A region of mountains, beaches, waterfalls and wonder, the Balkans feel like West shading into East. You can taste it in the food and hear it when different religions pray. The cognoscenti have been heading to these eccentric nations for years, lured by lower costs and visitor numbers compared with Western Europe – but travel insiders are only just cottoning on.
I have been visiting the Balkans for a decade. I’ve enjoyed hanging out of the window of a smoky train carriage clattering through the hills from Mostar to Sarajevo, exploring the remains of the 1960s vision of a futuristic Skopje and taking a cable car up Mount Dajti outside Tirana.
The game-changer this year, though, is the EES chaos, which has ruined so many previously simple EU hops. In non-Schengen Kosovo, Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia you don’t have to worry about missing your plane while you’re stuck in a passport queue, and the entry and exit process is a breeze.
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The topography of the Balkans is dramatic to say the least. There aren’t bulky hotels or giant developments, and the region feels smaller and more friendly than the rest of Europe. The mountains provide a glorious backdrop for climbing and walking galore – one of Europe’s most stunning international hikes is the Peaks of the Balkans, which connects Kosovo, Albania and Montenegro in a 124-mile loop.
As well as hiking, wellness retreats have been booming here in southeastern Europe, but they’re unlike their counterparts in other European countries, largely because they aren’t on the same scale. Here you can really unwind at spa resorts, spend time in nature, wild swim and paddleboard on deserted lakes, then clamber up paths not chock-a-block with tourists. Coastal hotels have more space, and jagged coastlines mean smaller beaches, remote coves and dreamy turquoise waters.
