Bosnia and Herzegovina

Few places in Europe show their history as openly as Bosnia and Herzegovina. In Sarajevo you can stand on a single street and see the change from Ottoman timber shops and mosques in Baščaršija to the stone facades of the Austro-Hungarian city, with Orthodox and Catholic churches and a synagogue within a short walk. The city has rebuilt itself since the 1990s, and local guides talk about that period with honesty and care.

Mostar, in the southern region of Herzegovina, is known for the Stari Most, the old bridge over the Neretva. The original stood for more than four centuries before it was destroyed in 1993; the rebuilt bridge opened in 2004 and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. On summer afternoons you may see local divers jump from it into the cold green water below.

Food and drink

Ćevapi, small grilled sausages served in flatbread with raw onion and kajmak, is the national dish. Burek and other filled pastries are eaten at any hour, and Bosnian coffee is brewed in a copper džezva and served with a sugar cube and often a piece of rahat lokum. In Herzegovina, look out for local wines made from the Žilavka and Blatina grapes.

How to travel

Our private guided walks in Sarajevo and Mostar are the easiest introduction, with a local guide to explain what you are seeing. Bosnia and Herzegovina also features in our Balkans Explorer private van tour, which links it with Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia and Bulgaria. Roads through the mountains are scenic but slow, so travelling with a driver is the comfortable choice.