As Serbia’s second-largest city, you’ll find numerous bus routes linking Novi Sad with the rest of the country. Despite having a very different vibe from Belgrade, the two cities are only 90 minutes apart, with buses leaving very frequently.
Belgrade and Novi Sad are also linked by several trains which run throughout the day.
I managed to find a direct bus from as far away as Novi Pazar, while you can also find direct buses from cities like Kruševac and Niš.
Internationally, Novi Sad is connected with many major cities in the surrounding Balkan countries as well as nearby Hungary.
The bus and train stations are located right next to one another to the north of the city. If you don’t have a lot of luggage, you can easily find public city buses to the center or wherever it is you’re staying.
But if you opt to take a taxi, beware.
A Warning About Taxis
Traveling with lots of luggage and staying at the other end of town, I decided to take a taxi from the bus station to get to my accommodation.
While I’ve traveled more than enough to know how shady taxi drivers at bus stations can be, the one I encountered told me he’d use the meter.
I’d heard from my host that a taxi from the station should only cost 400-500 RSD, but the meter ended up showing 1000!
I wasn’t quite prepared for that, as the last time I fell victim to a rigged meter was many years ago in India. Even worse, the guy even wanted to charge me 50 dinars for putting luggage in the trunk!
Standing in front of my rental apartment, I called the host before handing over any money. The driver was threatening to take me to the police station and kept trying to grab my suitcase. But as soon as a local appeared, he suddenly calmed down and said ‘Okay, okay, 500.’
The ordeal wasn’t quite over yet, as after taking my money, he began insulting me in Serbian and English and things nearly escalated. Fortunately, though, he got back in his car in drove off before the situation got out of hand. Needless to say, this was a horrible first impression of Novi Sad.
Admittedly, my guard had been down after my very pleasant experience with a driver the previous day in Novi Pazar. But what is one arriving in Novi Sad supposed to do?
As ridesharing apps don’t exist in Serbia, be sure to look up a list of official Novi Sad taxi companies online and call them when you arrive at the station. They’ll send you a driver at a fair price.