The most beautiful religious buildings Bitola

This mosque (Јени Џамија/Jeni Džamija) is easy to spot thanks to its 39-m-high minaret. It owes its name of "new mosque"(Yeni Cami in Turkish) to the cadi (Muslim judge) Mahmud Efendi, who had it built in 1558 on the site of several churches, the foundations of which can be seen all around. It's a fine example of provincial Ottoman architecture: a square with a single dome, extended by a porch. The interior is decorated with arabesques in bas-relief on the marble furnishings, stalactite sculptures, painted earthenware and calligraphy.

This Catholic church (Црква Пресвето Срце Исусово/Crkva Presveto Srce Isusovo) was founded by French Lazarists in 1870. For twenty-six years, the parish was led by the priest Jean-Claude Faveyrial (1817-1893). He was a French teacher at the Romanian school in Bitola and author of L'Histoire de l'Albanie, a reference work in the neighboring country. Burnt down in 1900 and rebuilt in neo-Gothic style in 1909, the church was given its bell tower in 1940.

This open mosque (Ајдар Кади Џамија/Ajdar Kadi Džamija) was built around 1562 thanks to a donation from the cadi (Muslim judge) Gazi Haydar Kadi. With its 19 m-high dome and 1.4 m-thick walls, it was the only church with two minarets in today's North Macedonia. After the Turkish inhabitants left in 1912, the church fell into disrepair. Only one of its minarets (45 m high) was rebuilt during the major renovation financed by a Turkish Islamic fund in 2016.

Erected in 1830, this large Orthodox church (Црква Свети Димитриј Солунски/Sveti Dimitrij Solunski) houses a superb carved wooden iconostasis dating from 1842. Influenced by the style of Mount Athos, the engraver filled the entire wall with elements from the world of plants and animals. It's also worth noting that the opening scene of the American film The Peacemaker (1997, with George Clooney and Nicole Kidman), supposedly set in Bosnia-Herzegovina, was filmed in this church.

This elegant little mosque (Хаџи Махмуд-Бег Џамија/Hadži Mahmud-Beg Džamija) was built in 1522 thanks to a donation from the fierce governor Hadji Mahmut Bey, nicknamed Tomruk Ağa ("prison guard" in Turkish). The mosque was renowned for its spirit of tolerance. It was home to a medersa (Koranic school) and Dervish poets. Damaged by German bombardment during the First World War and by an earthquake, which shattered its minaret, in 1996, it was renovated in 2023 thanks to funding from Turkey.

This mosque (Исхак Челеби Џамија/Ishak Čelebi Džamija) dominates the city center with its 48 m-high minaret. It was built around 1506 thanks to a donation from the cadi (Muslim judge) Ishak Çelebi, and for a long time was the nerve center of Monastrir/Bitola, along with the Yeni mosque. Altered several times over the centuries, it features an interior mezzanine built by French workers in 1912. Recently restored thanks to Turkish funding, the mosque now serves as a tekké for a small Sufi community.