Bosnia: Neum + Mostar

Every time we have traveled in the Balkans, we comment on how traveling here has both been the most pleasant surprise and has easily become our favorite region to visit in the past three years of living in Europe. We have been lucky enough to visit Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, and Albania. This year for Labor Day weekend, we headed to Bosnia.

The quickest way to get there from Naples, especially when the seasonal direct flight to Dubrovnik, Croatia is flying regularly on EasyJet, is to fly into Dubrovnik and then rent a car. From there, it is about an hour and a half up the coast to Neum, where we based ourselves for the weekend. Bosnia and Herzegovina, often just referred to as Bosnia or abbreviated BiH, has a tiny but beautiful riviera and coastline with one small town: Neum. We were planning for an easy beach weekend and decided to stay here for the beautiful views, access to the sea, and promise of ćevapi (one of my absolute favorite Balkan dishes).

I’ll cut to the chase and say we were disappointed with the hotel. We stayed at the Grand Hotel Neum based on reviews and, to be quite honest, the beautiful pools. My son has been an absolute fish this summer and we knew he would love swimming so having pool access was a huge plus. We opted to do full board, which included both breakfast and dinner, because it only added about €30 to our total cost and the convenience seemed worth it. We always love having an included breakfast and having the dinner option, especially when we were planning for long pool and beach days, was enticing. The breakfast was, generously, a 5/10. Both the breakfast and dinner were buffet style and it wasn’t that the options (for breakfast) were lacking, it was just the quality. For dinner, the food was almost inedible and my partner said he has had better food in the middle of the ocean when he was deployed on an aircraft carrier. We also had to walk past a literal cloud of cigarette smoke from the cleaning crew smoking on our floor, which wasn’t ideal for us.

All of that being said, the entire staff was incredibly kind and helpful, the views were out of this world, and my son did in fact love both of the pools. We found out once we were there that you can buy day passes for the pools though so if we were to go back, I would probably choose different accommodations and get a day pass for the pool if we wanted to swim.

Logistics

You will have to go though a border crossing from Croatia (Hrvatska) to Bosnia if you fly into Dubrovnik. When you pick up your rental car, make sure you tell them that you are driving to Bosnia as there is a fee associated with crossing into a non-EU country. This fee would also have allowed us to cross into Montenegro but not Kosovo. They will also provide you with the paperwork for the car that you might be asked for at the border crossing. Both times we crossed the border (Croatia → Bosnia and Bosnia → Croatia) it took less than 3 minutes and all they needed were our passports. Going back into Croatia they asked if we had cigarettes or alcohol to declare but that was it.

We opted to get e-sims because our Vodafone plans only cover us while traveling in the EU, which does not include Bosnia. We have used both Holafly and Airalo when traveling, but opted for Holafly for this trip because it was the only one that offered an unlimited data e-sim. The coverage was great and we had no issues. I highly recommend downloading the app because the step-by-step instructions are incredibly easy to follow for installation.

Most things were cash only. We only found one or two business that accepted only Bosnian marks (BAM/KM) whereas most businesses took either marks or euros. Make sure you go with cash on hand, both euros and marks.

Things to Do in Neum

While in Neum, we mostly relaxed by the pool or on the beach and ate. As hotel guests, we had wristbands which gave us access to all of the hotel pools but they did not give us access the Grand Hotel Neum Beach (which caught us a little off guard, given the name of the beach). It functioned more like an Italian lido, or beach club, where you paid to rent the chairs and umbrella for the day. However, it was incredibly affordable for the day. For two chairs and the umbrella, we paid 30 marks, which was €15. The beach is a pebble/rocky beach so I definitely recommend taking water shoes. It was absolutely beautiful and the water was perfectly clear. It stayed shallow for a good distance and then dropped off pretty quickly, creating the most beautiful deep, turquoise blue as far as you could see. There was also a swim line pretty far out, which was very nice but not super necessary as we didn’t see a lot of boat or jet ski traffic.

Down at the beach, there were plenty of restaurant options, ranging from nicer sit down to casual beach bars. There were gelato stands (which we would rate a 4/10 based on our now snobby Italian standards but an 8/10 based on the joy of enjoying ice cream on a hot beach day), kiosks selling inflatables and beach toys, jet ski rentals (€25/10 min — we did not do this), and a beautiful pathway and runs along the entire coastline and inlet.

Our favorite restaurant was by far Restoran Laguna. We ate here on our last night and the food was incredible. It was about a 10 minute walk from the hotel. The menu is incredibly traditional and the service was wonderful. Even though it was hard, I did not order my beloved ćevapi and went with seafood. I had stuffed squid which was amazing. I don’t think you could go wrong with anything off of their menu. We walked to the restaurant on the road but walked back to the hotel on the path along the water, which was beautiful at night. We were able to look back at the town all lit up as well as see the stars. The town was the perfect amount of lively but not overcrowded.

Day Trips

On Saturday, because the weather was not going to allow for a day spent by the beach or the pool, we hopped in the car to explore. Mostar has been on my bucket list for a long time and we were only about an hour and a half away staying in Neum, so that was at the top of our list. One of my best friends is Montenegrin and her family was recently in Bosnia and they also sent us recommendations of things to do and see.

Mostar is one of the most well-known cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and for good reason. The Old Bridge (Stari Most) is breathtaking in person and seeing it arch over the turquoise Neretva River feels like stepping into a postcard. If you have ever watched the Redbull cliff diving competitions, you will likely recognize this bridge. The old town is charming, with cobblestone streets, Ottoman-style architecture, and plenty of shops and cafes. We spent time just wandering, keeping an eye on the bridge to see if we would catch someone diving (you may be watching for a while as the divers wait until they collect €50), and taking in the views from every angle. It was a little crowded, but still worth every minute. We had lunch along the river at Hindin Han, which had been recommended as one of the few restaurants in the center where locals actually eat.

One of the best views of the bridge is from this concrete slab. It does tend to get a little crowded, so for a better view of the bridge below you will see a stream with a little wooden bridge that looks unsteady but it is safe to walk over! You can go here to sit, relax, and enjoy another incredible view of the bridge. We parked at Bunur Parking, which was about a 10 minute walk to the bridge. They do not do hourly rates and only offer full day parking. It was €10 for the day. We were only there for 2ish hours but it was still cheaper than any other lots that we saw. There is also a pedestrian bridge that crosses the river directly out of the parking lot and gives you a beautiful view of the river and the Koski Mehmed Pasha Mosque minaret.

About a 15-minute drive from Mostar is Blagaj Tekija, a Dervish monastery built right into the cliffs along the Buna River. The setting is stunning — the river literally springs out of the rock here, and the whitewashed monastery contrasts beautifully with the surrounding mountains. It’s a peaceful spot where you can tour the monastery or just enjoy a riverside meal at one of the restaurants with outdoor terraces overlooking the water. On the opposite side of the river from the monastery, behind the cafes, there is a trail (really a well worn path) that will let you walk almost all the way to the mouth of the cave and will give you an incredible view of the Tekija complex. If you map directly to the pin linked above, you will pass the parking attendants. It is 4 marks, or €2, to park and they will let you continue down the road to park almost directly by the monastery.

Kravice Waterfalls ended up being one of our favorite stops of the trip and reminded me a lot of our trip to Plitviče Lakes in Croatia. Just under an hour from Mostar, this series of cascading waterfalls looks like something out of a tropical destination. You can swim in the pool at the base, rent a kayak, or just lounge on the grassy banks or beaches. It was busy but not overwhelming, and there are plenty of little cafes around the falls for snacks and drinks. They even had a beach club set up, although it was not open since it had been storming earlier in the day. Definitely bring water shoes and a towel if you plan to swim (which I definitely would). Tip with small kid: it is a big of a trek down but in nice weather there is a small “train” that runs up and down the mountain from the parking lot to the top of the falls for 2 marks. The entrance fee for the park itself was 20 marks/adult and 10 marks/children over the age of 7. Parking was about 4 marks.

Svitavsko jezero (Svitava Lake) is much less touristy but absolutely worth a visit if you’re in the area. We happened upon it as we were driving back to Neum from Kravice and stopped during a break in the storm. It’s surrounded by mountains and has a calm, untouched feel to it. It is part of the Hutovo Blato complex of marshes, lakes, underground karstic wellsprings and rivers, that form the Hutovo Blato Nature Park. We didn’t see many people, which made it a perfect stop to slow down, take in the views, and stretch our legs. It looked like there were a few spots where you can swim, though the shoreline is a bit rocky, so again — water shoes are your best friend in Bosnia. We also saw signs for lake tours, which would have been on our list if we had more time.