As Paul and I are frequent travelers, I am going to share some experiences with you about the cities we visit. First city: Skopje, capital of North Macedonia. We ever expected to end up here, but we did. Our first impressions weren’t great. It looked like a very gray city, there was a lot of pollution and it had a bit of a 90’s feel. We were wrong! Skopje is a great city and we actually started to feel at home. Let me share our experiences with you and the places to go.
People
Walking around people seem to be very into themselves, not open for contact, but this is a wrong assumption. They are actually very welcoming and friendly as soon as you get to know them. We were lucky enough to meet some really nice people during our stay.
Places to visit
Where to start?! There are so many nice places to visit here in Skopje. We like places that are not your typical touristy places. Here is a list of a few of our favorite places:
Gluvo Kuche
An awesome local pub, with a nice range of craft beer and good food. The staff are very welcoming and chatty. This was our favorite place to have a beer and relax.
St Patrick Irish Pub
Good atmosphere, really nice staff and they serve a good glass of Guinness. To be honest, I wasn’t too impressed with the food, (but Paul liked it).
Distrikt
Part of the Marriott Hotel. Really tasty, upmarket food for a good price! Fancy, yet affordable and casual.
Speakeasy
What a gem! Yummy drinks and the staff are very skilled at making cocktails. It is a challenging place to find (I wonder why, haha), but when you do find it, it is absolutely worth a visit!
Gran Klub
We love to play pool. This is a proper poolhall where there are a few snooker tables as well. They also play competitions here. The place has a very nice atmosphere, and they take care of the tables (very important if you enjoy playing pool). If you want, you can air the game live on YouTube.
Kamnik vineyard
Close to the Hunters Lodge. It is a beautiful vineyard. The view is amazing! The price of a wine tasting is around € 10,- a person. It is a short tour and you will get to taste 4 different wines. Really nice! Unfortunately they have a tight schedule, so there is not a lot of time to finish your wines or to hang around.
Hunters Lodge Kamnik
What a special place! We had lunch and dinner here. They serve some very unique dishes (normal meat and game). Please do not skip this place when visiting Skopje. Reserving in advance is recommended.
Mola
Such a charming little coffee place! There is a small seating area inside and outside. Literally for a total of 4 people (2 inside, and 2 outside), but the coffee is nice and you can drink it from a coconut! They also do a lot of fresh juices.
Supermarkets
Our supermarket of choice was: Vero. It reminded us a bit of Mercadona in Spain. They have a lot of different types of products, and also sell a lot of vegan products. Average prices.
Air quality
This could be a bit of a problem, especially for people with respiratory problems. The air quality is really bad, so bad that we were encountering some respiratory issues.
Taxi
Like in almost any city in the world, the taxi drivers will overcharge you as soon as they know you are not a local. That is why we used the Cammeo app. This was recommended by our Airbnb host. It is very similar to Uber and the best way to get around the city. Very cheap as well!
If you get the chance, hop over for a weekend to Skopje! You will be surprised at what this city has to offer!
A few photos of Skopje:
HLD by Renee 
Taxi drivers are same through out the world!😊
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They are!🤭😁
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Nice photos, Renee. Is it a quaint, quiet place? Not much hustle and bustle? Travelling opens our eyes to the places off the beaten tracks, too.
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Thank you Natasha. I think because of Covid it is a bit quiter than normal, but the locals told me that it is a very popular city amongst tourists. Especially in summer.😊 And yes, I don’t think I would have found out about Skopje if I wasn’t traveling, and that is ashame, because it is a very nice city! Ochrid also comes very highly recommended! 🥰
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Good memories we have from Skopje.
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Absolutely! ❤
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