Hotels Restaurants Cafés Nightlife Sightseeing Events Maps NIŠ Spring - Summer 2011 Nišville The region's largest jazz festival is at Niš fortress this August Niška Banja Follow in the footsteps of Roman emperors and treat yourself to a bath at the famed N°3 thermal spa www.inyourpocket.com I SSN 1821 - 4576 9 7 7 1 8 2 1 4 5 7 0 0 7 CONTENTS 3 ESSENTIAL CITY GUIDES Contents Arriving in Niš 6 Getting around 7 Basics 8 History 10 From the city of Constantine to Tito's Yugoslavia Quick Picks 12 Culture & Events 15 Music, festivals, film, exhibitions, food and competitions Where to stay 20 Hotels, hostels and Niška Banja (spa) The warm friendly inhabitants of Niš are keen on talking long relaxing strolls through the city and its surroundings, Where to eat 25 and we suggests doing the same while you're in town Vegetarians beware Cafés 29 Try Niš's favourite pastime Nightlife 31 Warm to the infectious party energy What to see 34 The fortress, Devil's town and secret lovers' hideaways Sport 39 Shopping 40 Directory 42 Beauty & Wellness Belgrade 44 Explore the Serbian capital Exit festival 46 Maps&Index It's spring in Niš and love is in the air! You're never too old Country map 47 to spend some quality time with the one(s) you love, and City map 48 there's no better place to do so than in one of the city's many fine parks during the warmer months. If you're feeling Transport lines 50 especially romantic (or frisky) check out one of the special Index 51 lover's hideaways we've listed on page 36. nis.inyourpocket.com Spring - Summer 2011 4 FOREWORD Most widely known to the rest of the world as the birthplace of Roman emperor Constantine the Great (p 10), Niš has spent Europe In Your Pocket the past decade or so both modernising its infrastructure and embracing its rich cultural past. The recent addition of some first-rate hotels and chilled out hostels (p 20) guarantee visitors will find a great place to stay no matter their budget, and the wide selection of dining options (p 25) likewise caters to all tastes and wallets (although as with elsewhere in the region vegetarians will be looked upon with some combina- tion of sorrow and amusement). Of course most tourists visit Niš for the sights, and there is plenty to see and do, including several great museums (p 35), some breathtaking natural wonders (p 37) and the world-famous Niška Banja spa complex just outside of town. The summer months also bring a deluge of notable events (p 15) to Niš, including the world renowned Nišville Jazz Festival (p 16), which attracts some 100,000 visitors each August. As Serbia's third largest city and cultural heart of the coun- try's south, Niš boasts an unparalleled historical legacy and enough modern attractions to put it on par with any city in the region in terms of tourist offerings, and of course never fails to deliver when it comes to the legendary Serbian sense of hospitality. Add to this the inevitable arrival of inexpensive travel options from Western Europe now that Serbia has finally been extended visa free travel to the Schengen zone, and there has never been a better time to visit this warm, welcoming, dynamic city on the move. Cover story In Your Pocket has broken much new ground of Along with Novi Sad's Exit late, publishing new guides in the Netherlands and Guča in Čačak, the (Den Bosch, Utrecht), in Austria (Vienna), in Cro- Nišville Jazz Festival is atia (Brac and Senj), in Slovenia (Celje), in Serbia one of Serbia's three large summer music events (Nis) and in Switzerland (Zurich). A new guide to that truly have to be ex- Minsk, Belarus, will be the next In Your Pocket perienced to be believed. to launch, early in the summer. This year Nišville has the We have also begun rolling out iPhone apps to honour of welcoming back all our cities. We will be launching even more In the chart topping Dutch Your Pocket guides as apps throughout this year: smooth jazz saxophonist to find out which cities we will be covering, and Candy Dulfer, who first performed at the festival to keep up to date with all In Your Pocket news in 2009. Fans will also and events, like In Your Pocket on Facebook have the pleasure of see her perform with her father (facebook.com/inyourpocket) or follow us on Hans Dulfer, a jazz legend in his own right. Twitter (twitter.com/inyourpocket). Editorial Copyright notice Editor Yuri Barron Text and photos copyright Belgrade In Your Pocket. Maps copyright Bg Info Box. All ESSENTIAL CITY GUIDES Writers Will Dunn, Yuri Barron Editorial Contributors rights reserved. No part of this publication Niš In Your Pocket may be reproduced in any form, except brief Natalija Živanović, Nebojša Krstić extracts for the purpose of review, without Živojina Žujovića 24 Design Boba Jovanović written permission from the publisher and 11000 Belgrade, Serbia Layout Radomir Lazović copyright owner. The brand name In Your tel. (+38111)383 005 0 Research Natalija Živanović, Jelena Pocket is used under license from UAB [email protected] Petrović In Your Pocket (Vokieciu 10-15, Vilnius, www.inyourpocket.com Lithuania tel. (+370-5) 212 29 76). ©Bg Info Box Photos Aleksandar Ćirić (cover photo), BG Info Box gallery, Ton gallery Niš, Tourist Organisation of Niš Editor’s note Voždova 7 Maps Tourist Organisation of Niš, BG Info Box The editorial content of In Your Pocket 18000 Niš, Serbia guides is independent from paid-for tel. (+38118)523 118 Sales & Circulation advertising. Sponsored listings are www.nistourism.org.rs General Manager Saša Marjanović clearly marked as such. We welcome all Sales & Circulation BG Info Box readers‘ comments and suggestions. CIP - Katalogizacija u publikaciji We have made every effort to ensure Narodna biblioteka Srbije, Beograd Printed by AD Politika the accuracy of the information at the ISSN 1821-4576 Published 2 times per year time of going to press and assume no COBISS.SR-ID 173535244 10,000 copies responsibility for changes and errors. Niš In Your Pocket nis.inyourpocket.com FOREWORD 5 The In Your Pocket iPhone App Press Box A wide range of In Your Pocket guides are now “Solid, reliable information on everything from available in iTunes as iPhone apps. Developed in where to book a reasonable B&B to how best association with Meta4Labs, the apps combine to spend 72 hours in a city.” all the best features of In Your Pocket guides - up- The Guardian -to-date, accurate, well-written and independent information - with the functionality of the iPhone. “You do not even need to pack a guidebook: just pick up an In Your Pocket when you arrive.” Simon Calder The Independent & LBC Radio “In Your Pocket: a cheeky, well-written series of guidebooks.” The New York Times “Most of the traditional guidebook companies now have decent websites, with plenty of advi- ce and information either freely available or downloadable for a fee, but inyourpocket.com is also well worth a browse. Concentrating on both well-known and more offbeat European destinations, its free downloadable city and country guides are compiled by locals and regularly updated.” The Independent You can search all venues in a city by location, “The secret of the In Your Pocket guides is and find the cafes, bars and restaurants closest that, unlike many expensive travel guides, to you, as well as browse the app’s entire content they are written by native English speakers offline. We even supply high-resolution static living in the city they are writing about. That street and transport maps (exactly the same can lend itself to frank, matter-of-fact advice as those in our guides) so you can enjoy In Your about your destination rather than jaded Pocket on your iPhone without racking up huge impressions from world-weary professional roaming charges. travel writers.” The Irish Times Other features include fully integrated Google Maps, within-app dialling and web browsing, em- “With so many European cities now within bedded In Your Pocket video guides, currency exchange calculator and local weather informa- easy range of a low-cost airline flight, this web- tion. All In Your Pocket apps have native hi-res site is a (literally) priceless first stop before graphics for iPhone 4. your holiday. The guides are free to download and print off as pdfs and have information And like In Your Pocket guides, our apps are on where to eat and stay and what to see on updated regularly by local researchers and European city breaks.” native English speaking writers. More than ten The Times In Your Pocket cities are currently available as iPhone apps, and more are being released “In Your Pocket guides are each written by an all the time. English language writer who lives locally. All information is also available on the publisher’s Visit the App Store on your iPhone or PC/Mac website.” now and see if your city is In Your Pocket and Sueddeutsche Zeitung on your iPhone. “The In Your Pocket series of guide booklets have turned out to be highly useful in avoiding tourist traps and other travel hazards. A mix of Lonely Planet and Time Out, they have become a European publishing phenomenon.” International Herald Tribune nis.inyourpocket.com Spring - Summer 2011 6 ARRIVING IN NIŠ GETTING AROUND By bus Tourist information All international and regional buses arrive in and depart from the main bus station (Autobuska stanica), which is situated Tourist Information Centre Niš B-2, Voždova 7, tel.