Sombor

Sombor is known in Serbia as the greenest town in the country, planted through the nineteenth century with American ash until it had tens of thousands of street trees, so the centre is a grid of low baroque and neoclassical facades under continuous canopy. The County Hall holds the Battle of Senta, a painting by Franz Eisenhut some seven metres long, one of the largest in the region and displayed in the assembly hall. Around the centre are the Kronić palace, a gallery of the local painter Milan Konjović, and a scatter of quiet squares. The town produced a distinctive local style of house with an inner courtyard entered through a gate. It is unhurried, seldom visited and pleasant to walk in for a few hours.

History

The town is first recorded in 1340; under the Ottomans it was called Sonbor, and Evliya Çelebi described it in 1665 with 200 shops and 14 mosques. Its first Orthodox school opened in 1717, it became a royal free city in 1749, and from 1786 it was the seat of Bacsensis-Bodrogiensis County (Wikipedia, Sombor).

What to look for

• The tree canopy - streets shaded by tens of thousands of planted ash.
• The Eisenhut painting - a seven-metre battle canvas in the County Hall.
• Baroque facades - low ornamented buildings around the central squares.
• Konjović gallery - the local painter's collected work.

When to go

April to October, with the canopy at its best from May. Autumn colour in the streets is good. The County Hall and museums keep office-hours access and close at weekends in part, so a weekday visit sees more.

Before you go

There are few major sights and the appeal is atmosphere; a half-day covers it. Access to the assembly hall with the painting depends on the building being open, which is not guaranteed. Museums have limited hours. The town is a long way from Belgrade with slow transport.

Nearby

Subotica lies northeast; the Danube and Apatin are west.

Key facts