à ½abljak (Cyrillic: ÃÂðñÃÂðú, ) is a small town in the northern region of Montenegro. It has a population of 1,723.
à ½abljak is the seat of à ½abljak Municipality (2011 population: 3,569). The town is in the centre of the Durmitor mountain region and with an altitude of 1,456 metres, it is the highest situated Balkan town.
The first Slavic name of the place was Varezina voda (ÃÂðÃÂõ÷øýð òþôð) possibly because of the strong source of drinkable water nearby, making a settlement possible. Later, the town was renamed Hanovi because it was where caravans rested. The modern name dates from 1870, when in a single day the building of a school, church and captain's home began. However, almost all the original buildings were destroyed during the Balkan Wars. All that has remained is the old church of Sv. Preobraà ¾enje (Holy Transfiguration), built in 1862 as a monument to a Montenegrin victory in the battle against the Ottoman Empire. After à ½abljak was established as a town, stores and cafés were opened. As such, in the 1880s à ½abljak became a market town, leading it to become the administrative center of the region.
In the Ottoman defter of 1582, there were 28 Christian houses and 36 Muslim houses
In the period shortly before World War II, à ½abljak was a small town with typical mountain architecture. Its unique nature was already drawing the attention of tourists from the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and also from abroad, especially Italy (because of close ties between Montenegro and Italy).
During World War II, à ½abljak was burnt right to its foundations. After the war, à ½abljak rebuilt itself and became Montenegro's main centre for mountain tourism and winter sports.
While closed already decades ago, à ½abljak holds the distinction of having had Montenegro's only ski jumping hill.
à ½abljak is the administrative centre of the à ½abljak municipality, which has a population of 4,204. The town of à ½abljak itself has a population of 1,937, and there are no other bigger settlements in the region.
Population of Zabljak:
Ethnic groups (1991 census):
Ethnic groups (2003 census):
Ethnic groups (2011 census):
à ½abljak is centre of Montenegro's mountain tourism. The entire area of Durmitor mountain is protected as a national park, and offers great possibilities for both winter and summer mountain tourism. Among the main tourist attractions of Durmitor are 18 glacier lakes; the biggest and closest to à ½abljak being Crno jezero, literally "Black Lake". Durmitor's slopes are also becoming increasingly popular among snowboarders. à ½abljak caters for activities such as:
à ½abljak has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfb) with mild summers and cold winters. Precipitation is very high year around.
One problem hampering the development of à ½abljak as major regional mountain tourism destination is the lack of quality road infrastructure. The situation has been improving somewhat in recent years. à ½abljak's main road connection with the rest of Montenegro is the road that links à ½abljak with Mojkovac and the E65, the main road connection between the Montenegrin coast, Podgorica and the north.
The other significant road connection is through à  avnik and Nikà ¡iÃÂ, on to Risan or Podgorica. Since 2010, with the reconstruction of the Risan-à ½abljak road, the average trip from à ½abljak to the Adriatic Sea is shortened to approximately two hours.
The town has an airport (à ½abljak Airport) but the closest International Airport is Podgorica Airport some away which has regular flights to destinations throughout Europe. There are regular minibus links with Nikà ¡iàand Podgorica which arrive at the centrally located à ½abljak bus station.