What was completely unimaginable just a few years ago – that one could turn towards the river from Savska Street and get directly to its bank – today has become a traffic reality enjoyed by a large number of citizens and visitors to Belgrade. Instead of the endlessly parked railway wagons, railroad tracks bordered by large protective fences and gray buildings on the right bank of the Sava, now, thanks to Belgrade Waterfront, a new network of modern roads has been created that has brought life to this once neglected part of the city.
One of these roads is Nikolai Kravtsov Street, which now stretches from Savska all the way to Kula Belgrade, the tallest building in Serbia and the region, and that means also to Sava Promenada, the favorite Belgrade promenade. As the only street currently allowing direct entry from Savska Street into Belgrade Waterfront, it crosses Luka Celovic Trebinjac Street (which will run parallel to Savska Street) and Woodrow Wilson Boulevard, as the largest traffic “artery” of the most modern neighborhood in the country, and just before Kula Belgrade, it is joined by Hercegovacka street.
This road is a little over 440 meters long and about 35 meters wide, it is two-way, with rows of pear trees on both sides of the street. The spacious paved sidewalks on both sides indicate that the street, like the entire neighborhood, was designed with pedestrians primarily in mind.
The connection between Sava Park and Kula Belgrade
Nikolai Kravtsov Street currently passes by the southern side of Sava Park, and soon, it will intersect it, as this green oasis of Belgrade Waterfront will extend to the other side, practically behind the BW Lumia residential building, which is just one in a series of new buildings in Savska Street. Thanks to its location, this road connects the most modern park in Belgrade and the spacious plateau in front of Kula Belgrade on Sava Promenada, which will become the new center of prestigious city events.
In this way, Nikolai Kravtsov Street became the address of the renowned St. Regis hotel chain, which will soon open only its sixth hotel on the Old Continent in Kula Belgrade, along with its branded residences – The Residences at The St. Regis Belgrade – the only ones in Europe, besides those in London. The first 11 floors are reserved for the hotel, and luxury residences with incredible views will extend from the 14th to the 39th floor.
Not far from there is Galerija, the largest shopping, entertainment, and gastronomic destination in Southeast Europe. It is connected to Kula Belgrade by a pedestrian bridge, over which one reaches the elevator that goes directly to the top of the new city symbol, where visitors can enjoy a spectacular 360-degree viewpoint.
Tribute to Nikolai Kravtsov
That Belgrade Waterfront pays special attention to preserving the memory of the greats who have indebted Belgrade with their works, and even their lives, is shown by this street, named after a medical lieutenant of the Red Army, a participant in the Great Patriotic War, and a hero of the Soviet Union.
Nikolai Kravtsov led an assault troop that came under fire from a German bunker near St. Mark’s Church during the liberation of Belgrade in the Second World War on October 16, 1944. Two days later, Kravtsov died from his wounds, thereby forever cementing his name in the foundations of modern Belgrade and inscribing himself as a great hero on its most glorious historical pages.