A melting pot of cultures. A small town full of magnificent architecture, history, and soul—that's Subotica. I'll tell you about the best things to do and see in this city in northern Serbia.
Chances are, you have never heard of Subotica before, even though it's Serbia's fifth biggest city. Nestled right at the Hungarian border in the province of Vojvodina in northern Serbia, it's not exactly on the way for many. But man, I am glad I visited when my friend Denise and I traveled to Vojvodina this September.
I didn't expect it, but Subotica completely charmed me with its colorful Art Nouveau architecture, tree-lined leafy streets, the friendly locals, and their stories of different ethnicities and religions living side by side for centuries.
When we were there, Subotica was quiet –a town that used to be a bustling Austro-Hungarian market center awaiting its glorious times to return. But or maybe especially because of that, I enjoyed it a lot, and thought a day and a half were too short. Aber trotzdem – oder vielleicht gerade deswegen – habe ich es dort sehr genossen und fand, dass eineinhalb Tage viel zu kurz waren.
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Subotica at a glance
Don't have time to read the whole article? Here are the most important facts at a glance:
💭 Subotica is a melting pot of different cultures and nationalities. Walk through the streets and you will see that every single sign is written in Serbian, Hungarian, and Croatian
📚 Take an Art Nouveau city tour, as Subotica is the capital of Hungarian Secession and full of beautiful buildings
🛏️ Stay at least one night to soak up the atmosphere of the city. Stay Garni Hotel or Lena’s Home
☀️ Be sure to go wine tasting near Lake Palić
🧡 If you only have time for a day trip, go wine tasting and take a day tour directly from Belgrade aus
How many days in Subotica
Subotica is small but, for me, the most beautiful city in Serbia from what I've seen so far. Even though most people make it a day trip from Novi Sad or Belgrade , I would recommend you stay at least for one night. Our accommodation was great–just a few minutes walk to the city center, cosy and the owners were super friendly.
Best things to do and see in Subotica
The best thing about Subotica: All attractions are within walking distance of one another, no need for public transportation or renting a car. If you want to venture out a bit further and explore Lake Palić and the wineries, you can easily do that by taxi, it's just about a fifteen to twenty minutes car ride.
Take a Subotica city tour and look at the art nouveau style architecture
As in every city, I recommend you take a guided tour to see the most important sights (here in Subotica, the amazing art nouveau buildings) and learn more about their unique stories, what the decorations and ornaments mean, as well as the city's history of co-existence. Our Guide Nemanja was amazing, and his pride about the city was audible in every word. Unfortunately, he's traveling quite a bit but maybe you're lucky to catch him when you're in town.
If you can't catch Nemanja, you can support his project: The Subotica tourist stamps booklet takes you to the most beautiful buildings in Subotica. Upon entering you can collect stamps. The town hall and Subotica synagogue are part of this project among other things, and your entrance fee is used to upkeep the buildings.
You can also visit all of Subotica's Art Nouveau buildings, including admission, on a special “Queen of Art Nouveau” city tour .
Visit Lake Palić
Just eight kilometers out of Subotica, you find the city's favorite walking and leisure area. The first spa and inn were built here already in 1845, and since then people have flocked to the lake for bathing and its healing mud or just to stroll in the park and along the promenade. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to visit this time, but I always like to say that you have to keep some things in every place you visit, so you have a reason to come back.
Go wine tasting at Zvonko Bogdan
The Vojvodina region has a long tradition of winemaking, so your trip to Subotica is simply not complete without some wine tasting! We visited at the beginning of October, which is actually a great time to visit the wineries because the harvest is done. We were lucky to see the workers in the cellars preparing the wine for fermentation.
Zvonko Bogdan is a quite new winery from 2005 but it's built in the old Austro-Hungarian style, all very regal and elegant, and I really enjoyed our wine tasting in their cellar among the barrels. We went for the premium tasting experience: six wines and mezze (local cheeses and meats).
Even if you don't go to Zvonko Bogdan, I really recommend you plan at least one winery visit for your trip. Try Tamjanika, the local variety, and enjoy the view over the vines.
Enter the Subotica Synagogue
I don't think I have seen many buildings in my life that touched me as much as the Subotica Synagogue! It's magical, and I'm saying that as a non-religious person. The synagogue itself is an example of Hungarian art nouveau, built by two Hungarian architects who could not afford the most expensive materials for their project.
Instead they used cheaper materials but created magic with them: The synagogue is full of colors, flowers, and ornaments on two levels. To visit the synagogue, you pay a 250 Dinars entrance fee, you receive an audio guide that tells you more about the architecture and meaning behind the decorations. We arrived right when it opened at 10.00 AM and it got busy really quick, so keep that in mind. If you want a more quiet or spiritual experience, the evening hours before closing time might be better?
🕍 You can learn more about the Jewish heritage in Subotica on a Jewish Heritage Tour .
Visit the Subotica City Hall
When you explore Subotica, you will stumble about the City Hall in any case–but if you have the time, do a tour of it too. The facade and inside of the building is, like the art nouveau synagogue, full of ornaments and symbolism. On the entrance to the building, you will also notice one of the unique and unusual things about Subotica: Every sign in the entire city is written in three languages: Hungarian, Serbian, and Croatian for all three nationalities living in and sharing the city. There is no majority, Nemanja told us, and that's why the city is functioning so well as multicultural and multinational place.
Marvel at Raichle Palace
Another beautiful art nouveau example (I don't think I have ever used this words as much as for this article) is the Raichle Palace that has now been turned into Subotica's Modern Art Gallery. The architect Ferenc Raichle built it for himself and his family at the beginning of the 20th century – just combining all the things he loved in the building, which is a pretty cool story, if you ask me. We didn't enter but took countless pictures from the outside.
And here's a secret travel tip as well: Next to Raichle Palace you will find a little pub, called Büfet. Those bars existed in Subotica close to the train station so workers would go and have a shot of rakija on the way home from work. Even though the are called büfet (German for buffet) there is no food, only alcoholic drinks.
Walk past the Cathedral of Saint Terese & the Monument to Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Fascism
A little bit outside the center of Subotica, you find those two sights that Nemanja recommended we visit outside of our tour. Because the city of Subotica is built on the Pannonian plains where the ground is very sandy, parts of the city are actually sinking! You can see proof of that on the Cathedral's front—it simply cracked when the sand underneath shifted! And well, I don't think that we ever need a good reason to visit a monument for the Victims of Fascism,Fascism, but this one is a great example of Socialist architecture and a change to the beautiful art nouveau architecture.
Extra tip: Support "Subotica is not dead"
On the streets of Subotica, you might run across signs like the one below "Keep our city clean" or groups of people painting doors, cleaning facades, scrubbing pavements. Then you have met Natalja's crew, the volunteering organisation „Subotica is not dead“.
After returning to Serbia from the US, Natalja started this initiative to renovate the historical buildings of her city and keep the art nouveau in Subotica alive. By now, the group has renovated 24 doors, 2 facades and a public toilet, among other things. I think, this is a really cool project, and love seeing citizens take initiative here in the Balkans, where politics are sluggish and often dysfunctional. So if you can, support them 🙂
Where to stay in Subotica
🛏️ Super centrally located: Hotel Garni
🛏️ Our cosy, well equipped apartment: Lena’s Home
🛏️ Modernes Boutique-Hotel mit Parkplätzen: AVIOR Garni Hotel
🛏️ Tasteful boutique hotel with lots of art and a spa: Artist Hotel
🛏️ Cute and modern apartment in a central location: Passage Apartments
Where to eat in Subotica
In the restaurants, you might wonder: Where's the Serbian food? Subotica has been unter Austro-Hungarian rule for centuries and that shows in the food. Think Viennese schitzel, goulash or apple strudel. And yet, all those dishes have their own Serbian spin.
For the best food in Subotica, go to:
Basch House 1887 – for goulash and schnitzel
Boss Caffe – for breakfast & sweets
Bates – für traditionelle Grillgerichte und Livemusik am Wochenende
Denis Gastro Temple – for modern cuisine
Hausbrandt Caffe – for your morning coffee with a Habsburg flair
Thyme X Anamaria – for street food and brunch
How to get to Subotica
Subotica is easy to reach from Novi Sad and Belgrade by train. The travel time from Belgrade is 90 minutes, from Novi Sad it's around an hour. You can buy your ticket for the train from Belgrade to Subotica online or in the app.
Another options is the bus from Novi Sad to Subotica that takes around 2.5 hours. We took the bus and I enjoyed it, but be ready for a bumpy ride, the road is not in the very best condition.
Alternatively you can drive to Subotica too. I always use Discover Cars to book my rental carsand compare prices. Mostly because they offer additional insurance so you don't face costs in case someone bumps your car (it happened to me before).
Fall in love with Subotica
Now, you are well prepared for your visit to Subotica. I hope this article made you fall in love with Subotica in northern Serbia and convinced you to put it on your travel list for visiting Serbia. If you visit Vojvodina or Serbia, here are some more articles to help you plan your trip.
