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When folks consider Europe, the primary locations that always come to thoughts are France, Italy, Germany, Spain, and perhaps Switzerland. However, Europe is house to dozens of nations, and some of the underrated areas for vacationers is the Balkans. While there’s no common settlement on which nations belong to the Balkans, the area usually consists of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Bulgaria, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia, with Romania and Slovenia generally thought-about a part of it as nicely.
Despite being neglected by many vacationers, the Balkans supply gorgeous landscapes, wealthy historical past, and vibrant cultures — all at a fraction of the fee in comparison with Western Europe. While some locations should be expensive by Filipino requirements, they’re usually extra budget-friendly than their Western European counterparts. If visiting the Balkans is in your journey bucket listing, maintain studying as we share how we deliberate our unforgettable Balkan journey on this article!
1. Secure the precise visas.
As talked about earlier, the Balkan area usually consists of 11 nations. However, not all of them are a part of the Schengen Area.
Schengen Balkan Countries
Only 5 nations within the Balkan area are included within the Schengen Area. These are the next:
- Greece
- Croatia
- Slovenia
- Bulgaria
- Romania
Note: Bulgaria and Romania at the moment solely settle for Schengen visas at their sea and air borders.
Among the Schengen nations within the Balkans, Greece is essentially the most sensible selection for Filipino vacationers. Here are the explanations:
- Greece has its personal embassy within the Philippines, making visa processing extra simple.
- Athens Airport is well-connected, with reasonably priced flights out there from many locations.
- Greece is a shocking journey vacation spot, so it’s nicely price including to your itinerary!
Alternatively, you may also apply for a Schengen visa via Slovenia, which is processed by the Belgian Embassy within the Philippines.
TIP! Design an itinerary that requires a number of Schengen entries, making your multiple-entry visa software extra justifiable. See pattern itinerary within the subsequent part.
Non-Schengen Balkan Countries
Here are the Balkan nations outdoors of the Schengen Area:
- Albania
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Kosovo
- Montenegro
- North Macedonia
- Serbia
If you’re touring to any of those nations, you’ll want a separate visa particular to that nation. For occasion, should you’re solely visiting Albania, you’ll want to use for an Albanian visa. Fortunately, there’s a workaround: in case you have a multiple-entry Schengen visa, you gained’t want a separate visa for a lot of Balkan states.
To make the most of this, you possibly can apply for a multiple-entry Schengen visa via Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, or Romania — so long as your itinerary justifies a number of entries. Additionally, many non-Schengen Balkan nations settle for a used multiple-entry Schengen visa, that means you will need to enter a Schengen nation not less than as soon as earlier than utilizing it to go to different Balkan states.
2. Plan your route properly.
Careful route planning is important — not solely to save lots of time, cash, and power but in addition to justify the necessity for a multiple-entry Schengen visa.
Creating Your Itinerary
As talked about earlier, solely 5 Balkan nations are a part of the Schengen Area, whereas the remaining require separate visas. However, with a multiple-entry Schengen visa, you possibly can enter many non-Schengen Balkan nations with no need extra visas.
This is why the itinerary you undergo the embassy is essential. Below is a simplified model of our Balkan journey route. It was extra difficult in actuality, however this offers you an instance of how one can plan your itinerary.
- Greece
- Romania
- Bulgaria
- North Macedonia
- Kosovo
- Albania
- Montenegro
- Croatia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Croatia
- Spain
This itinerary required us to enter the Schengen Area thrice, which strengthened our justification for a multiple-entry visa.
- First Entry: Arriving in Greece (Schengen).
- Second Entry: Exiting the Schengen Area from Bulgaria to North Macedonia, then re-entering when arriving in Croatia.
- Third Entry: Taking a aspect journey to Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, then re-entering Croatia.
With three Schengen entries, a multiple-entry visa was justified, permitting us to journey via the non-Schengen Balkan nations with no need separate visas.
Choosing the Best Mode of Transportation
Beyond visas, planning your route properly additionally means contemplating transportation availability. Google Maps is a superb instrument to verify essentially the most logical route between the nations you wish to go to. Researching bus routes may help you keep away from pointless flights, making your journey extra budget-friendly and environment friendly.
During our Balkan backpacking journey, we primarily traveled by bus. Not solely was it essentially the most reasonably priced possibility, however it additionally made for a extra immersive and adventurous expertise.
Checking the Political Landscape
Another vital issue when planning your itinerary is the political panorama of the Balkan area, as some nations have border restrictions because of diplomatic conflicts. For instance, Serbia apparently doesn’t enable entry from Kosovo because of conflicts. While this coverage might change over time, we took further precautions when planning our route. Instead of touring from Kosovo to Serbia, we entered Serbia from Bulgaria first, then later traveled to Kosovo from North Macedonia to keep away from potential points.
By being strategic together with your route, you can also make your Balkan journey smoother, cheaper, and visa-efficient — all whereas having fun with the unbelievable variety of this fascinating area!
3. Search for reasonably priced flights.
When planning our Balkans journey, we selected Greece as our entry level as a result of it supplied the most cost effective flights. If you’re reserving nicely prematurely or throughout seat gross sales, some of the budget-friendly choices from Manila to Athens is SCOOT, which operates flights with a stopover in Singapore. In truth, we’ve flown to Greece with Scoot on earlier journeys.
However, don’t restrict your search to only price range airways. It’s at all times price checking full-service carriers too. Sometimes, you’ll discover flights which are both cheaper or solely barely dearer than low-cost airways however include added advantages. For instance, after we booked our flight for our Balkans journey, we selected Etihad with a cease in Abu Dhabi. At the time, it was solely about ₱5,000 dearer than Scoot, however that worth already included add-ons.
If you seen in our pattern itinerary, our remaining cease earlier than returning to the Philippines was Spain, although it’s not a part of the Balkan area. The purpose? Flight costs. At the time, the most cost effective flight again to Manila was from Barcelona. Even after factoring in the price of a connecting flight from Croatia to Barcelona, the overall expense was nonetheless decrease than flying immediately from the Balkans. That’s why we determined to incorporate Spain in our route!
It’s necessary to notice that when making use of for a Schengen visa, you don’t have to ebook your flights but. Instead, you’ll want a flight reservation, which serves as a brief reserving with out requiring full cost. Some folks check with it as a “dummy ticket”, it sounds phony so we keep away from utilizing that time period. But no matter you name it, what’s necessary is that embassies acknowledge flight reservations.
For our visa functions, we get our flight reservations from Gazelle Travel and Tours. If you want one, you possibly can go to this web page, fill out the order type, and verify the pricing and turnaround time. Once your visa is permitted, you possibly can proceed with finalizing your precise flight reserving.
4. Consider the season and the climate.
Timing performs a vital position when planning a visit to Europe, together with the Balkan area. We’ve traveled to the Balkans throughout late spring to early summer season and once more from late summer season to autumn, and we will confidently say — the distinction in worth is large.
The summer season months (June to September) are thought-about peak season, that means larger costs for flights, lodging, and excursions. For instance, after we visited Croatia, we seen that as quickly as October arrived, tour costs dropped considerably. This pattern applies to lodges and flights as nicely.
Out of all of the seasons we’ve skilled, autumn was essentially the most breathtaking. The climate was comfortably cool — neither too scorching nor too chilly — and the landscapes have been painted in gorgeous fall colours, making it an unforgettable sight.
Beyond pricing and surroundings, seasonal climate additionally determines what it is advisable to pack. The Balkans have numerous climates, so temperatures can fluctuate tremendously relying on the place you go. For instance, the climate in Romania is totally different from Croatia’s Dalmatia Region.
Meanwhile, coastal cities alongside the Adriatic and Aegean Seas — like Split and Dubrovnik in Croatia — have a Mediterranean local weather. Inland areas, similar to Sofia in Bulgaria and Brașov in Romania, expertise a damp continental local weather, that means colder winters and extra important seasonal modifications.
If you’re backpacking via a number of nations, count on the climate to shift from place to put. Be positive to analysis every vacation spot’s local weather prematurely and pack accordingly to remain comfy all through your journey.
5. Don’t assume every part’s the identical.
The Balkan area is extremely numerous, not simply when it comes to local weather but in addition in tradition, language, historical past, and governance. While there are similarities between nations, every nation has its personal distinct identification. The alphabet, faith, political techniques, and even cuisines can fluctuate dramatically as you cross borders.
History
This variety can also be mirrored within the area’s complicated historical past. Many neighboring nations have long-standing political tensions, which generally turn out to be evident when talking with locals. Even historic excursions can current conflicting narratives, relying on the place you’re. For instance, North Macedonia and Bulgaria, Serbia and Bulgaria, Serbia and Kosovo, and even Bosnia and Herzegovina all have totally different views on historic occasions — and also you’ll probably sense this when visiting heritage websites or participating in conversations.
Cuisine
Each nation within the Balkans provides a novel delicacies as nicely. For instance, in Dubrovnik and Montenegro, seafood dominates the delicacies, whereas Romania, Bulgaria, and Serbia favor meat-heavy dishes.
Religion
When it involves faith, nations like Kosovo and Albania are predominantly Muslim, whereas Croatia is basically Catholic. Meanwhile, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, and Romania comply with Eastern Orthodox Christianity, every with their very own branches — Greek Orthodox, Bulgarian Orthodox, and Serbian Orthodox.
Language
The linguistic variety can also be fascinating. For instance, Romanian is a Latin-based language that makes use of the Latin alphabet, whereas Bulgarian is a Slavic language that makes use of the Cyrillic script. Greek, in fact, has its personal distinct Greek alphabet.
Vibe and Personality
Every vacation spot has its personal persona. Beyond cultural variations, every metropolis or city exudes its personal distinctive appeal. Brașov (Romania) seems like a quaint, fairy-tale city. Sofia (Bulgaria) and Tirana (Albania) have the bustling power of huge cities. Meanwhile, Split and Dubrovnik (Croatia) are straight out of Game of Thrones, serving severe King’s Landing vibes. And Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Prizren (Kosovo) appear to be big, open-air museums with their well-preserved historic websites.
Affordability
Prices additionally fluctuate between locations. While a lot of the Balkans is thought for being budget-friendly, there are notable exceptions. Dubrovnik and Split are among the many most costly cities within the area. When we first visited these elements of Croatia a number of years in the past, they have been already expensive, however throughout our most up-to-date journey, we seen costs had skyrocketed, probably as a result of inflow of vacationers. If you intend to go to, be ready to spend extra in comparison with different Balkan locations.
The extra locations you discover, the extra you’ll respect the area’s unbelievable variety. Every cease reveals one thing new, making the Balkans a really fascinating place to go to.
6. Inspect your lodging on-line.
One of one of the best issues about touring within the Balkans is the abundance of budget-friendly lodging. However, worth isn’t the one issue to think about when selecting the place to remain. We at all times use two key standards when reserving: central location and accessibility.
We favor lodging close to the Old Town or metropolis heart, inside strolling distance of key points of interest and beginning factors for strolling excursions. It’s additionally necessary that our lodging is near main transportation hubs, similar to prepare stations or bus terminals, for simpler transfers between locations.
Finding lodging that match these standards was pretty straightforward, besides in Dubrovnik, the place we confronted a novel problem: most budget-friendly rooms solely accommodated two folks — we have been a bunch of three. As a end result, we ended up reserving residences for many of our keep.
By the way in which, these are all of the promo codes that you should utilize. We have reductions for lodges, excursions, and eSIM for web connection. We even have particular charges for journey insurance coverage, unique for TPT subscribers.
Beyond location and affordability, it’s additionally essential to verify the constructing’s amenities, particularly should you’re staying in an residence throughout the Old Town. Some buildings are older and lack elevators, which generally is a downside should you’re carrying heavy baggage or have mobility issues.
For instance, in Brașov, Romania, we stayed at Zinne Apartments, an enthralling place simply two blocks from the principle sq.. However, it was on the second flooring, which is third flooring for us Pinoys, and because it was in an older constructing, there was no elevator. Similarly, in Skopje, North Macedonia, we booked Apartment Emilija, which had a tremendous location — we may see the principle sq. proper from our window. The unit itself was spacious and cozy, however it was on the fourth flooring, which is fifth flooring by our requirements, with no elevator.
Before finalizing your lodging, at all times verify which flooring your unit is on and whether or not the constructing has an elevator. This small element could make an enormous distinction in your consolation, particularly after a protracted day of exploring. And, once more:
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7. Beware of scams.
Like many main cities in Europe, scams exist within the Balkans. Although they don’t seem to be as rampant as in Paris, Barcelona, or Berlin, scams nonetheless exist right here. The commonest sort of rip-off vacationers encounter right here normally entails taxis.
We personally skilled a taxi rip-off in North Macedonia. We normally favor public transportation, however generally, particularly when arriving late at evening, taking a taxi is the one possibility. Since there have been three of us, we figured splitting the fare wouldn’t be too dangerous.
Before getting within the taxi, we agreed on a worth with the driving force. However, after we arrived at our vacation spot, he immediately demanded more cash. When we refused, different taxi drivers surrounded us, attempting to intimidate us.
Unfortunately, taxi scams occur in different cities too. If you think a driver is overcharging, stroll away and discover one other taxi. To keep away from this, you possibly can ask your lodging host for an estimate of the same old fare from the station to your keep. Many hosts even advocate a trusted switch service to make sure you’re not overcharged. For instance, our host in Skopje went the additional mile to personally take us to the bus station so we wouldn’t must cope with taxi scams.
In our six weeks of touring within the Balkans, we solely encountered two scams and fell for one. However, there are different scams that vacationers have reported, similar to because the cash collector rip-off and overpriced menu rip-off. Thankfully, we didn’t encounter these, however researching widespread scams earlier than your journey may help you acknowledge and keep away from them.
8. Secure obligatory journey insurance coverage.
Since we’re speaking about security, keep in mind that when making use of for a Schengen visa, having journey insurance coverage is obligatory. Not simply any insurance coverage — it should be Schengen-accredited. For dependable protection, you possibly can ebook TravelPleasure Plus via PGA Sompo. This ensures you’re protected all through your journey.
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2025 7 21 – First uploaded