Town guide · about an hour from Skopje
Tetovo’s Painted Mosque and the Arabati Baba Tekke, then up to Popova Šapka on Šar Mountain: what to see and how to get there.
North Macedonia feature
A mosque painted inside and out, a quiet dervish lodge and the peaks of Šar Mountain above.
See the Painted Mosque in the morning light, walk to the Arabati Baba Tekke, then drive up to Popova Šapka for the view.
Plan your trip with our favourites below.
Painted inside and out
Tetovo’s 15th-century mosque by the river Pena, covered inside and out in painted floral decoration.
A Bektashi tekke
A 16th-century Bektashi dervish lodge on the edge of Tetovo, with prayer rooms, lodgings and a marble fountain in a wooden pavilion.
Skiing and summer hikes
The ski resort and mountain plateau on Šar Mountain above Tetovo, at about 1,780 m, for skiing in winter and hiking in summer.
About an hour
Tetovo is about 45 km west of Skopje along the motorway: around an hour by car, bus or taxi.
Been to Tetovo & Šar Mountain? Share your experience and tips with other visitors.