Macedonia’s second city, Bitola is a grand old town that still bears the marks of its turn-of-the-century importance as a center for diplomacy – while also exemplifying the country’s time-honored cafe culture.

The many cafes lining the city’s pedestrian main street (the Sirok Sokak) provide endless see-and-be-seen opportunities for Bitola’s fashionable youth. The stately old architecture of Bitola hearkens back to more than a century ago when the town was a center for international diplomats to the Ottoman administration, supplanting Skopje and becoming known far and wide as the “city of the consuls.”

A city of 125,000 inhabitants, Bitola has all of the characteristics of modern life: cultural events, professional athletics, hotels and nightlife.

At the same time, its proud and patriotic people are committed to passing on the Macedonian cultural heritage. In addition to the famous Bitola Theater, the city has over 500 traditional songs dedicated to it.

First mentioned in documents dating back to the 4th century B.C.E., the town founded by Philip II of Macedon first bore the name of Heraclea Lyncestis. It was a bustling town during Roman times, and continued to grow until it was destroyed by an earthquake in the year 518 C.E. 
Later in the same century, migrating Slavs swept into the Bitola region from the north. The settlement they created is the direct descendent of modern-day Bitola. During Byzantine times Bitola languished somewhat, eclipsed by powerful Ohrid to the west. It was only after the town came under Turkish rule in the 14th century that Bitola recovered its lost regional importance.

After the Ottoman Empire became more advanced, Bitola (under the name of Monastir) became a regional administrative center and was nicknamed “city of the consuls,” in reference to the 12 European states that maintained consulates there. Until the outbreak of the First World War and the subsequent division of Macedonia, Bitola’s influence extended southward. It was second in size and importance only to Thessalonica, and served as a diplomatic, commercial and cultural hub for the Macedonians.