Rakovac
Old quarry · also called Rakovac Cave
Beli Majdan
A quarried hall in the hillside above the monastery, its roof held up by pillars of stone the quarrymen left standing. Ten minutes on foot from the monastery.
Fruška Gora National Park
Nature around Rakovac
Rakovac sits on the northern edge of Fruška Gora National Park. From the road by the monastery, forest paths lead in two directions. Eastwards, towards Ledinci, they reach an old stone quarry that looks like a cave and an 18th-century hermitage cut into the rock. Westwards, towards Dumbovo and Beočin, they lead to a waterfall and to viewpoints over the Danube plain.
Fruška Gora is a low, isolated mountain rising from the Pannonian plain. It was the first national park in Serbia, and its highest point, Crveni čot, reaches 538 m. The northern slopes above Rakovac are covered in deciduous forest; lower down are orchards, vineyards and weekend houses.
Most walks start at Rakovac Monastery in Stari Rakovac, where there is room to leave a car and where bus 77 and the runs of line 78 marked SR stop. Trails are marked with painted signs on trees and poles. Some are steep and muddy after rain, so good shoes make a real difference.
Before you set off
- The area is a national park: no camping and no open fires outside official picnic sites.
- Mobile coverage is patchy in the valleys. Download an offline map before you go.
- In summer bring water and insect repellent; hikers regularly mention mosquitoes near the streams.
- Emergency number: 112 (ambulance 194).
Places to visit
Isposnica · 18th-century rock hermitage
Hermitage of Isaija Parivodski
A tiny monk’s cell cut into a limestone cliff deep in the forest, named after Isaija Parivodić, a hieromonk of Rakovac who carved his name here in 1771. The only rock hermitage in Vojvodina.
Dumbovački vodopad
Dumbovac Waterfall
A five-metre waterfall hidden in dense forest on the Dumbovac stream. About an hour’s walk from the monastery.
Vidikovac Kesten
Kesten Lookout
A viewpoint above the village with a wide view over Novi Sad and the Danube plain.
Izvor Stari Majdan
Stari Majdan Spring
A stone-built spring beside the mountain road between Rakovac and Zmajevac.
On the Fruška Gora ridge
Brankovac Picnic Area
A picnic area on the ridge road with tables, shelters and a children’s playground, plus wide meadows with a view to the north.
Meadow above Novi Rakovac
Lookout with the Swing
A meadow on the hill above Novi Rakovac with a swing on an old tree and one of the widest views in the area: Novi Sad, the Danube and the plain beyond.
Further afield · near Sremski Karlovci
Stražilovo
A wooded valley with the grave of the poet Branko Radičević and the start of the 160 km Fruška Gora transversal trail.
Atlas · birdwatching
Birds of Fruška Gora: birdwatching around Rakovac
Birdwatching on Fruška Gora around Rakovac: more than 200 species, from eagles and black storks to woodpeckers, owls and buntings. When and where to watch birds.
Atlas · wild animals
Wildlife of Fruška Gora: animals you may meet around Rakovac
Wild animals of Fruška Gora around Rakovac: roe deer, wild boar, mouflon, European bison, jackals, dormice, bats, fire salamanders and the venomous adder.
Atlas · flora and fungi
Plants and mushrooms of Fruška Gora: edible and poisonous mushrooms, trees and flowers
Plants and mushrooms of Fruška Gora around Rakovac: linden and oak forests, steppe flowers and orchids, edible mushrooms and the deadly poisonous ones to know first.
Vidikovci · Fruška Gora
Viewpoints around Rakovac
The best views around Rakovac on Fruška Gora: the lookout with the swing above Novi Rakovac, the Kesten viewpoint and the Brankovac meadows on the ridge, and how to get there.