Northern Macedonia is one of the least known tourist countries in Europe. Located in the Balkans, uncontaminated by mass tourism, it is a place where a tourist can still feel like an explorer. And there is something to discover. Both natural treasures and interesting monuments await here.
The capital of the country, Skopje is a city where for centuries the influences of East and West, Christianity and Islam clashed. The remnant of this mix of influences is the charming Old Town with the devils, the stone fifteenth century bridge and numerous mosques, over which the Kale fortress towers. In recent years, the Macedonian authorities have increasingly emphasized the ancient origin of their state, hence the capital is building numerous neoclassical buildings and erecting monuments to Alexander the Great and Philip II.
Near Skopje you can find a wonderful corner to spend time actively. This is the Matka Canyon, which created a dam lake. It is sandwiched between mountain slopes. On the lake you can go canoeing and tourist boats, and on its shores are marked hiking trails.
The most touristic region of Macedonia is the Ohrid Lake area. It is a huge, natural body of water on the border with Albania. Its shores are occupied by beaches, campsites and small resorts. There is also one of the country's biggest attractions, the town of Ohrid, whose Old Town with traditional Turkish buildings and many medieval churches is on the UNESCO list. An interesting monument and also an important Orthodox pilgrimage center is the monastery of St. Naum.
Macedonia is also a place where you can find unusual, unique places. One of them is the Kuklica reserve, which contains hundreds of natural rock columns resulting from erosion. An archaeological reserve was created in Kokino, which protects the neolithic astronomical observatory. An interesting place is also the Mawrowo National Park, where in addition to nice mountain landscapes you can see a church sunk in the artificial lake.
