Zlatibor

The Zlatibor plateau sits at approximately 1,000 metres elevation, giving the area its characteristic mild summer climate and the highest tree-per-capita rate in Europe — around 1,000 trees per person on average, according to local figures. The air quality and the altitude make it a traditional health resort destination, a role it has held since King Aleksandar Obrenović encouraged its development as a holiday area around the turn of the 20th century.

Development accelerated in the 1970s with the construction of hotels and sanatoria throughout the forested areas. The centre of the town today is a compact resort core with shops, restaurants, a live-music stage at Kraljev trg, and an artificial lake. The surroundings are considerably quieter, and most of the better walking and cycling is done away from the centre.

Drawing on Matthias Pasler's Reise-Taschenbuch Serbien: the Kraljeva česma — the King's Spring — at the edge of town was established by King Aleksandar in 1893, prompting the renaming of the village from Kulaševac to Kraljeva Voda ('King's Water'). After World War II it became Partizanska Voda, a name that persisted into the 1990s.

The Sirogojno open-air museum (Muzej Staro selo), 24 km from Zlatibor, is one of the more carefully constructed rural museums in Serbia. Old timber houses from across the Zlatibor mountain region were dismantled and reassembled here from 1980 onwards; the collection now includes more than 50 buildings with approximately 1,500 objects documenting 19th-century highland life. Seven of the houses are fitted to modern standards and available as accommodation. The museum was nominated for the European Museum Prize in 2014. Guided tours in English require advance reservation.

The Stopića cave (Stopića pečina), around 20 km west of Zlatibor, is noted not primarily for rock formations but for its pools — the deepest reaches 7 metres — and a 10-metre underground waterfall. The cave is open to visitors on a seasonal basis.

The Šarganska osmica narrow-gauge railway departs from Mokra Gora–Vitasi station. The route, 15.4 km long with 22 tunnels, was first opened in 1925 and closed in the 1970s; it was restored as a heritage line and now operates primarily for leisure travel. The Drvengrad village of Emir Kusturica is 40 km from the Zlatibor station by taxi, and reachable from Mokra Gora by the heritage train.

The best restaurants in the Zlatibor centre are noted for using high-quality local ingredients rather than simply capitalising on the resort setting. Traditional Serbian dishes — grilled meats, hearty soups, cured produce — appear here in preparations that reflect the quality of the surrounding agricultural land. Lamb, dairy products, and vegetables from the highland farms are the basis for most menus.

In Drvengrad (Küstendorf), three main eating options each take a different approach: the Konak guesthouse serves breakfast coffee and traditional fare; Lotika grills meat and vegetables sourced from Kusturica's own farm; and Visconti combines Serbian and Italian influences with a wine selection. The Ćorkan café — named after a character from Ivo Andrić's fiction — handles desserts, and the Kapor-Bar opens according to demand and crowd size.