Wine Tour In North Macedonia: 8-Day Trip

Day 1. Skopje, North Macedonia
Arrival at Skopje Airport, meet your English-speaking guide and head to the capital of North Macedonia. City destroyed by an earthquake in 1963 which has been able to completely rebuild itself and offer a unique experience. You will appreciate a city separated between two cultures and two different lifestyles between Macedonian and Macedonian Albanians.
Dinner and overnight in Skopje.

Day 2. Skopje – Matka Canyon – Skopje, North Macedonia
After breakfast, then join the Matka Canyon, a must see in Macedonia. Embark on a boat to explore the Vrelo Caves, which are considered among the deepest underwater caves in the world.
Join Kamnik Castle, a vineyard situated in the heights of Skopje and offering a panoramic view of the Macedonian capital.
Lunch at Kamnik Castle and tasting of different local wines. Kamnik Castle is the most awarded vineyard in the country. You will discover his confection of local wines with his superb bottles made from a beautiful range of grape varieties.
Dinner and overnight in Skopje.

Day 3. Skopje – Kratovo – Popova Kula, North Macedonia
After breakfast, head towards the magnificent Osogovo Monastery, which is 825 meters above sea level and only 10 kilometers from the Bulgarian border.

Leave for lunch in Kratovo. Known for its Ottoman bridges, medieval towers and 19th century houses, Kratovo is a pretty little village perched on the western hills of the Osogovo mountains, on an extinct volcano crater, at an altitude 600 m.
Continue your road to reach Popova Kula vineyard. You will discover the wine culture of a small Macedonian vineyard located on the heights of a hill and offering a magnificent panoramic view of the region. Drop off your luggage in the hotel.
Visit the vineyard which is the only producer in the world to produce wine from Stanushina, an unique Macedonian grape variety. Discover the production of these traditional Macedonian wines.
Dinner in the vineyard with tasting of several local wines during the meal. Overnight in Popova Kula.

Day 4. Popova Kula – Stobi Vineyards – Queen Maria Vineyards – Popova Kula, North Macedonia
After breakfast, join Stobi, the largest archaeological site in Macedonia. Discover the ruins of an ancient city established in the 4th century BC. AD and learn more about the history of the Romans in the ancient territory of Macedonia.
Reach Stobi vineyards to taste its local wine production.
Set off for Queen Maria vineyards, the country’s oldest vineyard. This vineyards has been created by King Aleksandar Karadjordjevic and Queen Maria Karadjordjevic of Yugoslavia.
Taste ancestral wines in an extraordinary environment.
Return to Popova Kula. Many activities are possible there such as dance lessons, traditional Macedonian cuisine, incentive activities dedicated to businesses, hiking, a “wine route” day on bikes, etc.
Dinner and overnight at Popova Kula.

Day 5. Popova Kula – Bitola, North Macedonia
After breakfast, head towards the Tikves vineyard, one of the oldest in Macedonia, created in 1885. You will discover its internationally renowned wine production there by tasting several of its specialties.

You will head towards the south of Macedonia to reach Bitola, the second largest city in North Macedonia.
When you arrive in the city, visit the French military cemetery in Bitola where more than 13,000 French soldiers who died during the First World War are buried.
Start the sightseeing tour of the city of the consuls and discover a city with a Mediterranean charm with its churches, its mosques, its old Ottoman bazaar and its beautiful neoclassical houses.
Then visit Heraclea Lyncestis, located 2 km from Bitola and discover the remains of this ancient city of the Kingdom of Macedonia whose foundations date back to the 4th century BC.
Leave your luggage in your hotel and free time to enjoy the hotel spa or casino or to stroll through the streets of the old town. Dinner and overnight in Bitola.

Day 6. Bitola – Ohrid, North Macedonia
After breakfast, head to the largest lake in North Macedonia, Lake Ohrid.
Visit the Saint Naum Monastery. In the midst of lush greenery, built in the 10th century, the monastery is a haven of tranquility on the border between Albania and Macedonia. Lunch at Saint Naum.
Short photo stop at “Bay of bones”, authentic reconstruction of part of a colony, dating from 1200 to 700 BC. J.-C.
Arrive in the city of Ohrid, the cradle of Orthodoxy. City listed as World Heritage by UNESCO and sublime city by the lake which, for many, represents the culmination of the Macedonian experience, a Kingdom of light and water and a reference to the ancient ruins of the traditional kingdom of Macedonia.
Discover its historic heritage, well preserved like the Church of St Jovan or the ancient theater dating from the Roman Empire.
At the end of the day, you will reach a cellar in the old town of Ohrid to discover an ancestral confection of Macedonian wines. Taste several wines from Ohrid region and cheeses. Dinner and overnight in Ohrid. Nova Riviera Hotel 3*
*Possibility to organize a drink on a boat of Ohrid

OPTION: Sailboat on Lake Ohrid
Set off for four hours of sailing on a sailboat from Ohrid and visit Kaneo, Lagadin, Gorica and the beach of Kuba Libre. The tour includes 2 glasses of wine and 1 bottle of water, snacks, coffee and a sandwich. 100 € / pers

Day 7. Ohrid – Mavrovo National Park – Skopje, North Macedonia
After breakfast, head towards Mavrovo National Park, you can enjoy sumptuous landscapes such as Lake Mavroro and the canyon of Radika.
You will stop at the Monastery of Saint Jovan Bigorski, located on the heights of the canyon, which represents one of the most beautiful monasteries in Macedonia.
On the road to Skopje you will make a stop in Tetovo to discover its painted Mosque of Sarena Dzamija dating from the 15th century. Painted inside and out, it represents one of the most beautiful mosques in Macedonia.
Arrival in Skopje and free time. Stroll through its new city center to discover its famous fortress “Tvrdina Kale” and its stone bridge “Kameni Most” which divides the city into two parts with the old Ottoman bazaar “Čaršija”. Dinner and overnight in Skopje.
For the last evening, enjoy a folk evening with Macedonian dances and music in a traditional restaurant in Skopje (minimum 15 people).

Day 8. Skopje, North Macedonia
After breakfast, free time until your transfer to Skopje airport for your return flight.