Shtime, a through-route municipality with one protected kulla

Not every municipality in Kosovo has much to show a traveller, and Shtime is one of those with very little backed by an official source. I’d rather say so plainly and give you what there is, because knowing where you needn’t make a detour is useful too.

A lowland municipality

Shtime (in Serbian, Štimlje) sits in the Ferizaj region according to OpenStreetMap, north of Ferizaj town. The Kosovo Agency of Statistics (ASK) counted 24,308 people in 2024 and 27,324 in 2011, spread over 23 settlements. The main town, with 7,487 residents, grew a little in that time, while the surrounding villages lost people.

After the main town, the largest settlements are Petrovë (2,135), Petroviq (1,385), Reçak (1,265), Godanc i Epërm (1,152) and Muzeqinë (1,150). It’s a municipality of middling villages with no tourist centre to speak of. The photo on this page, from Commons, shows the town’s football ground with the houses behind. Within the region, Shtime is the third municipality by population, after Ferizaj and Kaçanik, and it has lost around 11% of its people since 2011, a fall similar to that of Hani i Elezit.

The Fejzullahu kulla

The only site with a record in the Ministry of Culture database (DTK) is the Fejzullahu family kulla, at Zotaj. It’s an Ottoman-era tower house from the 19th century, inventoried in 2002 and on the provisional protection list of 8 October 2021. According to its record, Zotaj lies 9 km east of Shtime and the house, in fired brick on stone foundations, was probably built after 1850. Kullas are the fortified stone houses typical of Kosovo, and this one is Shtime’s entry in the inventory.

No opening times or visits are published, and it’s a family home, so I’d look from outside without intruding. If the subject interests you, Kosovo’s best-known kullas are in the west, and they’re all in one place in my page on kullas in Kosovo.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Ferizaj before prices climb.

The safety warning for the area

There’s one practical point worth having. Landmines left from the past are still a hazard in a few areas, and the FCDO names the Dulje Pass, in the middle of Kosovo, as one of them. OpenStreetMap places Duhël village west of Shtime, in Suhareka municipality. The official advice is to stay on main roads, and I’d follow it without exception in this area. And since the GHIC doesn’t apply in Kosovo, don’t travel without insurance. More on whether Kosovo is safe.

Is it worth stopping?

My honest answer is only if it’s on your way and tower houses interest you. I couldn’t find official bus timetables for the municipality, so in practice you’d be passing through by car, driving on the right, on the way between Ferizaj and the Pristina region. For a bed, Ferizaj is to the south and better served. For heritage, Ferizaj town or, further afield, Prizren have far more to offer.

If you would rather have a local show you round, book a guided tour in Ferizaj and choose by the reviews.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Ferizaj before prices climb.