Đurđevića Bridge: More Than 150 Metres Above the Tara Canyon

Five arches, 365 metres long and more than 150 metres above the river. When Đurđevića bridge was completed in 1940 it was the largest concrete arch road bridge in Europe. Today it is the defining photograph of northern Montenegro and the point people drive four hours from the coast to see.

In autumn 2026 the bridge is closed for reconstruction: from 10 August to 26 October neither cars nor pedestrians can cross. It is expected to reopen ahead of schedule, around 10 October. Check whether the bridge is open before you set off.

The story you hear on site

In 1942, under Italian occupation, the partisans decided to cut the road. To blow up the bridge they had help from Lazar Jauković — the engineer who had built it.

He calculated the charge, and the partisans brought down the end arch. Three months later, in August 1942, he was captured and shot on the bridge itself.

The bridge was rebuilt in 1946. A monument to Jauković stands at the approach: the man who built it, then destroyed it, then paid for it.

What people do here

Look. There are viewing areas at both ends; the best angle is from the northern side, where the bridge reads whole against the canyon.

Ride the zipline. Cables are strung across the gorge, with lines from 350 metres to a kilometre long. It costs €10–30 depending on the line. The season runs from mid-April to September, in dry weather.

Eat. Several cafés sit at the bridge with terraces over the drop. Simple cooking at above-average prices — you are paying for the view.

The Tara canyon

The bridge spans the deepest canyon in Europe: up to 1,300 metres deep and about 80 kilometres long. It is often called second only to the Grand Canyon.

Durmitor National Park was founded in 1952 and added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1980. The Tara basin has been a biosphere reserve since 1977. The Tara’s water is drinkable straight from the river, and that is not a figure of speech.

You can see the canyon two ways: from above, at the bridge, and from below, on a raft. The second is rafting the Tara: 24 grade-two rapids, safe for children from five, from €82 per person with breakfast and lunch. It runs in season and is not held from October to May.

Getting there

Twenty-three kilometres from Žabljak, half an hour. From Budva it is about 185 kilometres and four hours via Podgorica and the Morača canyon.

The road is surfaced but mountainous: limits of 60–80, switchbacks, tunnels. Fill up in Podgorica or Mojkovac — stations are sparse through the canyon.

Montenegro has two toll roads, and one of them is on the way north: the Smokovac–Mateševo motorway beyond Podgorica, €3.50 for the full stretch. It bypasses the Morača canyon; the old road through the canyon is free.

Parking at the bridge is free but full of coaches at midday in summer. Come before eleven.

How it is usually combined

The bridge is rarely a destination in itself — it is part of a northern route.

As a day trip from the coast: the bridge, the Black Lake in Durmitor and Morača monastery on the way. Twelve hours, eight of them driving. See Durmitor and the Black Lake.

With a night in Žabljak the day becomes humane: see Žabljak.

Without driving — the coach excursion the Tara and Morača canyons covers the bridge, the Black Lake, the monastery and Lake Biograd with hotel pick-up. It costs from €58 per person departing Budva or Podgorica, and from €68 from Kotor, Tivat or Bar. The private version of the same route is canyons and Žabljak privately, from €90 for the whole group. Both come only with a Russian-speaking guide; if Russian is no use to you, driving yourself is the alternative.

If you are driving

Take a car with reasonable ground clearance and bring warm clothes: the bridge is windy even in August. Hire options are on the car rental page, and mountain-road rules are in driving rules in Montenegro.

The canyon itself — its depth, its relict forest and both ways of seeing it — is covered separately in Tara Canyon.

Prices checked in September 2026. Zipline prices vary by operator and line length.