The emerald Una, Mostar and Kravice, spas and mountains — a holiday just a few hours away.
Bosnia and Herzegovina suits travellers who love water, mountains and history packed into a small area. The Una, Vrbas, Neretva and Drina are among Europe's cleanest rivers, and rafting and kayaking are well developed on all of them. No language barrier, affordable prices, and a shorter drive than to the sea.
Herzegovina is the warm, Mediterranean part: Mostar with its Old Bridge, the Kravice waterfalls, Blagaj with its dervish house under the cliff, Počitelj and the Žilavka and Blatina wine road. Bosnia is cooler and mountainous: Jahorina and Bjelašnica, Sarajevo with Baščaršija, the Rakitnica canyon and Vrelo Bosne.
All of it works as a long weekend from Serbia, and many combine Višegrad and Andrićgrad with Tara and Zlatibor in one loop.
The UNESCO-protected 16th-century Old Bridge and its divers, the dervish house at the Buna spring in Blagaj and the Kravice waterfalls on the Trebižat — Herzegovina's most photographed triangle, at its best in May and June when the falls are strongest.
An emerald river with the Štrbački Buk and Martin Brod falls, rafting at every difficulty level and riverside guesthouses. One of the finest river valleys in the Balkans.
A city where an Ottoman bazaar and Austro-Hungarian architecture meet within two hundred metres, with the Olympic mountains half an hour away — ski resorts with affordable passes in winter, hiking and highland villages in summer.
The UNESCO-listed Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge and Andrić's stone town, plus a boat ride through the Drina canyon — an ideal add-on to a stay on Tara or Zlatibor.
May and June are best for rivers and waterfalls, July and August for rafting and the mountains, and September for Herzegovina once the heat eases. The ski season on Jahorina and Bjelašnica runs December to March.
It is about 250 km from Belgrade to Višegrad, 300 km to Sarajevo and 400 km to Mostar. Roads are mostly two-lane and mountainous, so journeys take longer than the distance suggests — reckon on an average of 60 km/h.
Serbian citizens travel with an ID card or passport, without a visa. The currency is the convertible mark (KM); euros are often accepted in tourist areas. A Green Card is needed if your policy does not cover BiH.
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