from about 6°C in January to 31°C in July. Driest February and August to October; wettest in January, with rain on about 12 days.
The year at a glance — pick a month for detail
January6° · rain 12 daysCold with rain most weeks.
Monthly figures averaged from daily records for 2020–2024 at this location (ERA5 reanalysis). Live conditions from MET Norway, CC BY 4.0.
Where to stay
Apartments dominate and cost very little, alongside boutique hotels in the old town and a few international chains in Novi Beograd. Hostels are plentiful.
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Best base overall
Stari Grad
The old centre, walking distance from Knez Mihailova, the fortress and Skadarlija, with the Cetinjska bars nearby. Central streets are noisy, and trams start early.
Find stays in Stari Grad -
Best for nightlife
Savamala and Beton Hala
By the river, closest to the warehouse clubs and the summer splavovi moored along the bank. Rough-edged and industrial by day, and building sites are a feature.
Find stays in Savamala and Beton Hala -
Best value
Dorćol
North of the centre towards the Danube, with apartments at fair prices, good cafés and a residential calm. A ten-minute walk into the action, uphill coming back.
Find stays in Dorćol -
Best with children
Novi Beograd
Across the Sava, with modern hotels, parks and Ada Ciganlija's river beach and lake. Wide socialist-era blocks with no charm, but space and easy parking.
Find stays in Novi Beograd
Worth knowing before you book: The river clubs are seasonal and move each summer, so check what is open before choosing a location. Nothing starts before midnight, so a quiet room matters.
Search everything else in Belgrade by budget. These are indicative budget bands in GBP per night for two people, not live quotes or guarantees of hotel type. Check your dates, guests, taxes and final price on Booking.com.
Good to know
- Currency
- Serbia uses the dinar and is not in the eurozone. Cards work in most places, but the floating clubs, taxis and markets prefer cash.
- Taxis
- Use an app or a booked cab rather than hailing outside the station or airport, where overcharging is common. Fares in the city are very low.
- Timing
- Nothing meaningful starts before midnight, and the splavovi on the rivers run from roughly May to September. Dinner at nine is an early evening here.
- Smoking
- Indoor smoking rules are looser than in western Europe and many bars remain thick with it. Ask for a terrace if it matters to you.
- Breakfast
- Burek with yoghurt from a bakery is the standard morning repair. Most bakeries open before six and sell out of the good trays by mid-morning.
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Quick answers
When is the best time to visit Belgrade?
Daytime highs run from about 6°C in January to 31°C in July. Driest February and August to October; wettest in January, with rain on about 12 days.
How long should I spend in Belgrade?
Our suggestion: 3 nights.
How do I get to Belgrade?
About half an hour by taxi from Nikola Tesla (BEG) into the centre, using the fixed-price zone taxis from the official desk. An airport bus runs the same route more slowly.
Do I need a car in Belgrade?
No. Buses and trams cover the city cheaply, with limited night lines; taxis are inexpensive and are what the nightlife runs on.
What currency and language are used in Belgrade?
Currency: Serbian dinar (RSD). Language: Serbian. Plugs: type C and F.
Who is Belgrade best for?
Best for nightlife, budget travellers and groups of friends. In a phrase: raw, riverside, relentlessly sociable.