The Tara guide
74 places, from the Drina at 250 m to Kozji rid at 1,591 m. Every entry has directions, practical facts and the stays closest to it.
01 — 15 entries
Villages & places
Tara is not a single place but a scatter of villages, hamlets and small resorts across a plateau at 900–1,200 m.
↑ 1050 m
Kaluđerske Bare
Tara’s main resort at about 1,050 m — two large hotels, dozens of cottages and apartments, a beginners’ ski slope and the trailhead for the Crnjeskovo viewpoint and Rača monastery.
↑ 1080 m
Mitrovac
The quieter, wilder side of Tara at about 1,080 m — a children’s resort, private log cabins and the closest base for Banjska stena, Zaovine and Predov krst.
↑ 1100 m
Predov krst
A crossroads in the oldest forest on Tara — the core of the protected area, base for bear-watching hides and the Sjenič viewpoint.
↑ 900 m
Zaovine
A village on the shores of Lake Zaovine, where Josif Pančić discovered the Serbian spruce in 1875. Emerald water, scattered hamlets and Tara’s best sunsets.
↑ 300 m
Perućac
Tara’s summer capital: a lake with floating cafés and beaches, the 365-metre Vrelo river, the start of the Drina canyon and the July Drina Regatta.
↑ 250 m
Bajina Bašta
The riverside town that serves as Tara’s gateway — fuel, banks, a market, the National Park visitor centre and the famous house on a rock in the Drina.
↑ 750 m
Rastište
Tara’s most remote village above the Derventa canyon — medieval tombstones, watermills, a few farm stays and real silence.
↑ 1000 m
Sokolina
A hamlet on the edge of the Rača canyon facing Crnjeskovo — the Sokolarica viewpoint, nesting eagles and a few cottages looking straight into the gorge.
↑ 1000 m
Jagoštica
A village on Tara’s southern slopes between Zaovine and Mokra Gora — meadows, orchards, farm stays and the shortest route to the Šargan Eight railway.
↑ 1000 m
Solotnik
A hamlet in central Tara with the remains of a medieval fort that guarded the old caravan road across the mountain.
↑ 800 m
Kremna
The village of the Tarabić prophecies at Tara’s south-eastern entrance — one of three roads up the mountain starts here.
↑ 950 m
Konjska reka
A hamlet between Kaluđerske Bare and Mitrovac — new cottages, wide meadows and an ideal central base for exploring the whole of Tara.
↑ 1000 m
Beserovina
A border village on Tara’s far west above the Drina — farm stays, pastures and views over Bosnia.
↑ 900 m
Šljivovica
A village of plum orchards on Tara’s south-eastern slopes, on the road to Kremna — quiet, cheaper stays twenty minutes from Kaluđerske Bare.
↑ 700 m
Mokra Gora
The neighbouring valley between Tara and Zlatibor — the Šargan Eight railway and Kusturica’s Drvengrad village, half an hour away.
02 — 9 entries
Viewpoints
The Drina canyon is why most people come to Tara the first time — and these are the places to see it from.
↑ 1065 m
Banjska stena
Tara’s most famous viewpoint at 1,065 m, looking down on Lake Perućac and the Drina canyon — an easy 15-minute walk from the car park.
↑ 1010 m
Crnjeskovo
A 45-minute forest walk from Kaluđerske Bare to the rim of the Rača canyon, with views to the Drina valley.
↑ 1000 m
Bilješka stena
Banjska stena’s quieter sister — limestone cliffs over Lake Perućac with views of the ruined medieval town of Klotijevac in Bosnia.
↑ 900 m
Osluša
A picnic-friendly viewpoint over the Drina valley with a shelter, fire pit and a paragliding launch.
↑ 1250 m
Sjenič
A 12-metre wooden tower above the treetops on Crni Vrh, overlooking Rastište, the Derventa canyon and Lake Perućac.
↑ 990 m
Sokolarica
A string of small viewpoints along the rim of the Rača gorge at Sokolina, with eagles nesting on the cliffs below.
↑ 1460 m
Janjač
One of Tara’s highest summits on the Bosnian border — views to Višegrad’s bridge on the Drina and WWI trench remains.
↑ 880 m
Brana Lazići
A viewpoint on the Zaovine dam, 7 km of tarmac from Mitrovac — lake views on both sides and one of Tara’s best sunsets.
↑ 1300 m
Kozje stene
Wild, unfenced cliffs on the Zvijezda massif above the deepest part of the Drina canyon — for experienced hikers.
03 — 8 entries
Lakes, rivers & canyons
The Drina wraps around Tara on the north and west, fed by the Rača, Derventa and Serbia’s shortest river.
Lakes, rivers & canyons
Kanjon Drine
A 56-km gorge from Perućac to Višegrad with walls up to 1,000 m high — see it from the viewpoints above or by boat.
↑ 290 m
Perućačko jezero
A reservoir on the Drina created in 1966 — up to 60 m deep and about 50 km long, with beaches, floating cafés and fishing.
↑ 880 m
Zaovinsko jezero
A turquoise reservoir at 880 m above Zaovine — shoreline walks, fishing and sunsets over the Bosnian mountains.
↑ 300 m
Vrelo — reka godina
Serbia’s shortest river — 365 metres from spring to a waterfall into the Drina, hence its nickname, ‘the river of the year’.
Lakes, rivers & canyons
Kanjon Rače
The forested gorge of the Rača between Crnjeskovo and Sokolina — ancient beech forest and a trail down to Rača monastery.
Lakes, rivers & canyons
Kanjon Dervente
A short, steep limestone canyon between Perućac and Rastište, with a road cut through rock tunnels.
Lakes, rivers & canyons
Kanjon Zvezde
Serbia’s deepest canyon, only surveyed in 2010 — some forty waterfalls, accessible only with a canyoning guide.
↑ 1000 m
Jezero Jarevac
A small forest lake half an hour’s walk from Kaluđerske Bare along an educational trail — perfect for families.
04 — 8 entries
Heritage
People lived on Tara seven thousand years ago. Medieval tombstones, the Rača monastery and the Šargan Eight railway are all within an hour’s drive.
↑ 330 m
Manastir Rača
King Dragutin’s 13th-century foundation at the foot of Tara, once home to a famous school of scribes.
↑ 300 m
Stećci na Mramorju
A UNESCO-listed medieval necropolis near Perućac with about ninety carved limestone tombstones.
Heritage
Stećci u Rastištu
Two lesser-known necropolises with 68 medieval tombstones in the meadows of remote Rastište.
↑ 240 m
Kućica na Drini
The little wooden house on a rock in the middle of the Drina — built in 1968 and now one of the most photographed houses in the world.
↑ 800 m
Šargan osmica
The narrow-gauge heritage railway that climbs in a figure eight through 22 tunnels at Mokra Gora.
↑ 900 m
Drvengrad (Mećavnik)
Emir Kusturica’s log-cabin village on Mećavnik hill above Mokra Gora, built for the film ‘Life Is a Miracle’.
Heritage
Centar za posetioce NP Tara
The National Park’s interactive visitor centre in Bajina Bašta — the best first stop to plan your days on Tara.
↑ 340 m
Višegrad and the Drina bridge
The 16th-century Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge, Andrić’s ‘Bridge on the Drina’ — a half-day trip across the border.
05 — 7 entries
Nature & wildlife
Tara National Park covers almost 250 km², about 80% of it forest — home to the Serbian spruce and most of Serbia’s brown bears.
Nature & wildlife
Pančićeva omorika
The Serbian spruce — an Ice Age survivor that grows wild only here and in the Mileševka canyon, discovered by Josif Pančić in 1875.
Nature & wildlife
Mrki medved na Tari
About 60 brown bears live on Tara — most of Serbia’s population. Watch them at dusk from hides with a guide.
↑ 1591 m
Kozji rid (Zvezda)
The highest point of Tara National Park at 1,591 m on the Zvijezda massif — a full-day hike through the wildest part of the park.
Nature & wildlife
Bukove prašume i rezervati
Nine strict reserves where no tree is cut — beeches older than 500 years and one of Europe’s best-preserved forests.
↑ 1544 m
Zborište peak
Tara’s own highest summit at 1,544 m, above Lake Zaovine.
↑ 950 m
Vranjak reserve and Kik hill
Serbian spruce on the slopes of Kik hill above the Lazići dam, where Pančić first described it.
↑ 750 m
Šargan – Mokra Gora Nature Park
Protected area south of Tara (2005): the Beli Rzav canyon, Veliki Skakavac waterfall, caves and mires.
06 — 11 entries
Trails & activities
About 290 km of marked hiking and biking trails run through the park. These are the ones we recommend.
Trails & activities
Staza „Učionica u šumi”
A short educational trail at Kaluđerske Bare — the only one in Serbia adapted for wheelchair users.
Trails & activities
Kaluđerske bare – manastir Rača
The classic hike down the Rača canyon from the plateau to the monastery — 2 hours and 800 m of descent.
Trails & activities
Biciklističke rute
24 marked cycling routes on forest roads and tarmac — from family rides to tough descents.
Trails & activities
Rafting i kajak
Family rafting on the Drina below the dam, kayaks and SUP on the lake, and day trips to the wilder Tara river.
Trails & activities
Zima na Tari
A beginners’ slope at Kaluđerske Bare, sledging, snowshoeing and Nordic skiing on quiet forest roads.
Trails & activities
Hiking on Tara
Around 290 km of marked trails — how to choose one, follow the markings and what to bring.
Trails & activities
Birdwatching
Around 135 bird species — woodpeckers and owls in old forests, raptors over the canyons, goosanders on the lake.
Trails & activities
Fishing on the Drina and the lakes
The Drina, the lakes and mountain streams — permits, closed seasons and where to go.
Trails & activities
Kayak, canoe and SUP
Paddling the calm Perućac lake and the lower Drina canyon.
Trails & activities
Stargazing
Far from city lights, Tara’s skies are full of stars — where and when to look.
Trails & activities
Photographing Tara
Where and when to shoot: canyon fog, Banjska stena sunsets, the Drina house at dawn, autumn colours.
07 — 7 entries
Food & drink
Clotted cream, cheese from the barrel, lamb under the bell, trout, pies, honey and wild blueberries — what to taste on Tara.
Food & drink
Kajmak and cheese from Tara
Kajmak and white cheese made the old way in wooden barrels — the base of every breakfast on Tara.
Food & drink
Tara honey
Linden, meadow and forest honey from beekeepers who move their hives with the bloom.
Food & drink
Dishes under the bell
Lamb, veal, potatoes and bread slow-baked under an iron bell covered in embers.
Food & drink
Trout and Drina fish
Trout from fish farms and streams, and fish from the Drina — grilled, fried or as soup.
Food & drink
Blueberries, mushrooms and wild fruit
Blueberries and wild strawberries in summer, ceps and chanterelles in autumn — and the park rules for picking.
Food & drink
Pies, cornbread and home cooking
Cheese pie, spinach pie, cornbread, polenta and sour milk — everyday village food around Tara.
Food & drink
Rakija from Tara
Plum brandy and fruit brandies distilled in village households around Tara.
08 — 3 entries
Events & seasons
The Drina Regatta, Küstendorf and a month-by-month guide to Tara.
Events & seasons
The Drina Regatta
Every summer thousands of boats and rafts float down the Drina from Perućac to Bajina Bašta.
Events & seasons
Küstendorf festival
Emir Kusturica’s international film and music festival in Drvengrad every January.
Events & seasons
Tara through the year
Month by month: weather, what blooms, what to do and how busy it gets.
09 — 6 entries
Practical info
Getting there, weather, park rules, health, money, mobile signal and what to pack.
Practical info
How to get to Tara
By car from Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš and Užice, by bus to Bajina Bašta, and on to the plateau.
Practical info
Weather and packing list
At 1,000 m the weather is cooler and changes fast — here’s what to pack.
Practical info
National park rules
Tara is a national park — what is allowed, what is regulated and what is forbidden.
Practical info
Health, safety and useful numbers
Doctors, pharmacies, emergency numbers and staying safe in the forest.
Practical info
Money, mobile signal and the border
Cash machines, card payments, mobile coverage, roaming and the border along the Drina.
Practical info
Tara with children
Easy trails, lakes, wildlife, sledding and room to run — Tara for families.