The Montenegrin capital, unlike the seaside resorts in Montenegro, is not so popular with tourists. They are more attracted by the beach expanses of the Adriatic, where the swimming season begins in early May and lasts until the last days of October. Fans of excursions fly to the capital, who have studied what can be seen in Podgorica, and decided to get acquainted with the sights of the main city of the country.
Unfortunately, the Second World War brought a lot of destruction to the Balkans, and there are very few medieval buildings on the territory of Montenegro. But in terms of interesting excursions, local travel agencies are ready to give odds to their foreign competitors, because the residents of Montenegro know how and love to receive and entertain guests.
TOP-10 attractions of Podgorica
Skadar lake
National Park "Skadar Lake" was formed in 1983 and quickly became one of the most popular attractions near Podgorica. The most beautiful reservoir is able to saturate with impressions every lover of natural landscapes, flocks of birds and exciting and effective fishing.
The lake is located on the territory of Montenegro and Albania and is very impressive with its physical characteristics:
- Its mirror area is almost 400 square meters. km. in the summer and more than five hundred - during the spring flood. Montenegro has two thirds of the reservoir.
- In ancient times, the lake was part of the Adriatic Sea, and today they are separated by a small isthmus.
- The length of the perimeter of the lake is nearly 170 km, of which 110 are in Montenegro.
- There are several large and small islands along the Montenegrin coast.
- The maximum depth of the reservoir reaches 60 m, but on average it is no more than 6 m.
- Six rivers flow into the lake, which, together with underground springs, help the water to renew itself at least twice a year.
Residents of coastal villages are happy to offer tourists boat trips along the lake. You can hire an ordinary boat, motor boat or yacht. For fishing enthusiasts, trips to the lake with fishing rods are organized. Fishing licenses are sold from specialized representatives of the Ministry of National Economy of Montenegro. Fans of photo hunting do their favorite thing on the picturesque shores of the lake, and bird watchers and others who are not indifferent to birds can look at dozens of species of rare and simply beautiful birds.
Monasteries of Skadar Lake
On the shores of the largest reservoir in Montenegro, you will find several ancient architectural landmarks that, fortunately, survived during the war and subsequent political upheavals.
The most ancient monastery was founded on the Starchevo island back in 1376. Around the same time, a tomb for Georgiy Balshich and his wife was built on the Beshka island. Lord Zeta became famous for his military exploits and desire to unite all Zeta lands.
Several temples with tombs in the XIV century. built on the islands Beshka, Morachnik and Starchevo and other representatives of the Balshich dynasty. The founder of this noble family, which ruled in the principality of Zeta and Albania, was Balsha I.
A little later, an architectural complex appeared on Vranjina Island, built during the reign of another dynasty. The Chernoevichs ruled the principality in the second half of the 15th century.
An ancient monastery on the slope of Mount Odrinsk in the Morachi delta was founded in the first third of the 15th century. The Kom monastery remains active today, being a place of attraction for Orthodox pilgrims in the Balkans.
Cathedral of Holy Resurrection
The main Christian temple of Podgorica appeared in the capital of Montenegro quite recently. The first stone in the foundation of the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ was laid in 1993. Predrag Ristić became the architect and author of the project. The work continued for over 20 years, and in 2014 the temple was consecrated on the occasion of the 1700th anniversary of the Ordinance on Freedom of Religion issued in Milan.
Church architecture experts note that the cathedral is one of the most interesting modern religious buildings in the Balkans. The architect's imagination was clearly influenced by the views of the Church of St. Tryphon in Kotor, as well as the traditions of the Romanesque and Byzantine styles.
The interior of the temple is richly decorated with paintings, icons, inlaid marble floors and wood carvings.
The Cathedral of the Holy Resurrection is the seat of the Metropolitan of Montenegro.
Ostrog monastery
30 km north-west of Podgorica, you can look at an old monastery founded in the 17th century. Its main relic is the relics of St. Basil of Ostrog, who was revered as a miracle worker. After the Turkish persecution, he settled in a monastery and turned the Ostrog cave into a real monastery. Saint Basil with ascetics and disciples built the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross on the territory of the monastery and renovated the Vvedensky temple. So Ostrog became one of the centers of Christianity in the Western Balkans.
The monastery consists of the old upper part, built into a rock niche, and the lower one, founded later and dedicated to the relics of St. new martyr Stanko. He was a 12-year-old boy whose hands were cut off by the Ottoman conquerors because Stanko did not want to release the holy cross from them.
To get there: by taxi or rented car from Podgorica along the E762 highway.
Tsarev bridge
Not far from the Ostrog Monastery there is another beautiful Montenegrin landmark, which is easily accessible from Podgorica. The crossing over the Zeta River and its valley was built in 1894 at the expense of the Russian Emperor Alexander III. One of the most beautiful bridges in the region has a length of 270 m and is an arched structure made of stone with 18 spans. The highest height of the Tsarev Bridge is 13 m. In fact, the crossing is thrown not only and not so much across the river as through a large drained swamp formed along its banks.
The hewn stone bridge appeared after the liberation of the nearby town of Niksic from the Turks. Prince Nikola, who then ruled the country, decided to build a reliable road from Niksic to Podgorica. For this, a bridge across the Zeta was required, which became part of the path.
The construction was entrusted to Josip Slada, a renowned urban planner and architect. The work was completed within 6 months, which became a kind of record. By a fatal accident, on the day of the opening of the crossing, the sponsor of its construction, the Russian Emperor Alexander III, nicknamed the Tsar-Peacemaker, died at his residence in Livadia.
Daibabe monastery
The Orthodox monastery, founded in 1897 by the Monk Simeon of Daibab, is located 4 km from Podgorica. In those days, the shepherd Petko saw the apparition of a disciple of Saint Sava of Serbia, who in a dream asked a local resident to build a monastery on the site of his last rest. This is how the monastery church dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos appeared, and then other buildings of the monastery. The monastery also owns several caves and a source of water, revered as healing.
Old-timers claim that caves with wall paintings existed at this place even at a time when Christianity was just beginning to spread in the Balkans.
Clock tower
In the list of the few buildings that have survived from the time of the Ottoman rule and survived the bombing of World War II, there is also the Clock Tower, which is called Sahat Kula in the capital of Montenegro.
The story says that the tower was built in 1667 by the noble and wealthy city dweller Aji Pasha Osmanagich. The structure is a 19-meter-high tower, square on the plan, made of cut gray stone. There is a clock on one of its sides. The four arched windows offer views of Podgorica, and the top is crowned with a metal cross.
The movement was made by the foundry workers of the Pietro Colbahini factory in Bassano del Grappa, Italy. The clock was installed on the tower in 1890. Around the same time, a cross appeared on its top, symbolizing the final victory over the Turkish conquerors for the inhabitants of the city.
Millennium bridge
On July 13, 2005, a bridge was inaugurated in the capital of Montenegro, connecting Ivan Chernoevich Boulevard with new urban areas located on the other bank of the Moraca River. The crossing was named the Millennium Bridge and is now considered one of the modern attractions of Podgorica. From the bridge you can look at the city and admire the opening panorama. The structure is a cable-stayed structure with a pylon towering 57 m above the roadway. A dozen high-strength cables hold the bridge over the river, and 24 counterweights keep the structure in balance. The length of the crossing is 140 m.
The bridge designer, Mladen Ulitsevich, took into account the interests of pedestrians when creating the crossing, and you can cross Moracha on the new Millennium Bridge not only by car.
Dajbabska gora
Another modern landmark of Podgorica, a photo of which is adorned with tourist guides for Montenegro, appeared in the capital in 2011. The Dajbabska Gora Tower was built by the Electronic Communications Agency and quickly became not only a local architectural landmark, but also the subject of revision proceedings in the case of misappropriation of budget funds. The construction of the tower took three times more than planned - 6 million euros.
However, tourists are of little interest. They like to stroll around the tower in the evenings, when the local landmark turns on cute futuristic lighting. Despite the modest dimensions of the Dajbabska Gora tower, its 55-meter height in small Podgorica looks very dignified.
Monument to Vysotsky
It turns out that Vladimir Semenovich loved Montenegro and even dedicated several of his poems to it. Grateful residents of Podgorica, in turn, erected a monument to the poet, who wrote: "It's a pity, Montenegro did not become my second homeland!"
The monument depicts Vysotsky holding a guitar in his hand, surrounded by a mirrored frame, and at the foot of the pedestal is a skull from Hamlet in honor of one of the actor's favorite roles, played in the Taganka Theater.
