Rep. of Macedonia Country Guide
The Republic of Macedonia is a small Balkan country surrounded by Serbia and Kosovo in the north, Albania to the west, Greece to the south and Bulgaria to the west.
Macedonia's natural beauty, mountains, lakes, friendly people and the old world charm of Mediterranean Europe make it a very popular destination for tourists looking forward to a peaceful European holiday.
We recommend you read about travel in Macedonia on GoNOMAD.
Republic of Macedonia Country Guide
Useful information on this page includes:
This Balkan country has a typical continental climate characterised by extremely cold winters and hot summers. You need to carry very warm overcoats if you are travelling in winter. For summer travel, pack lightweight clothing. Do not forget your raincoats. Check out our Macedonia Weather Guide for more weather information, including a six-day forecast.
Telephone
Country code: 389. All telecommunications services are generally working normally.
Macedonia Important phone numbers:
Police 92
Fire brigade 93
Ambulance 94
Road assistance 987
Mobile Telephone
Roaming agreements exist with most international mobile phone companies. Coverage is mostly good.
Internet
There are a few Internet cafes in the main towns but limited outside of that.
The local currency is the Macedonian Denar (MKD; symbol ден) = 100 deni. Notes are in denominations of ден5,000, 1,000, 500, 100, 50 and 10. Coins are in denominations of ден5, 2 and 1, and 50 deni.
Currency Exchange
All major currencies may be exchanged, but Euros are easiest to exchange.
Credit/Debit Cards and ATMs
Very limited acceptance so is safer to bring travellers cheques or cash.
Traveller's Cheques
Travellers are advised to take cheques in US Dollars or Euros.
Banking Hours
Mon-Fri 0700-1900; Sat 0700-1300.
Click here to view the latest Macedonia exchange rate from OANDA.com.
220 volts AC, 50Hz.
To view a list of Macedonia embassies around the world, including foreign embassies, click on this link to EmbassyWorld.com.
Population - 2 million people
Total Area - 25,713 sq km (9,928 sq miles).
Capital - Skopje (approx 450,000 people)
Time Zone - Standard time zone: GMT + 1 (GMT + 2 from last Sunday in March to last Sunday in October).
To view the current time in Skopje, click on this link to TimeAndDate.com.
Macedonia is mainly mountainous territory with valleys and agricultural land located in the deep basins. The Vardar is the largest river and bisects the country. There are three large lakes - Lake Orhid, Lake Prespa and Lake Dojran. All three lakes lie along the southern border of the country and are divided by the frontier lines with Albania and Greece. The natural beauty of the country will fascinate you. While travelling through Macedonia be sure to plan a trip to the large lakes, the Pelister Mountains, the national parks and the picturesque rolling hills of rice fields that lie to the east of the country.
To view a map of Macedonia, click on this link to WorldAtlas.com.
Macedonia has an insurance agreement with most European countries meaning that the visitors are being completely covered by insurance if they have their insurance policy with themselves and they don't pay anything. Even though they don't have an insurance policy with them, they will receive official receipt for all the medical costs that can be used in order to refund their money in their countries. But the best way is for travelers before traveling to check if their country has an agreement for medical treatment with Macedonia, so they could ask for an application form from their insurance company so in case of need of medical care after arriving they will change this form with application from Macedonian Found for Health in order to refund the money in their country and to get free treatment in the Macedonian hospitals.
Normally the costs ( in case they don't have insurance policy with them) are between 10 to 15 EUR for casual examination. Surgery would cost 500 - 1000 EUR. Even for the hardest cases with complete treatment and hospital care could not possibly be more then 20 000 EUR. In Macedonia there are state owned hospitals as well as numerous private clinics.
Macedonia is noted for its orthodox churches, monasteries and Ottoman mosques (you will find most of these in the Skopje's Bit Bazaar District). The Republic of Macedonia was given the status of a ‘state' for the first time after its incorporation into Yugoslavia by Tito in 1945.
Though English will mostly be understood in the country, particularly by the younger generation, it is good to carry a phrasebook for easy reference. You can get by quite easily if you happen to speak Bulgarian, Serbian and Slovene. Though 66 percent of the population speaks Macedonian and a considerably large group (25 percent) speak Albanian, you can also use German with the elderly Albanians. Russian is spoken by many people and speaking Dutch comes in handy at places such as Ohrid. A small percentage of the population also knows Turkish.
Macedonia was part of the former Yugoslav Republic, and is located in southeastern Europe.
Follow the link to view a current list of public holidays in Macedonia.
Macedonia's constitution guarantees freedom of religion. Citizens of the republic are allowed the right to express their faith ‘freely and publicly, individually or with others'.
Macedonia is a religious cauldron that supports above forty religious communities that survive because of peaceful coexistence. Macedonian Orthodox Christians comprising 67 percent or two-thirds of the population is the largest religious order, followed closely by Muslims, who account for 30 percent of the population. Roman Catholics constitute 0.5 percent of the population while other religious communities such as various Protestant groups and a small Jewish community comprise about 2.8 percent.
The Orthodox Church has played a vital role in the lives of the people of Macedonia. The Archbishopric of Ohrid is the foundation on which the Macedonian people have established their national identity, cultural heritage and educational advancement. It is the first autocephalous Slav Church and goes back to ancient times. It is interesting to note that the church was established by two outstanding students of Ss. Cyril and Methodius, known as St. Clement and St. Naum. St. Clement, later on, became the first Slav archbishop in 893 A.D.
Visiitors from the USA and EU do not require visas to enter Macedonia, however those from Australia and Canada do. This situation is liable to change at short notice so check with your embassy before heading to Macedonia. A valid passport is required by all nationals. Nationals staying in a hotel are required to register within 24 hours of arrival which is normally carried out by the hotel at check-in. Nationals staying in a private residence are required to register within three days of arrival.
Visa Note
Nationals of Australia and Canada are required to a return ticket, hotel booking or invitation letter to obtain a Macedonia visa.
A single-entry visa will cost approximately USD 29, while double-entry and multiple-entry are lighter on the purse strings at USD 37 and USD 50, respectively. Visas issued are valid for three months. Transit visas are valid up to five days.
Note: As passport and visa information is liable to change at short notice, all nationals travelling to Macedonia are advised to check the latest requirements with the embassy before departure.
US citizens that need to renew, add pages, change name, or just get a new US passport, can Apply for a New US Passport here.
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