Ohrid Region
The Natural and cultural heritage of the Ohrid Region comprises the ancient town of Ohrid and nearby Lake Ohrid, one of the deepest and oldest lakes in Europe.
Ohrid has been a cultural centre of great importance for the Balkan and the Slavonic language. Its Byzantine churches are renowned for their frescoes and icons. The lake, which is low in nutrients, holds many endemic species of fish, molluscs etc. The lakeshore reed beds and wetlands provide critical habitat for hundreds of thousands of wintering water birds.
Community Perspective: the site encompasses a large area and warrants multiple days to experience both its cultural and natural aspects. Visit outside of the summer months to avoid the tourist crowds. Clyde’s recent review focuses on the lesser-visited Albanian side.
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Clyde
After visiting Ohrid in Northern Macedonia in 2016, six years later we decided to visit Lin and Pogradec, both locations on the Albanian side. The closest we had come to the Albanian border was when we visited the Church of St Naum in Northern Macedonia.
Pogradec is located on a narrow plain between two mountain chains along the southwestern banks of Lake Ohrid. It is a very laid back place which was once a favorite summer escape for many Communist government officials, particularly Enver Hoxha. Nowadays, it seems to be a place where many locals retire. In the morning, many elderly locals meet up along the Pogradec Beach waterfront and Drilon Park to have coffee and play draughts or cards. We stayed in Pogradec for 1 night just in front of Lake Ohrid. Just before entering the city proper, there is a narrow uphill unpaved road which leads to the ruins of the Pogradec Castle which offer a great panoramic view of the lake and city in the morning.
Half way between Pogradec and Lin, there are several reed beds (good for birdwatching) and small camping sites. There's also a bicycle lane if you'd like to cycle to and from Pogradec or Lin. We weren't impressed by Pogradec as a WHS, so we decided to give Lin a try, which turned out to be a wise choice. If you had to opt for visiting only one of these two locations, definitely go for Lin. Lin is a village on a small peninsula with a cute church and just one narrow main road with houses partially built on piles over the lake. After parking our rental car near the main cafeteria of the village, we hiked for 5.56 km along the Lin Peninsula Hiking Trail names Lin's Gardens. The medium difficulty loop trail is mostly flat except for a 62 metre uphill climb to the top of the rocky hill where there are the remains of a Paleo Christian church with mosaic floors. The trail hugs the lakeshore where there are several rows of traditional lakeside gardens with cultivated crops.
The narrow trail which leads up from the small village of Lin to the top of the rocky hill can be found to the right of a pink house. This leads to an early Christian church which was discovered and excavated in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The Paleo Christian basilica is composed of three apses with numerous chambers and a baptising chapel, with floors decorated with mosaics, especially in the baptistery, the large narthex (8 metres wide and 3 metres wide), and the "Pastofori/Past-for". As already experienced in Butrint, it is normal practice in Albania to cover the floor mosaics with gravel and sand on canvas. Entrance to the remains is free and the local guard points out the main features of the site and sometimes uncovers part of the mosaic floors, usually the mostly intact ones of the "Pastofori/Past-for". Behind the ruins, there is a great panoramic viewpoint over the village of Lin and Lake Ohrid. Ohrid is clearly visible from here on the Northern Macedonia side of the lake. There's also one of the countless concrete bunkers of Albania at the very tip of the peninsula.
All in all, we really enjoyed our visit to Lin and Pogradec, but they are no match to Ohrid in Northern Macedonia. Before leaving Lin, we had a delicious lunch at Rosa's Home guesthouse, just over Lake Ohrid, where we tried the excellent Ohrid speckled trout known locally as Koran, and also dubbed as the late Queen Elizabeth II favourite dish.
Travel Addicts
The mountains of the Balkans contain a world treasure: Lake Ohrid. As it happens, the lake is halfway between Tirana and Skopje, which made it a perfect break on our Balkans road trip. As we learned, this lake is more than the border between Albania and the Republic of Macedonia: it is one of the world’s most important lakes...and is Europe’s oldest geologically since it dates from the pre-glacial era.
Lake Ohrid is home to over 200 endemic species and is a critical habitat for migratory birds. As such, this is considered the most biologically diverse lake on earth. For this reason, Lake Ohrid was recognized as one of the first one hundred UNESCO World Heritage Sites. We were seriously disappointed that we didn’t have enough time to go scuba diving in the lake!
However, we learned Lake Ohrid is recognized by UNESCO both for the environment, but also for the incredible cultural contributions of the region. As it turns out, the town of Ohrid on the banks of the lake is one of the oldest areas of human inhabitation in Europe (and the world). The town dates from the Bronze Age.
In more recent times, this was an important Greek settlement and the ancient theatre here is one of the largest in the Greek world. It’s home to a popular summer music festival. The ‘Golden Age’ of Ohrid was the Tsar period and the fortress on the hill dates from this era (late 10th century).
The highlight of our trip was the Byzantine churches and monasteries that line the shores. The iconic St. John of Kaneo is one of the most memorable buildings in the world. The church of St. Sophia in Ohrid and the nearby Monastery of Saint Naum complete the trifecta of incredible buildings.
Lake Ohrid is the only UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Republic of Macedonia, but it is definitely one of the top places to visit in Macedonia. We would recommend Ohrid to fellow travelers.
Read more from Travel Addicts here.
Gary Arndt
Ohrid is the largest lake in Macedonia and is located southern part of the country. The lake is shared with Albania, but the world heritage site portion is entirely within Macedonia.
Ohrid is very easy to visit and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Macedonia with plenty of hotels and restaurants in town.
Most of the cultural and historic can be reached by walking to taxi in town, but if you want to explore the rest of the lake you should either go on a boat trip, or rent a car.
Read more about the Natural and Cultural Heritage of the Ohrid Region on my website.
Clyde
I visited this mixed WHS in March 2016. There are only 28 mixed WHS on the list and I must say that they rarely disappoint. Lake Ohrid is FYROM's/Macedonia's only WHS and also its main tourist attraction. However, tourist crowds flock mainly in the summer months, so I was really surprised to be able to enjoy the main sites alone most of the time. I drove from Skopje to Lagadin which is a very straightforward journey and it's signposted well from the airport. The Unesco road sign is already proudly displayed almost 190km away! The lake management is quite rigorous and no water sports are allowed. Only boats allowed are a couple of fishing boats mainly used for sunset trips from Ohrid to Sveti Johan over at Kaneo or else 2 ferries from Ohrid to Sveti Naum. There are a few dodgy concrete lake resort structures which have been built too close to the shores and have reduced the reed beds surrounding the lake. However, there aren't any high structures and Ohrid's landscape is really lovely with the city walls high above and several churches to visit. Although practically all the lake towns are included in the inscription, all the main sites are around Ohrid proper and then there's a lovely monastery 29km away, just 4 km from the Albanian border, that shouldn't be missed. It has some of the best frescoes inside and it's still used as a place of worship today. It's a very tranquil place with peacocks roaming freely around. There is a barge restaurant which is great for a quick bite or to grab a cup of coffee. Near the restaurant, there are boat trips to the Naum Springs which are also part of the Galicica National Park. I went to Sveti Naum by car and I was able to visit the pile dwellings reconstruction on the way, the other lake towns and visit the Galicica National Park hiking trail to Velestovo on the way back. The other main sites are all in Ohrid. The best frescoes in my opinion are those at the Holy Mary Perybleptos Church, just near the ancient theatre before reaching the upper gate. The most photogenic church away from any modern construction is Sveti Johan which can be reached on foot from the harbour by walking on a wooden trail over Lake Ohrid. I went there at all times of the day, several times, and I must say that the colours at sunset with the church overlooking the lake are really worth the short hike. You can also get there by following a short trail from Plaosnik which goes through several pine trees. The old basilica and monastery dedicated to Saint Panteleimon is beautifully set nearby with several mosaics and excavations are still going on. However, a huge concrete 'university' is being built just next to it which in my opinion is quite an eyesore. The Church of St Sophia has some interesting frescoes too but the most interesting feature of the church is the inscription in the brickwork just under the eaves on the rear facade. This church was constructed in the 10th century and converted to a mosque during the Ottoman Period. All churches have separate entrance fees of around 2 euros each. St Naum also charges a parking fee of 1 euro for the day while the City of Ohrid charges 50c per hour for parking next to the harbour (07:30-01:30). The city of Ohrid is still alive and hasn't been turned into museum city despite having been inscribed several years ago. The locals are very friendly and the different religious and ethnic communities seem to get along quite well nowadays. I had a great time visiting this WHS and would gladly visit again in the future.
Els Slots
The “Natural and cultural heritage of the Ohrid Region” spans a large area in and around the Macedonian side of Lake Ohrid. The Republic of Macedonia owns about two-thirds of the lake, the remaining third is on Albania’s Tentative List as a transboundary extension. The site includes the lake, towns at the lakeshore (such as Struga, Pestani, Trpejca and of course Ohrid itself), and also single monasteries like Sveti Stefan and Sveti Naum. And it encompasses a part of Galičica National Park - a protected natural area that covers the mountains surrounding the lake on the Macedonian side.
I spent 3 nights in the town of Ohrid, and had 2 full days to explore. On my first day I ‘did’ the cultural circuit in Ohrid itself. First the short hike to the lovely Church of St. John at Kaneo. And then uphill to the archaeological site of Plaošnik. This was a big surprise: about half of the area is subject to an archaeological survey or under construction for who knows what. The church of Saint Panteleimon itself is an ‘instoration’ – it was almost completely rebuilt (using the old materials) over the last years under the watchful eyes of ICOMOS. The result is too brand new to my taste, but it still is the most sacred place of the Macedonian Orthodox Church. The mosaics of the old basilica on the same grounds are worth a visit though.
I did see many more churches, icons and related objects, but overall I found Ohrid a very sanitized and touristy town, I had expected something with more spirituality given the number of its churches. However it would be the perfect destination if you like to spend your holiday with Dutch pensioners: it’s very cheap, a week in a hotel including flights from Amsterdam and transfers can already be had for 250 EUR in the low season. You’ll also often encounter signs such as “Hier spreekt men Nederlands” (Dutch is spoken here) in restaurants and shops.
On my second day, I checked out the natural side to this WHS. I arranged for a taxi to bring me to the village of Elsani, about halfway up the mountains above Lake Ohrid. From there, several hiking paths are possible through Galičica National Park. I choose the one descending to the coastal town of Pestani. It was a very enjoyable and relatively easy walk of 5.2 km. Only at the end do I encounter two other hikers. The only slight problem is the signage, but fortunately, I had read up before and learned that if you don’t see red-and-white stripes anymore for 50 meters, you’re on the wrong path. So I kept very focused on the stones and treetrunks mostly low to the ground. That way I was able to find a wild tortoise that I otherwise would have missed.
After the hike, I walked on along the coast for a km or 2 to see the ‘Museum on Water - Bay of the Bones’. Because, you’d never guess, Lake Ohrid had its prehistoric pile dwellers too! The reconstructed houses on a platform are based on the underwater site found nearby. This site is mentioned in the comparative analysis of the Alpine Pile Dwellings WHS, it says that they only recently have been evaluated by modern methods in underwater excavations and that they cannot yet be fully assessed.
Ohrid is Macedonia’s only WHS to date, and probably its only full-blown tourist attraction. In total I spent 6 days in this small country, visiting also the statue frenzy of Skopje and the TWHS of Kokino. Somehow I did not warm up to it, I was missing the positive vibe of neighbouring Albania.
George Vaughan
Ohrid town has much of architectural interest and there is a lot of attractive scenery around the lake. Bear in mind, though, that it is also a major tourist resort - more so for Macedonians that others - with all that entails. There is some distinctive domestic architecture in the town, although this is rather limited and the principal interest is in the churches and their frescoes. There are many but St. Sophia, for its size and age, and St. John, Kaneo, for its site above the lake are arguably two of the best. (It is also worth mentioning that other such churches are dotted around Macedonia, e.g. Nerezi near Skopje.)
If there are a few too many tourists in and around Ohrid, drive over the mountain road (with good views of both lakes) to Lake Prespa, rather wilder and much less developed but with some interesting villages (such as Brajcino and Maloviste) and churches (e.g. Kurbinovo) within easy reach.
Ana
I have been to Ohrid many times and i must tell you it is the best place to be. It lake looks like dazzeling beads in the sun and the city reminds you of the olden days. Not all the city is old. Part of it has a new landscape to it. There are many beautiful churches there with millions of Byzantine-style icons. Trust me, you will love it if you go there!
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Site Info
- Full Name
- Natural and cultural heritage of the Ohrid Region
- Unesco ID
- 99
- Country
- Albania North Macedonia
- Inscribed
- 1979
- Type
- Mixed
- Criteria
-
1 3 4 7
- Categories
- Natural landscape - Rivers, Wetlands and Lakes Urban landscape - Urban continuity
- Link
- By ID
Site History
2019 Extended
To include Albanian part
2019 Advisory Body overruled
To not describe the (newly extended) WHS In Danger
2006 Name change
From "Ohrid Region with its Cultural and Historical Aspect and its Natural Environment" to "Natural and Cultural Heritage of the Ohrid Region"
1980 Extended
to include the cultural and historical area. This site will carry the name "Ohrid region with its cultural and historical aspects and its natural environment".
1979 Inscribed
Site Links
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The site has 1 locations
Ohrid even has its own airport, served by charter flights from The Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria. There's a not so frequent local bus that connects all villages on the Macedonian side of the lake.
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