Balkan Tale by Bus (7 Nights - All Sightseeing and Extra Tours Included - With Thessaloniki Accommodation Privilege) - 2027 Season

Balkan Tale by Bus

(Extra Tours, Dinners, Balkan Night & Greek Tavern Included)

(9 Days 8 Nights, 7 Nights Accommodation)

9 Countries – 5 Capitals – 25 Cities

Greece – North Macedonia – Kosovo – Albania – Montenegro – Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Serbia – Bulgaria

Kavala – Thessaloniki (1) – Bitola – Resen - Ohrid (1) - Kichevo – Tetovo - Skopje (1) – Pristina – Prizren – Lezhe – Shkoder (1) – Petrovac – Budva – Kotor – Herceg Novi – Dubrovnik – Medjugorje (1) – Mostar – Jablanica – Konjic – Sarajevo (1) – Belgrade (1) – Sofia

Greek Tavern with Music and Dinner Included Matka Canyon Included
Dubrovnik Tour Included 5 Dinners Included Bosnian Meatball Taste
Pocitelj Village Included Kravica Waterfall Included Balkan Night with Music and Dinner Included

Departure Dates

March 5 – March 6 & April 22 & May 14 – May 15 & June 5 – June 19 & July 3 – July 10 – July 17 – July 24 – July 31 & August 7 – August 14 – August 21 – August 28 & September 4 – September 18 & October 2 – October 16 – October 30 & November 13

We start our tour by picking up our valued guests from in front of the Istanbul Kadıköy Marriage Office parking lot at 21:00, then in front of Mecidiyeköy Ziraat Bank at 21:30, from İncirli Ömür Bus Stops at 22:00, and from Beylikdüzü Marmara Park at 22:30. Following the Selimpaşa, Silivri, and Tekirdağ route, we arrive at the İpsala border gate. After completing our passport and customs procedures here, we continue our journey with an overnight trip.

We have our breakfast freely on the way in the morning. Then we move to Kavala, one of the important cities of Greece. After our panoramic tour and photo break here, we continue our journey towards Thessaloniki. During our panoramic city tour after arriving in Thessaloniki, we first see the Church of Saint Demetrios, the largest church in Greece, and then the house where the founder of the Republic of Turkey, the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, was born and lived. Afterwards, the Hagia Sophia Church, Bey Hamam, Hamza Bey Mosque, Bedesten, White Tower, Rotating Tower, and the International Fair area are some of the places we will see. During the free time we will give after our tour, we recommend you to take a walk on the Waterfront, famous for its cafes and shops, and visit Aristotle Square. After the free time, we see the Alexander the Great statue before moving to our hotel. Transfer to our hotel after our tour. We depart from our hotel for the Greek Tavern Tour, which will be organized as included in the tour price in the evening. After having our dinner accompanied by Greek melodies and having fun to the fullest, we transfer to our hotel. Overnight at our hotel.

Breakfast: Will be taken as an extra on the way. Soup, breakfast plate, pastry, brewed tea alternatives can be evaluated (Not included in the tour price).
Lunch: Free time in Thessaloniki. You can choose seafood at the fish restaurants on the waterfront (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: Greek Tavern (Included in the tour price).
Currency: € (Euro)
Route: Istanbul – Thessaloniki (590 km),
Approximate Distance to be Traveled: 590 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated depending on customs crossing time: 17:30

After the breakfast we will have at the hotel in the morning, we leave the hotel with our luggage and continue our journey towards the Greece-Macedonia border. After passport and customs procedures, we arrive at the city of Bitola (Monastir), where the military high school that Mustafa Kemal Atatürk attended is located. During the tour we will take here, the military high school, which today houses the Atatürk Memorial Room and also hosts the city's archaeology museum, Shirok Street, the new mosque, and Eleni Karinte's balcony are just some of what we will see. During the free time we will give after our tour here, you can have your lunch at the restaurants on Shirok Street. We continue our journey towards Ohrid by departing at the meeting time given by our guide. With our arrival in Ohrid, we start our walking tour. During our tour in this beautiful city, which is famous for its pearl established on the shores of Lake Ohrid and is as beautiful as a pearl itself, Ohrid houses, Hagia Sophia church, Damat Ali Pasha mosque, Halveti Tekke and Mosque, and the Turkish quarter are some of the places we will see. After touring Ohrid on foot, free time for your shopping and enjoyment. We recommend you to drink a glass of Turkish tea or Turkish coffee in the Turkish quarter. After our tour, we move towards our hotel by meeting at the specified place and time. Dinner and overnight at our hotel.

Breakfast: Will be taken as an open buffet at the hotel we will stay at (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: Will be taken during free time in Bitola (Monastir) city (Not included in the tour price)
Dinner: Will be taken as an open buffet or set menu at the hotel (Included in the tour price)
Currencies: € (Euro) in Greece, Dinar (1€ = 61 Dinar) in Macedonia
Route: Thessaloniki – Bitola (219 km), Bitola – Ohrid (70 km)
Approximate Distance to be Traveled: 289 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated depending on customs crossing time: 20:30

After the breakfast we will have at the hotel in the morning, we complete our check-out procedures and leave our hotel with our luggage. After a short and delicious break we will give in Straza on the route, we go to Tetovo, one of the important cities of Macedonia, where the majority of the population consists of Albanians. After our arrival, we visit the Painted Mosque, which has perhaps the most colorful visual you can see. During our visit, we drink ice-cold mountain water from the fountain in the mosque courtyard and continue our journey towards Skopje, the capital of Macedonia. After our arrival in Skopje, we set out to explore the streets of this city that embraces the east and the west. While walking in the part of the largest bazaar built outside the capital in Ottoman history that has survived to the present day, Kapan Han, Sulu Han, Chifte Hamam, Murat Pasha Mosque, Sultan Murat Mosque, clock tower, stone bridge, Skopje fortress, statue groups built within the scope of the 2014 project, Macedonian Square, Vardar River, Alexander the Great statue are just some of what we will see in this magnificent city. If you are lucky and it hasn't run out early in the morning that day, you should eat the famous bitter almond, if it is the season, you should definitely drink a cold boravitsa and taste the kikiriki. Transfer to our hotel after our tour. Accommodation at our hotel. We depart from the hotel for our Balkan Night tour with dinner, music, and entertainment, which will be organized as included in the tour price. After enjoying both the food and having fun to the fullest with Rumelia, Balkan, and Macedonian melodies, transfer to our hotel and overnight.

Breakfast: Will be taken as an open buffet at the hotel we will stay at (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: Free time in Skopje Bazaar (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: Balkan Night (Included in the tour price).
Currency: Macedonian Dinar (1€ = 61 Dinar)
Route: Ohrid – Skopje (170 km),
Approximate Distance to be Traveled: 200 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated: 18:00

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out procedures and depart from our hotel with our luggage. First, our guide takes us to Matka Canyon, included in our tour program, for a pleasant walk in nature and to store up on oxygen. After our enjoyable walk here, we set off and reach the Macedonia-Kosovo border. Following passport and customs procedures, we arrive in Kosovo, the second newest state in the world and the newest in Europe. We first arrive in Prizren, where you will feel as if you are in an Anatolian town, bearing many traces of the Ottoman Empire. During our walking tour here, the Sinan Pasha Mosque, the minaret of the Arasta Mosque, the Ottoman bath, the stone bridge, the Turkish consulate, and the fortress are just some of the places we will see. We highly recommend you taste the delicious local dishes during the free time we will have here. After completing our Prizren tour, we go to visit the tomb built at the site where the tent of Sultan Murad Hudavendigar, one of the important sultans of Ottoman history, was set up, and where his organs were embalmed and buried after he passed away following the battle. After our visit to the tomb, we see Pristina panoramically on the way, complete our visits in Kosovo, and set off for the city of Shkoder in Albania for our overnight stay. Upon arrival, we check into our hotel for dinner and an overnight stay.

Breakfast: Will be served as an open buffet at the hotel where we will stay (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: Free time in the Pristina Bazaar (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: Will be served as an open buffet or set menu at the hotel (Included in the tour price)
Currencies: Macedonian Denar (1€ = 61 Denar), Kosovo € (Euro), Albanian Lek (1€ = 124 Lek)
Route: Skopje – Pristina (95 km), Pristina – Prizren (86 km), Prizren – Shkoder (187 km)
Approximate Distance to be Covered: 390 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated: 19:30

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out procedures and depart from our hotel with our luggage. After completing our passport and customs procedures at the Albania-Montenegro border, we continue through Podgorica, Sutomore, and Petrovac, seeing the Sv. Stefan island, which was purchased by a Singaporean multi-billionaire, panoramically, and then passing by the city of Budva, famous for its beaches, which we will also see panoramically from our vehicle. Immediately after Budva, one of the ideal centers abroad for a seaside holiday, we arrive in Kotor, one of the important places of the Middle Ages that has survived to the present day. When you see the city of Kotor, which has defied centuries in the depths of the bay and on the slope of the mountain, one of the tourist centers of Montenegro, both your mind and heart will remain here. During our walking tour upon arrival, the mansions of families very important to Kotor, the Cathedral of Saint Tryphon, the Orthodox church, squares, and beautiful stories are just some of what we will see and hear. During the free time we will have in this city, if the season and weather are suitable, you can climb the stairs to the chapel at the very top of the walls and take magnificent landscape photos, taste different and magnificent dishes by following the scents in the narrow streets of the city, sip your drink in one of the squares, or visit the Cat Museum, one of the most interesting museums in the city. Don't forget to ask your guide where that magnificent cake is in this city; it is our recommendation to all dessert lovers. After the free time, we leave Kotor, pass from Montenegro to Croatia, and arrive in Dubrovnik, one of the most popular holiday centers of recent years, which was also used as a filming set for the popular series Game of Thrones, and which is a very important settlement in terms of its historical relations with the Ottoman Empire. During our walking tour inside the fortress, the Pile Gate, Ploce Gate, Onofrio's Fountain, the world's first pharmacy, the Franciscan Monastery, Orlando's Column, Sponza Palace, and the Rector's Palace are some of the places we will see. After our pleasant tour in this city that smells of the Middle Ages, you can explore the side streets of the city, shop in the stores, taste seafood, or have a pleasant coffee while watching the sea or the medieval streets during the free time we will provide. After the free time, we meet at the time and place given by our guide, leave Dubrovnik, first cross into Bosnia and Herzegovina, and transfer to our hotel in Medjugorje. Dinner and overnight stay at our hotel.

Breakfast: Will be served as an open buffet at the hotel where we will stay (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: Free time in Kotor (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: Will be served as an open buffet or set menu at the hotel (Included in the tour price)
Currencies: Albanian Lek (1€ = 124 Lek), Montenegro €, Croatia Kuna (1€ = 7.6 Kuna)
Route: Shkoder – Kotor (110 km), Kotor – Dubrovnik (93 km), Dubrovnik – Trebinje (35 km)
Approximate Distance to be Covered: 260 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated: 20:30

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out procedures and depart from the hotel with our luggage. First, we go to the Kravica waterfalls, a natural wonder included in our tour program. After the free time here, we reach Pocitelj, a garrison village that has survived from the Ottoman era to the present day. After seeing the Ottoman houses, the bath, the mosque, and the old cobblestone streets, and sipping our Turkish tea and Bosnian coffee, we leave the village. Our next stop is Mostar, one of the most important cities in the region, which was destroyed by the fire of Croatian artillery during the Bosnian War in our recent history, later rebuilt with the contributions of the Republic of Turkey, famous for its bridge listed on the UNESCO World Heritage list, and which will take you to a completely different world with its narrow and authentic streets remaining from the Ottoman era. During our tour here, the Mostar Bridge, Koski Mehmed Pasha Mosque, the Catholic cathedral, the Turkish consulate, and the martyrs' cemetery are some of the places we will see. If we are on a lucky day, we might see the young people who jump from the bridge for show, but whose story dates back to old times. During the free time we will provide after our tour, you can buy souvenirs unique to Mostar and take a nice lunch break. After the free time, we meet with our vehicle at the time and place given by our guide and continue our journey towards Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Upon arrival, we start exploring the city center on foot. During our walking tour, the Sebilj, which is the symbol of the city, Gazi Husrev-beg Madrasa, Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque, the bazaar, the clock tower, the various shops of Bascarsija, the Sacred Heart Cathedral, the Eternal Flame, the Latin Bridge, and the Fatih Mosque are just some of the places we will see. After our walking tour, you can drink Bosnian coffee in cafes unique to Bosnia, lose yourself in the magnificent Bosnian pastry (burek), or explore the city by getting lost in its streets remaining from the European and Ottoman periods. After our tour, we eat the famous Bosnian meatball, cevapi, for dinner in the city center. (Depending on the hotel to be stayed in, dinner may also be taken at the hotel). After dinner, transfer to our hotel by our vehicle. Overnight stay at our hotel.

Breakfast: Will be served as an open buffet at the hotel where we will stay (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: Free time in Mostar (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: We will eat the famous Bosnian meatballs in Sarajevo Bascarsija. 8 Bosnian meatballs, salad, drink (Included in the tour price) (Depending on the hotel to be stayed in, dinner may also be taken at the hotel)
Currencies: Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark (1 € = 1.96 KM)
Route: Trebinje – Mostar (116 km), Mostar – Sarajevo (130 km)
Approximate Distance to be Covered: 290 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated: 20:30

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out procedures and set off for Belgrade with our luggage. With a pleasant journey continuing through the plateaus and villages of Bosnia and Herzegovina, we cross the border gate located on the Drina River, which we are familiar with from books, and enter another country on our program. After the winding roads of Bosnia and Herzegovina, we reach Belgrade by watching the exact opposite of what we have seen: vast plains, villages, and magnificent views. During our walking tour upon arrival, Knez Mihailova Street, Kalemegdan, the Monument of Gratitude to France, the Istanbul Gate, the Tomb of Damad Ali Pasha, the panorama point, the Victor monument, the Zindan Gate, the Leopold Gate, the clock tower, and the walls are just some of the places we will see. After our walking tour, you can wander the lively streets of Belgrade, taste different ice cream flavors at the ice cream parlor recommended by your guide, or have a pleasant coffee while watching the surroundings and the city. After our tour, transfer to our hotel by our vehicle. Dinner and overnight stay at our hotel.

Breakfast: Will be served as an open buffet at the hotel where we will stay (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: We can have optional lamb tandoori, fish, meatballs, or soup options at Luna Hotel & Restaurant in the city of Zvornik (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: Will be served as an open buffet or set menu at the hotel (Included in the tour price)
Currencies: Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark (1 € = 1.96 KM), Serbian Dinar (1€ = 118 Dinar)
Route: Sarajevo – Belgrade (294 km)
Approximate Distance to be Covered: 320 km
Hotel Check-in Time: Estimated: 20:30

After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out procedures and set off for Sofia with our luggage. Upon our arrival in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, we start our panoramic city tour. During this tour, the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, which is the second largest Orthodox church in the Balkans, the Russian Church, the Saint Sophia Church, the Rotunda Church, the Archaeological Museum, the Presidency, the Prime Ministry, and the Banya Bashi Mosque are some of the places we will see. After the free time we will provide following the panoramic tour, we meet at the time and place given by our guide and leave Sofia. We arrive at the Kapikule border gate, and after the passport and customs procedures here, we return to Istanbul following the highway. Upon our arrival in Istanbul, we bid you farewell, hoping to see you again on our next tour, by dropping you off at the points where we picked you up.

Breakfast: Will be served as an open buffet at the hotel where we will stay (Included in the tour price)
Lunch: Free time in Sofia (Not included in the tour price).
Dinner: Will be taken at a road facility within the borders of Turkey (Not included in the tour price).
Currency: Euro
Route: Belgrade – Sofia (391 km), Sofia – Istanbul (553 km)
Approximate Distance to be Covered: 944 km