Old Bazaar – even though it is smaller than the one in Skopje, the bazaar in Bitola is cleaner and much more taken care of, so it is the most beautiful old bazaar in Macedonia. It has pleasant small squares with water fountains and many Ottoman monuments in and around it. A large portion of the old bazaar was demolished in the 1950s for the city square to be built. Fortunately the main monuments were left standing.
Deboj Amam Turkish Bath built in the 17th century.
Bezisten Built the 16th century, but later reconstructed in neo-baroque style and the city market.
Jeni Mosque Built in 1558 by Kadi Mahmud Efendi, the diameter of the dome is 19 meters, and the minaret is 39 meters high. This mosque houses the city art gallery.
Isak Beg Mosque - built in 1508 by judge Isak Celebi Ibni Asa, the diameter of the dome is 26 meters, and the minaret is 45 meters high.
Clock Tower The clock tower is the pride of the people from Bitola. It was first built in 1664 but got its present appearance in the 19th century, and is 30 meters high.
The Ajdar Kadi Mosque One of the most attractive monuments of the Islamic architecture in Bitola. It was built in 1561-1562, as the project of the famous architect Sinn Mimar, ordered by the Bitola kadija Ajdar-kadu. The mosque was abandoned and over time, it was heavily damaged, but, the recent restoration and conservation works, have restored, to a certain extent, the original appearance to the mosque.
Catholic Cathedral on Shirok Sokak Street
Shirok Sokak Street (official name Maršal Tito) A pedestrian street lined with nice colourful romantic and neo-classical buildings. It is divided into three parts and even though the first part has the best preserved buildings it is worth walking all the way to the end. The street is very lively and lined with cafes which are excellent for relaxing and people-watching, especially since the girls from Bitola are known as the most beautiful in Macedonia and they love to parade up and down the street dressed in their sunday best. In the first section check out the Catholic Cathedral. Shirok Sokak ends with the old barracks, where the military academy where Ataturk studied was situated, and which today serves as the city museum. Opposite it stands the ball hall. Across the street as a continuance of Shirok Sokak the City Park stands, where the old Sokolana (physical education building) for the students of the former military academy is situated. For more nice houses walk in the streets left of Shirok Sokak, especially Duro Dakovik Street and see the building of the Bitola eparchy and visit:
fountain - at the top end of Shirok Sokak, near the clock tower, there is a "son et lumiere" performance at 9pm.
St. Bogorodica Church A small basilica church built in 1870. This church is a triple flight church with an octagonal cupola on the west side. Under the west entry (door) there is a magnificent iconostasis made by a master woodcarver from Mijak.
The Consulates The consulates were probably the most beautiful houses in Bitola, and they are all situated in a half circle around the first section of Shirok Sokak, on the streets Leninova, Kiril and Metoi and 11 Oktomvri. On Leninova Street check out the Russian consulate and the old theological high school. On Kiril and Metodi Street are the British, the Serbian, the French, the Greek and the Austrian consulates (I don’t know where the Italian, the Bulgarian and American consulate stand). Most interesting is the British consulate, which was the first one to be built and is a combination of traditional architecture and neo-classical decorations.
St. Dimitrie Church, 11 Oktomvri Street. Is the cathedral church of the city and the most beautiful example of the so-called “revival period” churches in Macedonia. Turks didn’t allow building of new churches during their occupation, but as the empire was weakening in the 18th century they started giving permissions for building of churches to keep the population happy. There were many rules to be followed, like the exterior had to be without decorations and the floor of the church had to be at least one metre below the ground so the church wouldn’t dominate the skyline of the city. It was built in 1830, as a three-naved basilica with galleries and five chapels. While they had to keep the exterior modest the interior is lavishly decorated with woodwork. The huge icon screen was made in 1845.
Along the Dragor River Many nice buildings can be seen on a walk along the quay of Dragor river, including Josip Broz Tito High School and the building of the dean of Bitola University.
Heraklea Heraklea Linkestis was founded by the Macedonian King Phillip II in the middle of the 4th century BC, but most of the monuments that can be seen here are from the Roman and the early Christian period. Only a small portion of the city has been unearthed, including a theatre, two water fountains, a courthouse, baths, the bishop's palace and two basilicas. What the site is famous for are the mosaics of the big basilica, made in the 5th century. The floor mosaic in the narthex is the most complete presentation of the world as they understood it back then. In the centre of a rectangular field there is a fountain out of which a grapevine comes (as a symbol of Christ's teachings) and peacocks and deer are gathered around (as symbol of eternal life), meaning if you accept the teaching of Christ you’ll have eternal life. On the left and on the right there are 5 trees rich with fruits with birds flying around (representing the garden of Eden and the afterlife), and a huge red dog called Kerber (Cerberus) is guarding the entrance. Below the trees, animals like deer are presented attacked and eaten by wild animals (presenting the suffering of the Christian soul in the earth life). The field is surrounded by water with medallions in which 28 water animals are presented. The mosaic has been made with little stones in 27 different colours (the only “richer” mosaic is found in Pompeii - a wall mosaic made of stones in 32 colours). There is a small museum on the grounds with a few artifacts and a nice scale model of the city at its peak. Entrance to the museum is included in the ticket for the site.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Bitola
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Bitola - updated May 2024
SAVE up to 75% on Last Minute deals! Search for discount Bitola hotels, motels, apartments, hostels, guest accommodations and vacation resorts. Book now and pay at the hotel. Instant email confirmation!
Bitola Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
