How to get to Silver Lake (Srebrno jezero) — the question our guests ask more often than any other, right after the one about the water temperature. The good news: the answer is simpler than many people expect. From Belgrade it takes about an hour and a half to two hours by car and two hours by bus, while guests coming from the Banat region have a shortcut few lake resorts can offer — a ferry across the Danube. In this guide we walk you through every route step by step: the motorway route with the exact toll, the Belgrade–Veliko Gradište bus timetable, the Ram–Stara Palanka ferry, and how to arrive from Niš, Vojvodina or the airport if you are flying in.
Where Silver Lake is and how far it is from Belgrade
Silver Lake lies in the Braničevo District of eastern Serbia, along the right bank of the Danube — just 2 kilometres from the town of Veliko Gradište and 35 kilometres north-east of Požarevac. The lake is actually a former branch of the Danube: 14 kilometres long, about 300 metres wide and around 8 metres deep, which is why locals call it the “Serbian sea”. If you are still planning your stay, our complete guide to Silver Lake covers the beaches, accommodation and everything there is to do.
Silver Lake is about 110–115 kilometres from Belgrade, depending on where in the city you start. Here is an overview of distances and approximate driving times from the most common starting points:
| Starting point | Distance | Approx. driving time |
|---|---|---|
| Belgrade | approx. 110–115 km | 1.5–2 h |
| Nikola Tesla Airport | approx. 130 km | approx. 2 h |
| Požarevac | 35 km | approx. 40 min |
| Smederevo (for guests from Vojvodina via Kovin) | approx. 57 km | approx. 1 h |
| Novi Sad | approx. 190–195 km | depends on the route (via Kovin or by ferry) |
| Niš | approx. 230 km | approx. 2.5–3 h |
| Ram (ferry dock) | approx. 12 km | approx. 15 min |
Driving to Silver Lake from Belgrade
The standard route could not be easier: join the A1/E-75 motorway towards Niš and drive to the “Požarevac” toll station. Exit the motorway there and continue on state road 34 — locals call it the Đerdap road — past Požarevac towards Veliko Gradište. From the toll station it is another 50 kilometres or so to the lake, and the whole stretch is clearly marked with brown tourist signs, so getting lost is practically impossible.
How long does the drive from Belgrade to Silver Lake take? Around an hour and a half in normal conditions; with summer traffic, allow up to two hours. The section after the motorway is an ordinary two-lane road through the villages of the Stig plain, so your time mostly depends on whether you get stuck behind a combine harvester or a convoy of weekenders. It is also worth knowing that a Požarevac–Veliko Gradište–Golubac expressway (the so-called Đerdap corridor, roughly 68 km) is planned and will one day shorten the trip even further — but at the time of writing it is not yet open.
Belgrade–Požarevac toll in 2026
You only pay a toll for the motorway section from Belgrade to the Požarevac toll station. Under the official price list of the public company Roads of Serbia (Putevi Srbije), valid from 1 July 2026, a passenger car (category I) pays 240 dinars — about 2.50 euros — one way, i.e. 480 dinars for a round trip. Motorcycles pay 120 dinars. The rest of the road from the toll station to the lake is toll-free. If you have an electronic TAG device, you also get a discount (roughly 6%). You can always check current prices in the official Roads of Serbia price list.
The scenic alternative through the Danube villages
If the main road is congested or you simply fancy a prettier drive, from Požarevac you can turn off towards the village of Topolovnik and follow the Danube through Kisiljevo, Biskuplje and Zatonje all the way to the lake. The Tourist Organisation of Veliko Gradište has recommended this route as a detour, and it comes with a bonus: it passes right by Ram Fortress, so you can take a break at one of the most beautiful viewpoints on the Danube along the way.
Belgrade–Veliko Gradište bus: timetable and fares
If you do not have a car, the bus will get you there in perfect comfort. Direct services from Belgrade's main bus station (BAS) are operated by Litas Požarevac (Arriva Litas), with 4–6 departures a day — the first leaves at 06:00, and the schedule varies by day of the week, so check the timetable for your exact date on polazak.rs or directly at the station. The route is about 114 kilometres long and takes around two hours.
A one-way ticket costs 1,450–1,530 dinars and a return 2,320–2,450 dinars (July 2026 prices, at the time of writing); discounts are available for pupils, students, pensioners and children. From the bus station in Veliko Gradište it is another 2 kilometres or so to the lake — you can cover them by local minibus (roughly 100 dinars), by taxi (roughly 300 dinars; these figures are older, so expect a possible increase) or on foot in about twenty minutes. There is no direct rail link: the nearest railway station is in Požarevac, from where you would continue by bus anyway.
The Ram–Stara Palanka ferry: a shortcut from Banat and Vojvodina
For anyone coming to the lake from Vojvodina, and especially from southern Banat, the Danube ferry is a winner — both practical and memorable. The ferry between Stara (Banatska) Palanka and Ram is run by the “Dunav-Trans” company, and the crossing cuts more than 100 kilometres off the detour via the Smederevo–Kovin bridge. From the dock at Ram it is only about 12 kilometres to Silver Lake, and Ram Fortress greets you right at the landing — it is hard to resist stopping for at least half an hour.
According to the timetable on the official website (full summer schedule), the ferry leaves Ram at 7:00, 9:00, 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, 17:00 and 19:00, and Stara Palanka at 7:30, 9:30, 11:30, 13:30, 15:30, 17:30 and 19:30. There are fewer crossings in winter. The crossing itself takes 15–20 minutes — the trip towards Ram runs downstream, so that direction is slightly quicker — and each run carries around 20 cars.
Prices at the time of writing: a passenger car from 2,300 dinars, foot passengers 500 dinars (children aged 8–12: 200), motorcycles 800–1,500 dinars depending on engine size. One important note: the ferry occasionally does not run — during the vessel's annual overhaul (exactly such a notice is posted on the website as this text is being written), and the harbour master suspends it in fog and bad weather. So before setting off, always check the status on the official Dunav-Trans website or by phone. There is always a plan B without the ferry: over the Kovin–Smederevo bridge, then through Smederevo and Požarevac — from Smederevo it is about 57 kilometres to the lake, roughly an hour's drive.
From Niš, from Vojvodina without the ferry, and from the airport
From Niš it is about 230 kilometres to the lake: take the A1 motorway towards Belgrade to the Požarevac exit, then follow the same road 34 as travellers from Belgrade. Allow roughly two and a half to three hours of driving, plus the toll for the motorway section from Niš to the Požarevac exit (for reference: the full Belgrade–Niš South section costs 1,180 dinars for a car under the July 2026 price list).
From Novi Sad and Bačka, when the ferry is not running or its schedule does not suit you, the handiest route goes via Pančevo and the bridge at Kovin, then through Smederevo and Požarevac to Veliko Gradište.
If you are flying into Belgrade's Nikola Tesla Airport: the lake is about 130 kilometres away by road, around two hours by car (through Belgrade onto the A1 motorway, then to the Požarevac exit). By public transport the journey takes about 3 hours and 40 minutes — bus 600 or the A1 shuttle into the city, then the Veliko Gradište bus from the main bus station. There are also private minivan transfers straight from the airport to Silver Lake, which is often the most relaxed option with suitcases and kids; our guests usually contact us in advance and we help them arrange the trip.
Parking, crowds and the best time to set off
There is free parking in front of the main tourist complex by the beach (accurate at the time of writing — in peak season expect it to fill up quickly). The biggest crowds come on July and August weekends, when the sunbeds on the main Beli Bagrem beach are snapped up well before noon — read more about the beach itself in our article on Silver Lake's beach and promenade. If you can choose, May and September offer the same scenery with half the crowds and lower prices.
Tip: If you are coming on a summer weekend, leave Belgrade before 8 am — you will arrive before half past nine, while there is still room in the car park and on the beach, and the road through the Stig villages is empty. On the way back, avoid Sunday between 5 and 7 pm, when all the weekend traffic funnels towards the Požarevac toll station; either leave earlier, or stay for dinner and drive back after dark with no queues.
And once you arrive — your accommodation is practically at the end of the route. Our apartment, Silver Lake Residence, sits directly above the aqua park, with a private terrace from which the kids can size up the water slides before you have even unpacked: the promenade is about 150 metres away, the main beach about 200. The roughly 40-square-metre apartment sleeps up to four guests and comes with a fully equipped kitchen, Wi-Fi, a smart TV and a PlayStation, while a smart lock lets you check in on your own — no need to chase down a host if the road holds you up; arrive whenever you arrive. Prices start at 50 euros per night, and our guests have rated us 5/5 on Google. Check open dates in the availability calendar, and if those particular dates do not work out, you will find everything else about the apartment and the area on our homepage.
The journey, as you will see, is the easy part — the real planning starts when you have to decide what to squeeze into a weekend. For that we have prepared a ready-made two-day Silver Lake itinerary, and if you are travelling with children, our guide to the aqua park with prices and opening hours will come in handy too. Safe travels — see you at the lake.
