Bosnia and Herzegovina

My Bosnia and Herzegovina travel summary:

Visited: July 2021

Duration of visit: 7 days

Capital city: Sarajevo

Population: 3.3 million (2021)

Bosnia and Herzegovina travel blog reading time: 10 minutes

• Remains of destroyed houses in heavily bombarded city of Bihać.
• Una National Park – lunch in a boat, while navigating the river to beautiful waterfalls.
• Old bazar district of Baščaršija in Sarajevo – restaurants, ice creams, coffee shops and burek.
• Half empty historic town and the renovated old bridge of Mostar.
• Apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary since 24^th June 1981 in Medjugorje.
• Refreshing swimming under Kravice waterfall.

Only four hours from home, Bosnia and Herzegovina was one of the last European countries I visited, in 2021. Although nearby and easy to get to, I ignored it for years because it was low on my bucket list.

My Bosnia and Herzegovina travel adventure was part of a Balkans family trip, and it turned out to be amazing.

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH) is probably best known internationally for the war that began after Yugoslavia broke up in 1992, when BIH declared independence. The conflict ended in 1995 with the signing of the Dayton Agreement.

The newly independent country was divided among three main ethnic groups: Bosnians in the center, Croatians in the south, and Serbians in the north.

The country is largely decentralized and comprises two autonomous entities: The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska.

When driving through the country, the borders of these entities are clearly visible and the differences are very obvious. For an external visitor it is difficult to understand and verify how this system of one country – two republics actually works in practice. From my conversations with locals, I personally saw how conflicts and poor cooperation have slowed Bosnia and Herzegovina’s development.

The first city that I visited was Bihać, located on the banks of river Una, near the border with Croatia. Republika Srpska besieged and attacked the city for three years during the Bosnian War. On some buildings, people intentionally left traces of shooting and mine explosions to never forget the atrocities of the early 1990s.

I found Bihać in better condition than area across the Croatian border, where abandoned homes showed residents never fully returned. After the war, many refugees rebuilt homes in Bosnia, but many of those houses now stand empty.

Areas like Bihać now face another exodus, as young people leave seeking better stability and long-term opportunities abroad. Low salaries. few jobs, and better study or work options in the EU push young people toward Austria, Germany or Slovenia.

I booked an apartment through Airbnb, but didn’t have data roaming when arriving to the destination. I walked to the nearby police station, where a young police officer helped me to contact the landlady. She informed me that the water system was damaged and somebody else would be taking me to another apartment.

I was in a bad mood when, twenty minutes later, a middle-aged woman finally arrived. She explained she would guide me a short drive outside the city center to a place where I could stay overnight. It turned out that the alternative flat was much better, located in an upscale area, where new apartment buildings were under construction.

Walking around the city, eating great ice cream, drinking coffee, and people-watching were my favorite things to do in Bihać.

I also visited the monument dedicated to the victims of fascism during the Second World War – Garavice Memorial Park.

Sarajevo is not an ordinary capital, but a city that has historically called attention with special events and destiny:

• first full-time electric tram network in Europe,
• assassination of Franz Ferdinand that sparked World War I,
• host of the 1984 Winter Olympics,
• the longest siege of a capital city in modern warfare, during the Bosnian War in the 1990s.

Sarajevo was once a melting pot of nationalities and religions during the time of old Yugoslavia. War and history have divided the city: Jews disappeared, most Orthodox Christians settled in East Sarajevo, and war atrocities still affect Muslims.

The city is marked by Kovači cemetery, dedicated to soldiers from the Bosnian Army. These soldiers were killed during the 1992–1995 aggression by the Army of Republika Srpska.

The Siege of Sarajevo was the longest siege of any capital city in the modern history.

The heart of old Sarajevo is Baščaršija, which means main market or bazaar in Turkish. Restaurants, stalls, mosques, coppersmith alleys, and coffee shops fill the old town.

Bosnian (Turkish) coffee, saleb, čevapčiči and burek are some specialties that are served in specialized restaurants and coffee shops.

It is obvious on every step that locals are easy going, not pushing at all to sell or offer their products. Recently, owners have converted many old artisan shops into souvenir shops and cafes, which appear more profitable thanks to tourism growth.

I didn’t find many things to do or exciting places to visit in Sarajevo, which makes it feel quieter compared to other cities. I visited only one historic place, The Tunnel Museum, which reveals the city’s experiences during the siege.

The 800-meters-long corridor is a little over a meter wide and has an average height of 1.5 meters. Thanks to the tunnel, the surrounded city regained access to telephone lines, oil supplies, food and electric energy.

The tunnel was most famously used to transport the former Bosnian president Alija Izetbegović in his wheelchair, which was run on the railway of the tunnel.

Una National Park is Bosnia and Herzegovina’s largest national park, not far from Bihać. Una River runs through Bihać as well, but the further away you get from the city, the better it gets. We made the first stop at River Dock restaurant in the village of Ripac. We ordered food, took it on a boat and enjoyed while cruising along the river to the nearby waterfalls.

Una National Park is much smaller and less visited than Plitvice National Park in nearby Croatia. Even so, I found the waterfalls there very exciting and worth seeing.

The most beautiful waterfall is Milancev Buk, 54 meters high, surrounded by several pools. Located in a dense forest, it is one of the park’s most scenic and popular waterfalls, just a short walk from the parking area.

The city of Mostar is famous for its 16th-century Ottoman stone bridge, Stari Most – The Old Bridge. The old town around it has been extensively restored, adding charm to this historic landmark.

Serbian forces destroyed the Old Bridge, which had stood for 427 years, on 9 November 1993 during the Bosnian War.

Restoration in 2004 transformed the Old Bridge into one of Bosnia’s most important tourist attractions.

However, in the beginning of the summer 2021 Mostar was half empty, since recent Covid-19 restrictions scared tourist to travel. In the evenings, most riverside restaurants were closed, and the few open were nearly empty, creating a sad atmosphere. I left the kids at the guesthouse and celebrated a new business contract with my partner over wine and the bridge view.

Medjugorje, one of the most popular sites of Catholic pilgrimage, lies half an hour’s drive from Mostar. In 1981 an alleged series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary to six local children put it on the map.

The kids were walking, playing and secretly smoking in the bush above the village, when the Virgin presented to them with the words: Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Peace and Mother of God. Word has it that the Virgin still appears to them, although they are grown-ups now.

Every year, more than a million devotees climb through sharp rocky paths to the top of the hill, where a small virgin statue was erected. On the day of my visit – just two days after the 40^th anniversary of the first apparition – only a few pilgrims were there. During the strong afternoon heat wave, only about a dozen people were walking uphill.

Besides being stricken by the immense heat, unfortunately I didn’t feel any special energy that day.

An invigorating swim under Kravica waterfalls in the karstic heartland of Herzegovina was refreshing bonus in the late afternoon. Popular swimming and picnic areas were full of local tourists that day, but the atmosphere was still great. 25-meters high waterfalls with revitalizing water were dropping from the cliffs on the western side of the lake.

Bars, restaurants and walking paths around the lake are well placed in the area, offering cold drinks and local food. Mostly locals come here to cool down and relax on hot summer days.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has been struggling to survive since the breakup of former Yugoslavia.  It transformed from a republic, where different nationalities and religions were a trademark, to a place, where some of the worst atrocities occurred in Europe after the World War II.

Today, most of the young population wants to leave the country in search for better opportunities in Western Europe. The older generation have been somehow sustaining themselves in the economy that collapsed in the early 1990s and has not recovered since then.

The host of Olympics in 1984, the first place with trams in Europe and the longest sieged capital – Sarajevo – initially gained popularity through famous film festival, which opened the door for other activities.

Friendly people, inexpensive traveling, some natural beauties, delicious local food and an easy-going spirit of Bosnians will definitely attract more visitors to this divided country.

Torn between EU interests, wealthy Gulf countries, and local traditions, Bosnian politicians face tough decisions soon. They must act quickly before most young people emigrate, leaving the country without a secure future.