Ram Fortress

Ram is a small fortress of the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century, built by the Ottomans on a bluff above the Danube as an artillery position controlling the river, and it is a good example of the transition to gunpowder fortification: low, thick-walled, with five towers shaped to mount cannon and a dry moat. It was restored in the late 2010s, which added walkways, lighting and a visitor route, and opinions on how heavy that restoration was are mixed locally. Below the fortress a caravanserai stands by the river and a small ferry crosses to Romania. The view up and down the Danube from the walls is the reason most people stop, and the whole visit is short, usually combined with Viminacium or Golubac on a Danube circuit.

What you actually see

• The artillery towers - five gun towers in an early gunpowder design.
• The Danube view - the river seen up and downstream from the walls.
• The caravanserai - the Ottoman traveller's inn by the landing.
• The restored walkways - the visitor route added in the recent works.

When to go

April to October; the fort is small and exposed, so morning or late afternoon is more comfortable in summer. Winter hours are limited and the site sometimes closes entirely.

Honest expectations

The fortress is small and the visit takes an hour. The 2010s restoration was extensive and some of what you see is new fabric. Facilities are minimal, and the village has little. The Romanian ferry is small and its schedule is unreliable.

Nearby

Viminacium lies west; Golubac and Đerdap are east.