Things to do

A plethora of cultural and traditional sites, as well as all of the monuments, provide an excellent opportunity for visiting this city through organised or self-guided tours. And I recommend that you arrange a number of them throughout your stay. Climbing Mount Vodno, taking the cable car to the Millennial Cross, or exploring Matka Canyon and/or Kale Fortress can all fulfil your curiosity and adventurous spirit. There is a 5 km pedestrian route along the Vardar River, as well as an area where individuals can jog, cycle, and participate in sports. The city is well-connected by bike lanes.

With a population of about a million people, including tourists and students, our capital has a pleasant atmosphere and a slightly kitschy flavour that distinguishes it. Skopje's nightlife can easily fulfil practically every taste, offering a blend of contemporary pubs, discotheques, nightclubs, jazz clubs, restaurants, and kafanas (traditional taverns).

Clubs and discos may be found throughout the centre, but for a pre-evening drink, head to Kej 13 November, where there are various pubs to choose from (I recommend Irish Pub). Nightlife is primarily centred near the Vardar river, with various low-cost taverns, restaurants, pubs, and nightclubs enjoyed by both locals and tourists.

Debar Maalo, located 5 minutes from downtown, is another area of Skopje with a dense concentration of restaurants and cafes offering a variety of food, music, and entertainment.

Matka canyon

Canyon Matka is a gorge in which a rich complex of the mediaeval building survives, including churches, monasteries and remnants of a fortress (the mediaeval town of Matka). There are dozens of caves and a large number of endemic plants and animals. The Canyon is located 15 km southwest of Skopje.

There are ten caves with lengths ranging between 20 and 176 meters and two vertical chasms with a depth of up to 35 meters. It is also important to mention that there are 77 species of Balkan endemic small butterflies in the area of Matka Canyon, while 18 other species are new to the science. The Treska canyon is vertically cut into the massive Suva Mountain.

The different formations in the canyon like the karrens, flutes, valleys, cracks, crevices and caves have been formed by a long-term impact of the mountain rivers, as well as by great temperature oscillations. In the surroundings of the Treska Canyon, one can find dozens of caves, the most beautiful ones being Vrelo, Krshtalna and Ubava. The caves are filled with numerous stalagmites, stalactites and dripstone pillars and some of them are illuminated. The diversity of dripstone adornments has been captured by a well-deployed illumination. Visiting tours are organised by an official guide.

The Treska Canyon is the most important alpine climbing centre in northern Macedonia. The major climbing season in Matka begins in spring, and the season continues throughout summer and fall until the end of November. The Treska Canyon is also open for kayaking.

Built-in 1389 the Monastery of St. Andrew’s is located on Lake Matka (17 km away from Skopje) and contains frescos of great artistic importance. The Monastery of St. Nicholas Shishovski is situated on top of a cliff above Lake Matka giving the visitor a spectacular view of the lake and its surroundings. Close to both monasteries of St. Andrew’s and St. Nicholas is the Matka Monastery dating from the 14th century, and its frescos dating from the 15th century. The monastery is located on the left side of river Treska at a distance of about 12 km from Skopje. Church of St. Andreas - built and decorated with frescoes in the 14th century. The compositions "Last Supper”, "Descent from the Cross” and "Prayer on the Mount of Olives“ deserve special attention.

The nearby canyon Matka provides visitors with a whole different kind of sensory overload. There are numerous things to do, and you could easily spend the entire day there. A day of admiring the beauty of the natural world, sampling Macedonian cuisine on the restaurant's spectacular patio, taking a boat ride, and hiking down the canyon and towards the monastery.

Have a good time!