Sredno Vodno
A picnic plateau.
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Mount Vodno rises straight behind Skopje to the south-west, and its summit, Krstovar, at 1,066 metres, gives the widest view of the city and the Vardar valley. On the summit stands the Millennium Cross, raised in 2002 and lit at night, so the peak can be seen from almost everywhere in the city. Most visitors go up to Sredno Vodno, Middle Vodno, at 557 metres, a wooded plateau with picnic spots and a café, reached by road or on foot from the city. From there a cable car normally carries visitors to the summit, but it has been closed since April 2026, after an inspection found serious faults, and the city aims to reopen it after a full overhaul by the end of November 2026; check its status before you go. Until it reopens, the summit is reached on foot: marked forest trails climb from Sredno Vodno in about an hour to an hour and a half. Take water and good shoes, and set off early in summer, when the slopes are hot by midday. The trails are busy with walkers from Skopje at weekends.
A picnic plateau.
Up to the summit.
And the Vardar valley.
South-west of Skopje: Krstovar summit and the Sredno Vodno plateau
No, it has been closed for repairs since April 2026, and the city aims to reopen it by the end of November 2026, so check before you go.