When we first started researching things to do in Belgrade the Kelemegdan Fortress immediately caught our eye. We love visiting historical attractions so the Belgrade Fortress was inserted high on our destination list of places to see as far as Belgrade sightseeing went.
Historical attractions like castles, fortress and palaces can teach you so much about the history of the place you are visiting. Belgrade Fortress was no exception to this. The Kelemegdan Fortress is an extremely popular Serbia tourist attraction. Lonely Planet Serbia has Kelemegdan ranked as the number 1 attraction in Serbia. TripAdvisor Belgrade gives the fortress 4.5 stars.
Things to do in Belgrade at the Kelemegdan Fortress
While there are so many things to do in Belgrade a visit to the Fortress is an experience in itself. There are plenty of things to do in The Kelemegdan Fortress grounds that will have you occupied for a long time
We visited the Fortress twice in winter. Winter in Belgrade found the snow-covered ground and low temperatures meant we had the place to ourselves. We were able to witness ice sheets flowing down the Danube, after all, it was only -8 the day we were there! The girls loved the open space and enjoyed throwing snowballs. We spent a long time just standing on the walls looking at the surrounding views from the Fortress. The Victor Monument is an amazing sight at the Kelemegdan Fortress.
There are 4 sections to the Kelemegdan Fortress
Belgrade Fortress is located centrally to the city. The Fortress is within the Kalemegedam Park and the area is the focal point for all tourists looking for things to do in Belgrade. The Fortress is broken up into four sections these days.
Donji Grad is the area that lies in front of The Victor. It’s a low-lying area that is prone to flooding. The area does feature The Orthodox churches of Ružica (former Austrian gun depot) and Sveta Petka.
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Enjoy a Half-Day walking City Tour of Belgrade. More details and prices found
Veliki Kalemegdanski Park is in the southern corner of the fortress. Many people will enter The Fortress this way if coming from the Belgrade Old Town city area. The wide promenade leading to the Fortress through the park is lined with market stalls selling souvenirs and trinkets. This area of the park contains statues and sculptures. The most important is the monument of gratitude to France. This honours the French soldiers who died defending Belgrade.
The Belgrade Military Museum
The Belgrade Military Museum and The Military Museum both inside and outside has some amazing exhibits of warfare. Visiting the Military Museum was one of the best things to do in Belgrade.
The Museum of Forestry and Hunting
The Forestry and Hunting museum had many exhibits of animals on display.
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Enjoy St Sava and Nikola Tesla Tour. Discover Belgrade through its people and places. ClickVisit Belgrade Fortress
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Belgrade clickHERE for the latest prices
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The Victor
This 125-meter high location of this Belgrade attractions would have been enough to stop many invaders in their tracks. The Fortress location was occupied throughout history by the Celtic tribes, the Romans, Goths and Huns. A legend even speaks of Atilla the Hun buried somewhere at the confluence of the Sava and the Danube Rivers. That means one of the histories most fearless warriors is buried under Belgrade Fortress. Today the Kelemegdan Fortress is a declared a Monument of Cultural Exceptional Importance by the Republic of Serbia.
The Victor Statue
This Victory statue is to commemorate Serbia’s victory over the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Victor debuted in 1928. This Victory Statue is an amazing sight standing at 14 metres (46 ft) high and looks out over the River towards new Belgrade. The direction that was once the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the far distance. The Victor stares down invaders daring them to come forward and try and take the Belgrade Fortress. As you approach this monument from behind it looks much like an Oscar (the film award). The popular Belgrade free walking tour brings you to the Victory Statue and goes more in-depth on the history of the most popular monument in Beograd City.
There are four significant towers remaining in the Fortress. The two most important towers being Nebojša Tower built in 1460 and it is the only remaining medieval structure in the Fortress. The Sahat (clock) tower dates from the 1740 and is still in its original shape.
Visit the Fortress Gates
Numerous Fortress gates still survive, the most important ones are Zindan Kapija, Inner Stambol Kapija and the Charles IV gate. These gates are important for their design with The Charles IV gate being the only Baroque design in Belgrade. There are walls from Roman and Medieval times, Turkish and Austrian eras.
Kalemegdan Park is a must-see in Belgrade
Kelemegdan Park which surrounds the fortress covers an area of 53 ha (130 acres). The name Kelemegdan is derived from the two Turkish words: ‘Kale‘ (meaning fortress) and archaic word of Turkish origin ‘megdan’ (meaning battlefield). In a 2013 report, it was stated the park had 3,424 individual trees from 80 different tree species. Most of the trees were between 20 and 60 years old.
The park is very popular with both locals and tourist alike especially in warm summer months of the year. It is one of the top things to visit in Belgrade. The grounds have been used for concerts and most recently the Kalemegdan summer festival. Our kids loved the fact that we were able to see many squirrels scurrying around the park from tree to tree. There are amusement rides for kids that run in the summer months along with food and drink stands. Kelemegdan truly is the place to be in Belgrade.
The Kelemegdam Park and The Belgrade Fortress is accessed from Belgrade Republic Square in the city centre via Knez Mihailova Street pedestrian mall. Shopping on Knez Mihailova is definitely one the things to do in Belgarde if you love shopping. This is the main Belgrade shopping centre district in the city. Catch Number 2 tram part of the Belgrade Metro system in the direction of Pristanište, this will get you to Kalemegdan and the Belgrade Old Town.
Direction Vukov Spomenik will get you to Slavija Square and Bulevar Kralja Aleksandra. We used a taxi most of the time in Belgrade. The Belgrade Taxi we found to be inexpensive. We asked the staff at our hotel Holiday Inn Express Belgrade to call a taxi when leaving for the day. We accessed Beograd Kelemegdan the first time by taxi and our second visit was while using Belgrade Free Walking Tour. Free walking tours Belgrade leaves from Republic Square every day and we recommend it to learn more about activities there are to do in Belgrade. Belgrade what to see? We say start at Kelemegdan Park!
How to get to Belgrade
Nikola Tesla Belgrade airport is the largest airport in Serbia It is situated 18 km (11 mi) west of downtown Belgrade
Belgrade airport is home to Air Serbia and an operating base for Wizz Air
Find your international flights to Belgrade with Airfarewatchdog
Airport transfers to Belgrade and surrounding area are available. Book your transfer today.
Pick up your hire car from Belgrade Airport to explore the region. For the best prices click HERE.
Catch a train to Belgrade from all over Europe. Belgrade is the gateway to eastern Europe and the Balkans Plan your trip HERE
Getting around Belgrade
Belgrade with a population of over 1.5 million people is the largest city by population in Europe without a subway system.
Belgrade city public transport is provided through a network of bus, trolleybus and tram routes run by GSP “Beograd” and bus services operated by private bus companies, on around 130 routes
If you are not the frequent user (Tourist) you should buy a paper card which costs 89 rsd, and you can use public transport for 90 min on all lines (for 1st or 2nd public transportation zone). If you buy a ticket on the bus a card cost – 150 rsd
Where to stay in Belgrade:
Belgrade has accommodation options for every budget from Hostels, to Apartments and Hotels rooms.
Hostels in Belgrade can start from as little as $14 a night for a shared dorm room. HostelClub has a great selection of properties.
You can search Airbnb for their Belgrade accommodation offerings. If you have never used Airbnb before get yourself $50 credit by signing and booking a stay rightHERE
Hotels in Belgrade have an average price of $60 a night for a 3-star hotel up to an average of $130 a night for a 5-star Hotel
We hope this article from us here at Wyld Family Travel has you inspired to visit Belgrade and The Kelemegdan Fortress. There are so many things to do in The Kelemegdan Fortress that will have you entertained for your families the whole stay in Belgrade. For more amazing ideas on where to holiday in Serbia click through to ourSerbia Destination Guide Page for more brilliant inspiration.
More travel inspiration for your trip toSerbia
About the Author
Mark Wyld is a father, husband, traveler, and chief destination marketing manager at Wyld Family Travel. Having been to over 35 countries worldwide he knows a thing or 2 about traveling with kids and now traveling with teenagers. He has been writing first-hand, expert travel guides on this website for over 6 years and has featured on numerous other popular well-known websites. When he is not talking, dreaming, or planning travel he can be found working in disability support.
Wao, loved the post! I’ve never been to Belgrade but looks so pretty and magical! Now it’s on my bucket list 😀 Would love to visit the Military Museum and specifically the Dinosaur Park!
xoxo, Pilar
Some useful information in the article. We are planning to visit the Balkans again in the near future. Last year we went to Croatia and loved it so want to explore more in that area. Looks a bit cold for us, think we will visit in May.
You know, it looks a tiny bit like Krakow in the Wawel castle area! SO beautiful!
Wao, loved the post! I’ve never been to Belgrade but looks so pretty and magical! Now it’s on my bucket list 😀 Would love to visit the Military Museum and specifically the Dinosaur Park!
xoxo, Pilar
Some useful information in the article. We are planning to visit the Balkans again in the near future. Last year we went to Croatia and loved it so want to explore more in that area. Looks a bit cold for us, think we will visit in May.
How cool of you guys to visit this city- which is not much on the tourist’s radar! Now we know where to start exploring Belgrade 🙂
Kelemegdan Fortress looks like a fantastic plcae to visit. It looks really cold though. Guess you guys must be freezing till the end.