Ohrid

Ohrid is North Macedonia's most treasured destination — a small city on the shores of Lake Ohrid (one of the oldest and deepest lakes in the world) that was for centuries the spiritual and cultural centre of the medieval Slavic world and is now a Unesco World Heritage Site of remarkable depth and beauty. The old town climbs steeply from the lakeside to Samuel's Fortress above, its lanes packed with Byzantine churches, medieval frescoes and vernacular Ottoman houses. The Church of Saint Sophia (11th century) contains some of the finest Byzantine frescoes in the Balkans. The Church of Saint John at Kaneo, perched on a cliff above the lake, is the most photographed scene in Macedonia — its position is breathtaking. The Plaošnik complex with the reconstructed Basilica of Saint Clement honours the 9th-century scholar-monk who invented the Cyrillic alphabet here. Lake Ohrid itself — over 300 metres deep, harbouring endemic species found nowhere else on Earth, crystal clear and stunningly beautiful — is the city's greatest natural asset. Swimming in the lake, boat trips to the springs of Saint Naum at the Albanian border, and cycling along the lake shore are summer highlights. Ohrid trout (pastrmka) and the lake's endemic eel are the great local delicacies. Ohrid is extraordinarily affordable and genuinely beautiful. Visit May–September for the best lake weather.