Mavrovo National Park

Mavrovo National Park (Маврово) is the largest national park in North Macedonia, a mountainous region in the west of the country stretching to the Albanian border. Beech and fir forests, high pastures, deep gorges and Mount Korab, the country's highest peak, make it a place of wild landscapes and traditional villages.

At its heart lies Lake Mavrovo, a reservoir whose most famous sight is the Church of Saint Nicholas, half submerged when the valley was flooded and emerging or disappearing with the water level. In the Radika gorge below stands the Monastery of Saint John Bigorski, whose iconostasis, carved in walnut in the nineteenth century, is one of the finest works of woodcarving in the Balkans. Show more

The mountain village of Galičnik, with stone houses on a steep slope, is known for its traditional wedding celebrated each summer with costumes, music and dances. Trails lead to Mount Korab, the Duf waterfall and the high pastures where shepherds graze their flocks, and the forests are home to bears, wolves and the rare Balkan lynx. Mavrovo is the country's largest ski area in winter, and local cheeses, lamb and trout from mountain streams are regional specialities.

Mavrovo is reached by road from Skopje in about an hour and a half, or from Ohrid via Debar. Several days suit hiking and village visits. Summer and early autumn are ideal for walking, and winter brings the ski season.