Belgrade to Athens: Self-Launched Balkan Grand Tour (14 Days)

Arrive in Belgrade and check into a hostel in Stari Grad (Old Town). In the morning walk up to Belgrade Fortress (Kalemegdan) and the Pobednik monument — the fortress grounds are free and open 24 hours. Stroll down Knez Mihailova pedestrian street to Republic Square. Join a free-tip walking tour (Belgrade Free Walking Tours, ~10:30 daily, tips £5-8) to get local context on the Yugoslav and Ottoman layers of the city. Optional afternoon bus or tram to Zemun for riverside dinner.

🚌Airport bus A1 from Nikola Tesla Airport ~£2.5-4; city is walkable, trams ~£0.7 per ride

🛏Hostel in Stari Grad (dorm bed, ~£14-18/night)

• →Belgrade Fortress & Kalemegdan Park (free)
• →Pobednik Monument (free)
• →Knez Mihailova Street stroll
• →Republic Square
• →Free-tip city walking tour

The original tour drives this in a day with a lunch stop in Zvornik. Do the same by bus: direct Belgrade–Sarajevo services take 7-8 hours (roughly £20-26), or consider the scenic route via Zvornik/Tuzla on local buses if you want the lunch stop. Evening arrival — grab a burek and walk the Baščaršija bazaar area lit up at night. Book your Sarajevo bed in advance and save the old town for a fresh morning.

🚌Intercity bus Belgrade–Sarajevo ~7-8 hrs, ~£20-26 (GetByBus/BalkanViator)

🛏Hostel in Baščaršija old town (dorm ~£12-15)

• →Scenic bus journey through the Drina valley
• →Zvornik lunch stop (if splitting the trip)
• →Evening wander of Baščaršija

Morning self-guided walk: start at Latin Bridge (where Franz Ferdinand was shot), then through Baščaršija's Ottoman quarter (Sebilj fountain, Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque courtyard, coppersmith street), cross into the Austro-Hungarian quarter for the Vijećnica and the 1878-1918 architecture. Optional Museum of Crimes Against Humanity (~£5) — worth prioritising if you have time. Midday or early-afternoon train to Mostar (the scenic line through the Neretva gorge, ~2 hrs, £5-7) or bus (~2.5 hrs, ~£8). Evening at Stari Most at sunset.

🚌Sarajevo–Mostar train ~2 hrs £5-7 (book ahead) or bus ~£8

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Mostar old town (dorm ~£12-16)

• →Latin Bridge
• →Baščaršija & Sebilj fountain
• →Austro-Hungarian quarter walk
• →Optional War Childhood / Crimes Against Humanity museum
• →Scenic Sarajevo–Mostar train through Neretva canyon

Early start: walk Stari Most, the Old Bazaar (Kujundžiluk), and the Bišćević House courtyard (small entry fee ~£3). Local bus #10/#11 to Blagaj (~30 min, ~£1.5) to see the Buna River spring and the dervish tekke at the cliff base. Return to Mostar and take the afternoon bus to Kotor (via Trebinje, ~4-5 hrs, ~£16-20). Arrive in Kotor in the evening; the old town walls are free to wander after dark.

🚌Local bus to Blagaj ~£1.5 return; Mostar–Kotor coach ~£16-20

🛏Hostel just outside Kotor old town (dorm ~£15-20)

• →Stari Most & Old Bazaar
• →Bišćević House
• →Blagaj Buna spring & dervish house
• →Kotor old town evening stroll

Morning: walk the Kotor UNESCO old town — Saint Luke's Church, Saint Tryphon Cathedral exterior — and if you're game, climb the 1,350 steps up the city walls for the bay view (entry £3-4, 1 hr up). Free-tip Kotor walking tour runs most mornings (~£5 tip). Early afternoon local bus to Budva (~40 min, ~£3): the walled Stari Grad with St. Ivan and St. Mary churches, then the clifftop Sveti Stefan viewpoint (bus or 30-min walk). Overnight back in Kotor or Budva depending on your onward departure.

🚌Kotor–Budva local bus ~£3 each way

🛏Hostel in Kotor or Budva (dorm ~£15-20)

• →Kotor city walls climb (optional)
• →Saint Luke's Church & old town
• →Budva Old Town & churches
• →Sveti Stefan viewpoint

Bus from Budva/Kotor to Shkodër (~2-3 hrs with border crossing, ~£8-10). See Rozafa Castle above town (entry ~£2) — a steep walk or short taxi. Explore Shkodër's pedestrian centre and grab a cheap byrek lunch. Optional detour: the Venetian mask carvers' workshop in Shkodër's artisan quarter (free to visit, buy if you like). Late afternoon shared minivan or bus Shkodër–Prizren (~3 hrs, ~£10-14). Evening in Prizren's riverside old town with the Sinan Pasha Mosque and the stone bridge lit up.

🚌Budva/Kotor–Shkodër ~£8-10; Shkodër–Prizren shared minivan ~£10-14

🛏Guesthouse in Prizren old town (private room ~£18-24, or dorm ~£12)

• →Rozafa Castle
• →Shkodër pedestrian centre
• →Artisan mask workshop
• →Sinan Pasha Mosque & old stone bridge

Climb to Prizren Fortress early for the panorama (free). DIY day loop by local bus: Gjakova's Grand Bazaar and artisan quarter (~1 hr, ~£2), then the UNESCO Visoki Dečani Monastery near Deçan (bus/taxi combination ~£4-6; dress modestly, free entry). Finish at a Rahovec Valley winery — Stone Castle and Bodrumi i Vjetër accept walk-ins for tastings (~£6-10). Return to Prizren for dinner at a traditional qebaptore. Note Kosovo uses the euro, so no currency change needed from Montenegro/Albania coin. If you'd rather not self-organise, a GetYourGuide/Klook Kosovo day tour covers the same loop for ~£35-50.

🚌Local buses/taxi hop ~£8-12 total for the day

🛏Guesthouse in Prizren old town (~£18-24)

• →Prizren Fortress hike (free)
• →Gjakova Grand Bazaar
• →Visoki Dečani Monastery
• →Rahovec Valley winery tasting

Bus or shared minivan Prizren to Tirana via the Kukësi highway (~4 hrs, ~£12-15). Stop en route or detour by local bus to Krujë: the castle with Skanderbeg Museum (entry ~£4) and the medieval bazaar full of carpets, copper and filigree — this is where you haggle. Continue to Tirana. Evening at Blloku for cheap eats and raki.

🚌Prizren–Tirana coach ~£12-15; Krujë local bus from Tirana ~£2 each way

🛏Hostel in central Tirana (dorm ~£12-16)

• →Krujë Castle & Skanderbeg Museum
• →Krujë medieval bazaar
• →Blloku district evening walk

Recreate the original's local food tour independently. Breakfast on byrek (~£1.5). Join Tirana's free-tip walking tour from Skanderbeg Square (~£5 tip). Then self-guided market crawl: Çam Bazaar for seasonal produce and second-hand goods, the New Bazaar (Pazari i Ri) for cheese, olives and Tavë Kosi. Book a small-group Tirana food tour on GetYourGuide if you want the guided-tasting experience (~£30-38) — otherwise build your own tasting for ~£10. Evening: traditional Albanian dinner near New Bazaar with a glass of grape raki (~£10).

🚌Walkable; local bus ~£0.3 per ride

🛏Hostel in central Tirana (dorm ~£12-16)

• →Free-tip Tirana walking tour
• →Çam Bazaar
• →New Bazaar (Pazari i Ri)
• →Byrek tasting
• →Optional GetYourGuide Tirana food tour

Bus Tirana to Struga or Ohrid (~3-4 hrs, ~£10-12). Dump your bag and walk Ohrid old town: the Church of St. John at Kaneo on the cliff above the lake, the Paper Museum (small entry ~£1.5), and the Roman amphitheatre (free). Climb to Samuel's Fortress for sunset (free or ~£1 entry). Swap the convertible Macedonian denar at a bank. Note the lakeside fish restaurants are lovely but pricier — the old town bakeries and grilled meats are the budget play.

🚌Tirana–Ohrid bus ~£10-12

🛏Guesthouse in Ohrid old town (private room ~£16-22)

• →Church of St. John at Kaneo
• →Paper Museum
• →Ohrid amphitheatre
• →Samuel's Fortress sunset

Morning boat or bus along the lake to St. Naum Monastery (~£3-6; boat is the nicer option, ~£7-10 return). Then local transport back to Struga and cross to Tushemisht/Drilon in Albania — the Drilon springs and national park are free to wander, with women selling homemade jams and rakia at the roadside. Continue to Berat by bus (~4 hrs via Elbasan, ~£8-11). Evening in the Mangalem quarter's steep cobbled lanes.

🚌Lake boat ~£7-10; local buses Ohrid–Struga–Tushemisht–Berat ~£12-16 total

🛏Guesthouse in Berat Mangalem quarter (~£16-22)

• →St. Naum Monastery
• →Lake Ohrid boat trip
• →Drilon springs & national park (free)
• →Tushemisht village vendors

Morning in Berat: the UNESCO 'city of a thousand windows' — walk from Mangalem across the Gorica bridge into the Gorica neighbourhood, then up to Berat Castle (free to enter the walls; Onufri Museum ~£3) with its churches and mosque inside. Midday bus to Gjirokastër (~3-4 hrs with a change in Tepelenë or direct minivan, ~£7-10). Evening in Gjirokastër's old town — the steep stone lanes are atmospheric at dusk.

🚌Berat–Gjirokastër bus/minivan ~£7-10

🛏Guesthouse in Gjirokastër old town (~£16-22)

• →Berat Castle
• →Gorica Neighbourhood & Gorica bridge
• →Mangalem quarter
• →Onufri Museum (optional)

Full day at a slower pace. Gjirokastër Castle (entry ~£2) and its giant US-supplied Cold War aircraft, the medieval bazaar, and a preserved Ottoman merchant house (Zekate House or Skenduli House, ~£2 entry). Optional wine tasting at The Barrels Winery (~£8-12). Buy handmade crafts directly from artisans in the bazaar. Book your onward bus or minivan to Greece at the bus station this evening — the Gjirokastër–Ioannina route runs once or twice a day.

🚌Everything walkable; no transport cost

🛏Guesthouse in Gjirokastër old town (~£16-22)

• →Gjirokastër Castle
• →Medieval bazaar
• →Zekate / Skenduli House
• →The Barrels Winery tasting (optional)

Early minivan/bus over the Albanian-Greek border to Ioannina (~2.5-3 hrs, ~£10-14). Walk the Ioannina old town inside the castle walls and see the Fethiye Mosque and lake views (free), then bus to Kalabaka/Meteora (~3 hrs, ~£12-15). Spend the afternoon at the monasteries — six remain, each charging ~£3.5 entry, dress code requires covered shoulders and legs; buses shuttle between viewpoints (~£3). If you want to catch the sunset at Meteora, stay one night and push the Athens leg to the following morning. Otherwise, evening bus or train Kalabaka–Athens (~£15-20, 4-5 hrs). For Corfu instead, take the bus to Igoumenitsa and the ferry across (~£12-18 total).

🚌Gjirokastër–Ioannina ~£10-14; Ioannina–Kalabaka ~£12-15; Kalabaka–Athens ~£15-20 (or Igoumenitsa ferry to Corfu)

🛏Optional Kalabaka guesthouse if splitting the leg (~£20); otherwise overnight bus or Athens hostel (~£15)

• →Ioannina castle & old town
• →Meteora monasteries (self-guided)
• →Sunset viewpoint if overnighting