Hotel “Opera”

The building that financed charity

This monumental building at the corner of Braće Jugovića and Makedonska streets is one of the most important witnesses of Belgrade's history. It was built around 1870 under the name Hotel “Bulevar”.

The wealthy tobacco merchant Toma Vanđel bought this building and bequeathed it in his will to the Serbian people. Although he did not build it from the ground up, it became his most valuable endowment. The income from this hotel flowed into the “Fund of Toma and Jela Vanđel”, which financed numerous noble causes, including the construction of the monument at the Čukur Fountain.

From opera to cinema

In the large hall of this hotel at the end of the 19th century, foreign theatre and opera companies performed on tour, and so the building came to be called “Grand Hotel Opera”. Later, the building became the home of the famous “Balkan” Cinema. Vanđel's vision was that this property would “work” for the benefit of the community for ever.