Ski Center Stara planina
Modern slopes on Serbia's Balkan Mountains
Ski Center Stara Planina is a modern, state-developed resort on the Babin Zub peak of Serbia's Stara Planina (Balkan Mountains), in the country's quiet south-east near the Bulgarian border.
- 1,233 m Base
- 1,754 m Top lift
- 521 m Vertical
- 9 Pistes mapped
- 6 Lifts
Best known for
Après & vibe
Life revolves around the large modern base hotel and its restaurants; there is little independent village nightlife.
The resort
Ski Center Stara Planina, on the Babin Zub summit of the Balkan Mountains, is one of Serbia's newer ski developments, built by the state to open up the wild, sparsely visited south-east of the country. The result is a small but well-equipped mountain with modern lifts, tidy groomed runs and a large base hotel, all set within a protected nature park of rolling upland and beech forest. Terrain is short and mostly easy to intermediate, making it a comfortable family and improver destination rather than a challenge for experts, and the slopes are usually blissfully uncrowded. It trades on fresh infrastructure, big empty landscapes and value rather than tradition or scale.
Snow & weather
Live conditions from the mountain, plus the average snow you can expect month by month.
- Feels like
- —
- Conditions
- —
- Wind
- —
- Fresh snow (3-day)
- —
Live data © Open-Meteo.com
A cold, exposed Balkan-mountain position gives decent natural snow through midwinter, supported by snowmaking on the main pistes.
Average monthly snowfall
Snowfall climatology unavailable.
Terrain & aspect
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced
Slopes mostly face NW — 65% on snow-holding, poleward-facing slopes.
Aspect derived from run bearings · OpenSkiStats / © OpenStreetMap (ODbL).
Skiing & terrain
Gentle lower runs and learner areas suit first-timers.
The bulk of the skiing is easy-going groomed red and blue terrain.
A steeper line or two off Babin Zub adds a little bite.
Limited expert and off-piste terrain.
Babin Zub summit
The craggy Babin Zub (Grandmother's Tooth) peak crowns the resort and gives it its dramatic backdrop and views.
Skiing Serbia's empty east
The slopes sit within the vast, protected Stara Planina nature park, one of the least-visited corners of the Balkans.
On the map
Legend
Run difficulty
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced / Expert
- Freeride / Extreme
- Unknown
Run types
- Downhill — groomed
- Downhill — ungroomed
- Downhill — gladed
- Nordic (groomed)
- Ski tour
- ☾Lit (night)
- △Not patrolled
- →One-way
- ❄Snowmaking
Lifts
- Operating
- Operating (private)
- Non-operating
- Lift station
Slope-gradient grading
Downhill / ski tour
- Flat<3°
- Easy3–14°
- Intermediate14–22°
- Advanced / Expert22–45°
- Freeride / Extreme>45°
Nordic
- Easy<6°
- Intermediate6–9°
- Advanced>9°
Aspect (sun exposure)
- N — least sun
- E — morning
- S — most sun
- W — afternoon
Legend after OpenSkiMap
Stay in Ski Center Stara planina
Stay at the resort's own modern base hotel and apartments, or in guesthouses in the surrounding villages toward Knjaževac.
Lifts and pistes from the door — the point of a high, purpose-built resort.
Self-catering residences, the bulk of the beds and the flexible-budget option.
Catered and self-catered chalets for groups wanting the whole place.
From simple to high-end, with pools and spas to thaw out in.
How to get there
Niš (INI) is the nearest airport, a couple of hours away by mountain road, while Belgrade (BEG) is the main international gateway; Sofia in neighbouring Bulgaria is also within reach.
A winding drive up into the Balkan Mountains from the Knjaževac direction.
Best time: January and February bring the coldest, most dependable conditions.
Nearby resorts
Other resorts within reach.
Faces north-east © Apostoloff / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) Vitosha
- Vertical
- 726 m
- Pistes (mapped)
- 14
- Lifts
- 5
Panichishte
- Vertical
- 500 m
- Lifts
- 2
Faces north © DJUKI / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0) Kopaonik
- Vertical
- 625 m
- Pistes (mapped)
- 49
- Lifts
- 27
Malyovista
- Vertical
- 261 m
- Pistes (mapped)
- 7
- Lifts
- 5
Getting to Ski Center Stara planina
Book an airport transfer up to the resort, or pick up a car at Niš (INI) — search and compare without leaving the page.
Ski data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via OpenSkiMap & Skimap.org. Basemap © OpenFreeMap / OpenMapTiles. Editorial: mynext.holiday. Accommodation via Stay22; transfers via Kiwitaxi; car hire via Travelpayouts.