Valandovo: Culture, Landscapes and Festivals in May

Valandovo combines a distinctive hillside setting with archaeological sites and recurring cultural events. The city lies at the foot of Mount Plavush and partly spreads amphitheatrically along a hillside, at an altitude of 110 to 150 metres. The Anska Reka River flows south of Valandovo.

Geographical setting

The wider municipality of Valandovo also has several geographical reference points. It lies in the Valandovo Valley, which is characterised by strong Mediterranean climatic influences, warm days and fertile land. The Vardar Highway, also known as Via Axia, also runs through the municipality. When considering where to stay, it is helpful to distinguish these details about the municipality from the city’s specific location at Mount Plavush.

Archaeological traces in the city and municipality

The Valandovo archaeological complex includes remains from the Paeonian, Hellenistic, Roman and early Byzantine periods. Mosaics were discovered at the Stakina Cesma site in the southern part of the city. In Zone 1 of the complex, a mosaic area of around 200 m² was also discovered in the northwestern part of the city. These mosaic finds are therefore located at different sites within Valandovo.

Another archaeological site lies outside the city: Melezik, in the village of Dedeli in Valandovo Municipality, is an Iron Age necropolis dating from the 7th to 6th century BC. Burials there include inhumations in stone cists and large ceramic vessels. The sites in the city and the necropolis in Dedeli offer different geographical and chronological points of reference for the municipality’s archaeological history.

Fortress and defensive tower in the surrounding area

Northwest of Valandovo, the medieval Markova Kula fortress, also called Kulata, stands on a hilltop plateau. Isar Kula is also northwest of the city, on a long, rocky ridge with steep slopes. A well-preserved defensive tower can still be seen there. At Markova Kula, the plateau setting is the key feature; at Isar Kula, it is the rocky ridge and the surviving tower.

Festivals in May

The Valandovo Folk Festival takes place every year in May. Another spring festival is the HID-Bah Shen Festival: since 1992, it has been held annually in early May in the village of Čalakli in Valandovo Municipality. The village is outside the city of Valandovo. The four-day programme includes folk performances, handicraft and photography exhibitions, concerts, theatre performances, traditional wrestling and a football tournament.

Both events are associated with May, but they have different locations and programmes. If a festival is important to your travel plans, check the exact event dates before your trip.

Sv. Gjorgji Monastery on Mount Plavush

Sv. Gjorgji Monastery is set in a natural landscape on Mount Plavush, northwest of Valandovo. Its grounds are laid out as a picnic, recreation and rest area. In the Middle Ages, a church dedicated to Saint George stood at the monastery site; Serbian Tsar Stefan Dušan had it built in 1349. The description of the site thus connects its location on Mount Plavush and the grounds’ present-day layout with a specific historical reference.

For the broader travel overview: Valandovo.