4 of our favourite cities to visit in Kosovo, Europe’s newest country

With towering mountains, ancient monasteries and a thriving food scene, Kosovo – Europe’s youngest country – is attracting increased attention from travellers.

Thanks to the country’s relatively humble size and array of public transport, a city-hopping break in Kosovo is a perfect way to explore this emerging Balkan destination. We have visited Kosovo twice, taking advantage of the buses and trains to explore the country. From the urban jungle of Pristina to the alpine gateway of Peja, here are our four favourite cities in Kosovo that you should visit.

1) Pristina

Best for: A visit to one of the most energetic cities in Kosovo.

For many travellers to Kosovo, the country’s burgeoning capital city will be the first introduction to the country. You don’t have to spend too long in Pristina to realise there is plenty to admire.

With wide-open boulevards, newly pedestrianised areas and abundant green space in the surrounding hills, Pristina is shaking its reputation as a dreary, concrete-obsessed outpost of former Yugoslavia. Dozens of busy cafes, bars and restaurants ensure the city’s central quarters have a tangible buzz, particularly as day turns to evening and locals spill out onto the streets.

The city’s airport is also enjoying increased connections with its European neighbours, making visits to Kosovo brilliantly accessible. Direct routes include London Luton (WizzAir), Istanbul (Turkish Airlines) and Berlin (easyJet), with plenty more options to choose from.

In 2022, just under three million passengers travelled through Pristina, with nearly 22,000 departures. This is a two-fold increase in passenger numbers and a three-fold increase in departures since 2012. These impressive statistics demonstrate Pristina’s – and Kosovo’s – potential as a tourist destination.

What we loved about Pristina

We have been lucky enough to visit Pristina twice. On both occasions, we loved exploring the city centre, admiring its quirky architecture and getting lost in the sea of people who stroll up and down Mother Teresa Boulevard on a warm evening. The boulevard is the city’s beating heart, offering people-watching potential aplenty from its myriad of cafés and bars.

Our top three highlights of Pristina are:

1. Taking the lift up the tower of the Cathedral of Saint Mother Teresa, where you will find amazing views over Pristina. You can also enjoy lovely views from the Ulpiana neighbourhood, a short walk up the hill.
2. Admiring the eye-catching National Library of Kosovo with its unique and infamous design.
3. Visiting the famous Newborn Monument that has become such a symbol of the city.

We also loved the food and drink scene, from the delicious grilled meat at Shaban Grill House to the vegan dishes at the stylish Baba Ganoush Meze.

Bill Clinton Boulevard

Meanwhile, Bill Clinton Boulevard is home to one of Pristina’s more unique attractions. The Bill Clinton statue has stood on an unassuming corner of this busy road since 2009. Framed by the grey walls of a towering residential block of flats, the statue commemorates the role played by the Clinton administration during the conflict in the late 1990s.

Exploring beyond Pristina

Pristina is also well-located for day trips. Popular choices include the Bear Sanctuary Pristina. Here, 20 bears, many of whom are former “restaurant bears” who lived in cages, now enjoy a comfortable existence in a vast, protected enclosure. You can follow a small walking trail to visit the bears and learn their stories.

Other options include the Gazimestan Monument, an important site for Serbs that commemorates the 1389 defeat to Sultan Murad’s Ottoman army during the Battle of Kosovo. The Monument stands just north of Pristina – you can climb the 117 steps for views over the valley. South of Pristina, Gračanica monastery is a UNESCO-listed Serbian monastery that boasts beautiful frescoes and is well worth a trip.

2) Peja

Best for: A visit to one of the best cities in Kosovo for outdoor activities.

Peja stands in the shadow of Kosovo’s Accursed Mountains, a range of dramatic alpine peaks that stretches from northern Albania through Montenegro and up to southern Kosovo. The mountains are accessed via a scenic, winding road that cuts through the spectacular Rugova Canyon. Here, vast cliffs frame the scenery.

Peja’s prime position on the cusp of the mountains has earned it the reputation as the outdoor capital of Kosovo, with hiking, biking and via ferrata among the popular activities.

What we loved about Peja

Peja as a city has plenty to offer visitors. Some of the best things to do in Peja include:

1. Visiting the incredible Patriarchate of Peć. This ancient monastery is one of the four medieval monuments of the Serbian Orthodox church that forms part of a collective UNESCO World Heritage site.
2. Strolling along the river which flows through the city. There are pathways along most of the waterway in the city centre, whilst a popular trail leads to a riverside restaurant and cafe at the entrance to the Rugova Valley. This was one of our favourite walks, with the sound of the river and the distant mountain summits providing a sublime backdrop to a sunny day.
3. Wandering around the cobbled streets of Peja’s bazaar, carefully restored after sustaining heavy damage during the war. At the centre of the bazaar, you can find a picturesque mosque and one of the Peja’s best qebaptore – grill houses.

Peja Beer

As well as spectacular scenery and magnificent monasteries, Peja is home to one of Kosovo’s most popular beers. You will find bottles of Birra Peja on sale at every bar, cafe and restaurant in the city – and across Kosovo.

The brewery has been producing beers from its site on the outskirts of Peja since 1971. It’s an impressive building, visible from the M9 road that connects Peja with Pristina. Unfortunately, the brewery does not currently offer tours.

For those who are partial to adventures on the rails, Peja enjoys a direct train connection to Pristina. The three-hour journey costs just €3 and is a brilliant way to travel between the two cities.

Exploring beyond Peja

If you want to extend your time in Peja and explore beyond the city, the stunning nature of the Rugova Canyon is your best bet. Balkan N’ Adventure offers a series of excursions, from multi-day hiking along the Peaks of the Balkans trail to a series of high-adrenaline via ferratas.

Meanwhile, the Decani monastery is a short drive south of Peja and is another of the UNESCO-listed Serbian sites.

3) Prizren

Best for: Kosovo’s leading cultural and cafe scene.

With its riverside cafes and striking hilltop fortress, Prizren is the second-largest city in Kosovo and has got to be a contender for the country’s prettiest town.

If Peja is Kosovo’s outdoor capital, Prizren takes the crown as the country’s cultural epicentre. Prizren is also a contender for the nicest city in Kosovo – it’s certainly got the chattiest locals, with plenty of people stopping to talk with us and tell us about the city.

What we loved about Prizren

Over eight years passed between our first and second trips to Prizren, one of our favourite cities to visit in Kosovo. When we returned, we were delighted to find that the things we loved about Prizren hadn’t changed. Here are some of our highlights:

1. One of the best things to do in Prizren is to visit the small but well-curated museum that tells the story of the Albanian League of Prizren. Founded in 1878, the League was the first Albanian nationalist group and campaigned for political autonomy for the Albanian people. Its impact is still celebrated in Prizren today.
2. Meanwhile, Prizren’s ancient fortress offers a spellbinding view of the city. The short but steep walk to the top rewards hikers with a gorgeous view over Prizren’s rooftops – the entire city stretches out beneath you. Behind the fortress, the impressive Sharr Mountains rise into the clouds. In the distance, beyond Prizren, more impressive peaks provide a stunning backdrop. We loved coming up here in the early morning or late afternoon when the temperatures were cooler and the lighting was at its best.
3. Our favourite activity in Prizren is simply to exist. Make sure you see the main sights, of course. But be doubly sure to carve out enough time to sit with a coffee, tea or beer at one of the riverside cafes and watch the world go by. At sunset, when the call to prayer rolls out over the rooftops as the light fades, there are few better places to be.

Exploring beyond Prizren

With its location at the foothills of the Sharr Mountains, Prizren is ideally situated for hiking. Several routes wind through the hills behind the fortress, offering access to the Monastery of the Holy Archangels and some popular riverside restaurants in a gorge – including Natyra and Panorama.

4) Gjakova

Best for: Visiting a stunning Old Bazaar.

Smaller than Pristina, Peja and Prizren, Gjakova is no less charming. In fact, if you’re travelling between Peja and Prizren, you will almost certainly pass through Gjakova during your journey. This small city is worth a visit during your Kosovo trip, even if you only have a few hours to explore.

Gjakova boasts one of the longest bazaar streets in Europe – the main boulevard stretches for around one kilometre from north to south. For centuries, it was home to a plethora of craftspeople producing everything from clothing to cradles. Some of these traditions still live on today, with national costumes particularly common, hanging outside many of the clothes shops.

The bazaar suffered immense damage at the hands of Serbian forces during the 1999 war. Remarkably, however, it has been largely rebuilt with the support of international organisations. Today, there is little hint of the bazaar’s recent dark history, save a few signs and posters.

What we loved about Gjakova

Unsurprisingly, our highlight in Gjakova was wandering the streets of the bazaar. We visited on a quiet weekday and found the bazaar to be pleasantly sleepy. Shops and cafes were open, but the streets were relatively quiet – there was none of the chaos nor the tourists you find at other Balkan bazaars. Here are our highlights of a visit to one of the most charming cities in Kosovo:

1. Meeting one of Gjakova’s traditional cradle makers. Wooden cradles have long been a specialism of the carpenters in Gjakova’s Old Bazaar. Most workshops have long since closed, but craftsman Ruzhdi Qarri still produces beautifully ornate cradles from his base on the main street. We chatted with him, hearing about his decades of work—a wonderful experience.
2. A short stroll south of the Old Bazaar, the Tanner’s Bridge is an excellent example of a classic Ottoman cobbled bridge. The surroundings are uninspiring – a busy vehicular road, a few shops and a construction site – but the bridge itself is in remarkable condition and is worth a detour from the bazaar if you have time.
3. We enjoyed a warm welcome and a private tour of Gjakova’s Ethnographic Museum, just over the river from the Old Bazaar. When we walked up to the building – an old Ottoman dwelling – we weren’t sure if it was open. The lights were dark, and the door was closed. However, it didn’t take long for someone to come out and greet us. They invited us in before spending the next hour talking us through the exhibits in the museum – from old sewing machines to musical instruments. A friendly welcome and a lovely way to learn more about the city.

Exploring beyond Gjakova

Since Gjakova is halfway between Peja and Prizren, it’s likely that one of these cities will be your next stop. However, the Desan monastery is a short detour on the route from Gjakova to Peja. To the south, the Tailor’s Bridge is another brilliant example of Ottoman architecture – you can spot it from the road if you drive from Prizren.

The best cities to visit in Kosovo: our final thoughts

If you only have two or three days in Kosovo, it’s likely that you will visit either Prizren or Pristina – possibly both. However, if you have a bit more time to explore, we certainly recommend adding Peja and Gjakova to your Kosovo travel plans.

All four of these Kosovan cities offer something different – from beautiful bazaars to majestic monasteries. We would struggle to choose a favourite. We loved the conversations with craftspeople in Gjakova, which was only possible thanks to how quiet the bazaar was when we visited. On the other hand, the buzz of the busy cafes in Prizren and Pristina was infectious – both those cities have an energy that is hard to beat. Meanwhile, Peja would certainly be our first port of call for hiking and adventure in Kosovo.

Whilst this is not an exhaustive list of the best towns and cities in Kosovo to visit, we think these four options would be the ideal places to start your plans.