Hidden villages — North Macedonia without crowds

Quiet, authentic places away from tourist trails.

Villages

1. Struga — A relaxed lakeside town where the Black Drin river flows out of Lake Ohrid.
2. Kratovo — A picturesque old town built inside an extinct volcanic crater, full of stone bridges and towers.
3. Tetovo — A western town famous for its vividly decorated Painted Mosque.
4. Kruševo — A historic mountain town, the highest in the Balkans, with 19th-century houses.
5. Mavrovo — A mountain national park around a lake, with skiing and a half-sunken church.