I am on my way from Novi Sad to join the rest of the guys in Belgrade and grab a ride with them down to Stara planina. The catch is, how to get myself and the bike down to Belgrade? This is always a nerve-wracking moment as I sit at the intercity bus station (don’t even try taking your bike on a city bus!). Will they let me take my bike on the bus, won’t they?

Well, I’ve packed it up so it looks less like a bike (umm, not especially successful I know) and I await the verdict of the conductor, who is judge, jury and executioner in these matters in Serbia. Isn’t there a simple rule, yes or no? Well, no. Believe me, I tried to find out once upon a time, phoning and visiting various bus companies to ask what their policy was. After a lot of shoulder-shrugging, the “rule” seemed to boil down to, “You’ll just have to see with the driver” Like a lot of things in Serbia this could mean anything from him saying “No chance pal” to not batting an eyelid. The reality will probably be an initial blank refusal followed by a lot of humming and hahing from said personage and he’ll let you on in the end, after charging you for the extra baggage and possibly an additional small gratuity changing hands (in his direction). So it was this time, many times before, and so it ever shall be. Indeed, I have never yet failed to get my bike on board a bus, albeit always stowed down in the luggage compartment, in danger of banging around and suffering irreparable damage. So in answer to the question, can you take your bike on a bus in Serbia, the answer is yes. No. Probably.

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Posted on September 7th, 2007 by markowe
Filed under: MTB Serbia (All)