Day Eight: Fortress Sunsets and Dinner in Belgrade

The transition days on a massive group trip have their own unique rhythm. Day Eight began by waving goodbye to Sarajevo and settling into our coach seats for a long, scenic journey stretching toward the Serbian border.

To break up the drive, our driver, Janek, pulled the bus into the town of Zvornik for a lunch stop. I stretched my legs and poked my head into Pekara Stari grad, a lovely local bakery, where I picked up a small pastry. Leah and I took our treats over to a nearby park, sitting on a bench to soak up the beautiful sunshine and decompress for a bit before climbing back on the bus to officially cross over into Serbia.

Quirky Stays & A Historic Miracle at Saint Sava

Even though our Contiki itinerary only granted us a single afternoon and evening to explore Belgrade, it quickly cemented itself as one of my absolute favourite stops of the entire trip.

We checked into the Moxy Belgrade, which was such a bright, quirky, and energetic place to stay—the design details alone completely won me over. After dropping our luggage, we immediately set out on foot toward the Church of Saint Sava, one of the largest Orthodox church buildings in the world.

The church is magnificent both inside and out, but the atmosphere on the grounds that day was absolutely electric. By total historical coincidence, we happened to visit during a monumental spiritual event. An incredibly sacred relic had been brought over to Belgrade from Greece, marking the first time in 650 years that it had returned to Serbian soil.

We didn’t join the queue ourselves, but witnessing the sheer scale of the event was unforgettable. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims were lined up for blocks, waiting hours just to step inside, pass underneath the pedestal, and catch a fleeting moment of blessing with the relic. It was a deeply moving piece of living history to witness.

Sunsets Over the Danube

After leaving the plateau, we hopped back on the bus to get dropped off closer to the historic city centre. Now, I have to confess: was I entirely too excited to discover that Belgrade has a Starbucks? Yes, yes I was. There is a specific kind of comfort in a familiar iced drink when you've been on the road for a while. Drinks in hand, Leah and I made our way into the sweeping grounds of the Belgrade Fortress (Kalemegdan Park).

Wandering through the old fortress ruins was stunning. We timed it perfectly for sunset, standing along the ancient stone ramparts to watch the sun dip below the horizon, casting a brilliant orange glow over the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. It was a beautiful, peaceful moment that made me completely fall in love with the city’s energy.

Comfort Food in the Bohemian Quarter

Once the twilight settled in, we chased the cobblestones down into Skadarlija, Belgrade’s famous vintage Bohemian Quarter. The streets here are alive with acoustic music, string lights, and historic taverns. We had our hearts completely set on dining at Dva Jelena (Two Deer), one of the oldest and most legendary restaurants in the quarter.

My mission for the night was to try a legendary Serbian dish: the Karađorđeva šnicla.

*Delicious dinner in the Bohemian Quarter (May 2026)*

This dish is a masterpiece—rolled pork steak stuffed with rich kajmak (a traditional clotted cream cheese), breaded, and deep-fried to absolute perfection, served alongside fries and tartar sauce. It was so incredibly delicious that I joke I was physically mad when I finished the last bite because I instantly wanted more. We rounded out the decadent meal with sweet baklava and a hot cappuccino for dessert. It was the absolute cherry on top of a slow, lovely evening.

Leah and I took our time walking back to the Moxy, absorbing the vibrant nightlife of Belgrade. We made a quick pit stop at a local grocery store to stock up on snacks for the bus ride ahead, mentally prepping ourselves for the notoriously long, unpredictable border crossing into Hungary the next morning.