10 Days in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Day-by-Day Itinerary

Ten days is the right amount of time for Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lets you base yourself in Sarajevo for several nights, spend two nights in Mostar, see the medieval towns of Jajce and Travnik, and still have time for the war history and the mountains. This itinerary is built as a loop from Sarajevo, so you fly in and out of the same airport.

We are a local travel company in Sarajevo, and this is the route we use for our own 10-day Bosnia tour. Below you will find what to see each day, how far you drive and how to do it on your own if you prefer.

10-day Bosnia itinerary at a glance

Day 1: Arrive in Sarajevo

Check in and spend the evening in the Old Town. Walk through Baščaršija past the Sebilj fountain and Coppersmith Street to Gazi Husrev-beg’s Mosque, then down to the Latin Bridge, where the assassination that started World War I took place in 1914. Have dinner with ćevapi or burek and a Bosnian coffee.

Day 2: The Tunnel of Hope and Mount Trebević

This is the day to understand Sarajevo’s recent history. Visit the Tunnel of Hope museum near the airport, the tunnel that kept the city alive during the siege of 1992–1996. Then go up Mount Trebević to the abandoned 1984 Olympic bobsled track, stop at the Old Jewish Cemetery and finish at the Yellow Fortress for the view over the city. Our guides to the Tunnel of Hope and the bobsled track have the details, and all of it is covered on the Sarajevo Grand Tour.

Day 3: Visoko and Vrelo Bosne

Visoko, half an hour from Sarajevo, is famous for the “Bosnian pyramids”. Visitors walk through the Ravne tunnels and climb Visočica hill, which has the remains of a medieval royal town. Geologists consider the hills natural formations, so go with an open mind and enjoy the views and the small old town. In the afternoon, relax at Vrelo Bosne, the park at the springs of the Bosna river, where you can take a horse-drawn carriage along the old avenue.

Day 4: Konjic, Tito’s bunker and Mostar

Drive south to Konjic and visit ARK D-0, Tito’s Cold War bunker. It was dug into the hill between 1953 and 1979 to shelter up to 350 people of Yugoslavia’s leadership during a nuclear war, and it can only be seen on a guided visit. After Konjic’s Old Bridge, the road follows the Neretva canyon and Jablanica lake to Mostar. In the afternoon take a guided walk of the Old Town and the Old Bridge, rebuilt in 2004 and listed by UNESCO in 2005. Our article Is Mostar Worth Visiting? Things to Do in Mostar tells its story.

Day 5: Kravica, Počitelj and Blagaj

A day in the warm south of Herzegovina. The Kravica Waterfalls are a wide amphitheatre of falls where you can swim in summer. Počitelj is a stone Ottoman town on a hillside above the Neretva, with a mosque, a clock tower and a fortress to climb. Blagaj finishes the day with the 16th-century Dervish House at the spring of the Buna river. Return to Mostar to see the Old Bridge lit up at night.

Day 6: Mostar to Jajce

Drive north into Central Bosnia to Jajce, the seat of the last Bosnian kings in the 15th century. The town is built around a fortress on a rock, and the Pliva river drops 22 metres in a waterfall right in the centre, where it meets the Vrbas. Visit the fortress and the underground catacombs, then walk to the Pliva Lakes and the small wooden watermills. Jajce is also where the AVNOJ council met in 1943 to found the second Yugoslavia. Read more in Jajce, Bosnia: Things to Do in the Waterfall Town.

Day 7: Travnik and back to Sarajevo

Travnik was the seat of the Ottoman viziers of Bosnia for more than a century and the birthplace of Ivo Andrić, the Nobel Prize-winning writer. See the Colourful Mosque with its painted facade, climb to the fortress and have lunch by Plava Voda, the cold spring at the edge of town. In the evening you are back in Sarajevo. If you only have one day for this region, our Travnik and Jajce tour does both towns as a day trip.

Day 8: Srebrenica Memorial

A long and serious day, but for many visitors the most important one. At the Srebrenica–Potočari Memorial Center you visit the cemetery of the victims of the July 1995 genocide, in which more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were killed, and the exhibition in the former UN base. The drive is about two and a half to three hours each way, so plan a full day and a quiet evening.

Day 9: Bijambare and the Nišići plateau

End the trip in nature. The Bijambare protected landscape, under an hour north of Sarajevo, has pine forests, meadows and caves you can visit with a guide. The main cave is open from April to November; in winter, spend the day on Mount Trebević or with free time in Sarajevo instead.

Day 10: Departure

Breakfast, a last walk through Baščaršija if your flight allows, and the transfer to Sarajevo airport.

Self-drive or guided tour?

You can do this itinerary with a rental car. The main roads are good, but mountain roads are slow, and parking in the old towns of Sarajevo and Mostar is limited. Some places, such as Tito’s bunker and the Bijambare cave, can only be visited with a guide anyway.

If you would rather not drive, our 10 Days Bosnia Tour Package follows this exact route with 4-star hotels and breakfast, transport, local guides and entrance fees included, from €1,490 per person. It is often booked as a private tour, and we can change the route, hotels and dates for you.

Prefer a guided trip?

10 Days Bosnia Tour Package

10 days · Sarajevo, Mostar, Jajce, Travnik · 4-star hotels · from €1,490 per person

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Only 5 or 7 days?

• 7 days: drop the Srebrenica and Bijambare day trips and one Sarajevo day. Our 7-day Bosnia and Herzegovina itinerary shows how.
• 5 days: focus on Sarajevo and Mostar with Herzegovina. See the 5 Days Bosnia Tour Package for that route.

Practical tips

• Best time: May to October. Swimming at Kravica is best from June to September, and Mostar is very hot in July and August.
• Money: the currency is the convertible mark (KM). Cards are accepted in hotels and most restaurants, but carry cash for small places.
• Respectful visits: dress modestly for mosques and the Srebrenica Memorial.
• Where to stay: base yourself in or near the Old Town in Sarajevo and Mostar so you can walk everywhere in the evening.

Frequently asked questions

Is 10 days too long for Bosnia?

No. Ten days lets you see Sarajevo properly, two regions outside the capital and the war history without rushing. It is long enough to slow down and short enough to fit into two weeks of holiday.

Do I need a car for this itinerary?

Buses connect Sarajevo, Mostar, Jajce and Travnik, and a train runs between Sarajevo and Mostar, but places like Kravica, Počitelj, Blagaj, Bijambare and Tito’s bunker are hard to reach without a car or a tour.

Can I add Dubrovnik or Montenegro?

Yes. Many travellers add the coast at the end. Our Dubrovnik to Sarajevo guide covers the route, or see our multi-country Balkan tours.