Monastery "St. Naum"

Set amidst lush verdure where the River Crn Drim tumbles into the lake, the monastery of St. Naum is a refuge of tranquility at the very southwestern corner of the Macedonian Republic. Situated 29 km (18 m) from the town of Ohrid and only 1 kilometer (0.6 m) from the Albanian border, the monastery brings the Macedonian experience to a dramatic culmination.

As with most Byzantine churches, St. Naum was chosen primarily for its location – on a high, rocky outcropping over the lake, above deep forests and life-giving springs of the river Crn Drim. The monastic complex and church of St. Naum were built originally at the turn of the tenth century by the monk that beared the same name; Macedonians believe you can still hear the saint’s heartbeat by pressing an ear to his stone coffin inside the church.

The monastery has been renewed and enlarged several times over the centuries. While most of its iconostases and frescoes date from the 16th and 17th century, earlier etchings in the Byzantine Greek vernacular also remain. But numerous orthographical mistakes indicate that they were written by Slavic-speaking local monks. Other inscriptions in the church make up some of the oldest epigraphic evidence of Slavic literacy.

The icons of St. Naum are some of the best religious painting achievements in the Balkans. They date from the first half of the 18th century. The wood-carved iconostasis itself was made in 1711 by an unknown artisan.

A peculiar element of St. Naum is located not on the inside of the church but on the outside: the preponderance of multi-colored peacocks strutting around and luxuriating in the grass.

Travel with a bus

If you considering to go with a bus you have a dozen of buses between Ohrid and Skopje.Time travel is 3 hours.Price for one way ticket is 500 denars/8 EUR and two way tickets is 700 denars/ 11.3 EUR.

Time of departure from Skopje: 05:30, 06:00, 08:00,10:00,11:00,13:00,14:00,14:45,15:30,16:00,16:30,18:30,19:30.

Note: If you considering travelling on weekend and holidays please contact the bus station for any changes of the lines.

Travel by train

There is no train line to the city.

Travel with taxi

If you are not comfortable to travel by train or bus, you can always get a taxi.The price for one way is more or less 4920denars /80 EUR.

We recommended:

ABC Logistica
Mob: +389 78 504 500
Tel: +389 2 6143 900

Go with a car or rent a car

If you'd like to explore the land during your travel to you can go with a car or rent a car. Distance between Skopje and Ohrid is 174 km.

For rent a car we recommended:

ABC Logistica
Mob: +389 78 504 500
Tel: +389 2 6143 900

MIDA Rent a car  
Tel:+398 2 3292 888 / +389 2 3139 491