Belgrade is a large city. The old part of the town can be seen walking around, but for everything else, you will need to use public transport. Belgrade has a mix of bus, trolley, and tram lines and they all use the same ticket system. There are also mini-buses, which do not use the Bus Plus system, and a couple of special, so-called express, lines.
Find out all the details about it!
Types of public transport
First of all, Belgrade does not have an underground railway system. City transport comprises buses, trams, and trolleybuses. All routes are run by GSP Belgrade and bus services operated by private bus companies. There are around 130 routes.
There is one more way to get to the wanted destination – Beo Voz. It is actually a train system running through Belgrade. It does not have too many stops but can be really fast and efficient if you know where you are going. The stops that you will most likely use are – Vukov spomenik, Karađorđev park, Beograd Centar, Novi Beograd, Zemun, and Topčider. It uses the same Bus Plus system.
Belgrade is an urban jungle and getting around the city with its slightly more complicated public transport system can be challenging at times. That is why there is a site for quicker and better orientation. You can check it out HERE.
Public transport ticket purchase
You will notice that nobody seems to be paying to use the system in Belgrade. This does not mean you can ride for free on public transport though. You can easily find yourself on the end of a fine. Ticket inspectors are more prevalent than most assume. You can not spot them easily as they wear plain clothes.
Anyhow, this is how the procedure actually goes. First, you need to purchase a ticket that looks like this:
As you may see, the ticket system is called BusPlus. There are personalized, non-personalized, daily tickets, and tickets for one ride.
Personalized tickets are the most cost-effective, especially if you are staying in Belgrade for several months. However, there is also a non-personalized ticket. You can buy it at any kiosk or a newsstand that has a BusPlus tag. The card itself costs 250 RSD (around 2 EUR), and one 90-minute-ride costs 89 RSD (0,7 euro). Purchase the ticket with the sum of money you would like to put on, and that is it. This card is valid for three years and you can purchase an unlimited number of rides.
Personalized and non-personalized tickets are plastic. However, a daily card for public transport is made of cardboard. You must validate all these tickets upon entering into the vehicle. Otherwise, it will not be valid.
There is another option that might come in handy for the visitors. If you are the owner of the MasterCard with PayPass, you can also pay for the ticket just by pressing your MasterCard against the validator in the transport.
There are four transport zones in the city. The first and the second include the wider city center. The third and fourth zone includes Obrenovac, Sopot, Vinča, Mladenovac, and Lazarevac. Keep in mind that those rides are more expensive.
Airport transfer
Belgrade Airport, Nikola Tesla, is situated in the vicinity of Surčin, a small place 18 km from the airport.
There are two lines that can bring you to the center. The first one is bus line number A1 from and to the airport. It operates every 20 minutes and it goes to Slavija Square. The ride lasts around 30 minutes. The bus stops also at the railway station and Novi Beograd (fountain). However, this minibus is currently out of service. The second is a public bus number 72. It departs every 30 minutes from the airport and goes to Zeleni Venac. Depending on the traffic, the ride lasts around 40 minutes.
Although this is the cheapest travel option it is not the simplest one if you are in Belgrade for the first time and do not have a city map with you. You can always use a Taxi.
Taxi in Belgrade
Taxi transportation is the most expensive way of public transportation in Belgrade, but it is also the most efficient. You do not have to worry about the timetable, and you can reach the precise location, without wandering around the city. The transportation cost is based on mileage and driving time. A long way to the destination leads to a higher bill.
There are many unregistered taxi drivers in Belgrade. That means that they are not a member of any taxi association. You can usually find them around the Main Bus Station, as well as at the Nikola Tesla Airport. During the ride, they often turn the taximeter off and try to charge up to several times more than the real price. You will easily spot them. They are usually not at the taxi stations but waiting for customers at random points and they do not have TX at the end of the registration. If they have any other two letters after a string of numbers – avoid them!
On the other hand, there is CarGo. It is, in fact, a type of Serbian Uber. You can order a ride via its mobile app which you can download from Google and Apple stores. An estimate of the expense, follow your ride to the pickup location and see your driver’s ratings – you can get all that. You can pay for the ride using credit cards, PayPal, or CarGo credit. CarGo is considered to be cheaper than other taxi services.
Additionally, this blog post is part of the Must read series for people visiting Belgrade. Find all other blog posts in the News section on our website.