Although small in size, the wondrous region of Herzegovina has plenty to offer with its rich history, monumental heritage, tradition, uniqueness, and stunning landscape that includes mountains, rivers, waterfalls, and more. All that is situated only a short ride away from Split and Dubrovnik!
Whether you are spending your holidays somewhere on the coastline of Croatia and want to spice up your vacation with a one-day trip or planning to spend few days in Bosnia and Herzegovina and want to thoroughly explore and enjoy this small but beautiful part of the country, we’ve got you covered: here is the list of top 5 Herzegovina cultural and natural highlights you need to see during your Bosnia and Herzegovina holiday.
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Mogorjelo – Roman Villa rustica
Situated in the immediate vicinity of the city of Čapljina, a Roman Villa Rustica is among the most beautiful constructions of the late antique architecture in this region with objects found in Mogorjelo dating back to the 4th century, making this location protected by the state as a national monument. The Villa, with its luxuriance, beauty, and peculiarity of architecture represents a truly unique oasis of values and beauties, surrounded by the rich Mediterranean vegetation.
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Počitelj – museum under the open air
This once-charming medieval town is situated in the valley of the Neretva River some 25 kilometers from Mostar, on the route to the Adriatic Sea. The history of Pocitelj is a continuous research subject but today it is believed that dates from 1444. Following the extensive damage that it suffered in the period of Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992-95 war, its outstanding value was finally recognized in 1996 when it was named by World Monuments Watch as one of the world’s 100 most endangered cultural heritage sites.
The town was carved right into a rocky mountainside overlooking a bend in the Neretva River which gives it an appearance of a natural amphitheater. Its unique houses hidden behind high walls with delightful inner courtyards, Hadži Alija’s mosque, one of the best examples of the classical Ottoman style of single-room domed mosques in BiH and the most prominent sight of Počitelj, its fortress, situated on top of the hill overlooking the city and its breath-taking scenic surroundings – all this being a reason thousands of travelers are visiting Počitelj every year and also making it a must-see stop in all our escorted tours – giving you all a perfect opportunity to try traditional coffee, walk cobbled stone streets around a village or even climb all away up to the fort.
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Međugorje – Shrine of Our Lady of Međugorje
Medjugorje is a small town located around 25 km southwest of Mostar. The story of Medjugorje is well known to most Catholics around the world. In 1981 six teenagers were playing in the hills between the villages of Medjugorje and Bijakovici. It was on this barren hillside that Mother Mary appeared and spoke to them. When the children told their parents the first reaction was skepticism. The apparitions, however, did not cease. She appeared again and again and soon made believers out of even the most vocal of critics. Since then, it is estimated that over 30 million people of all faiths, from all over the world have visited Međugorje making this sleepy Herzegovina village to become the second-largest Catholic pilgrimage site in the world.
You will find here hundreds of pilgrims all year round, gathered and united in their peaceful prayer and miraculous presence but you do not have to be religious to enjoy a visit to this tiny city: Međugorje and its surrounding villages are a place where you can try some of the best authentic wines in Herzegovina, Blatina and Zilavka, and learn why this area is often called ‘’California of Bosnia and Herzegovina” due to its rich variety of fruits and centuries-old winemaking tradition.
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Blagaj – the largest karst spring in Europe
The small town of Blagaj, situated only 12 km from Mostar, is home to one of the largest and most beautiful streams of underground karst rivers in Europe. Below the great rock at the stream of the Buna, you can find Dervish Tekke House, built around the 16th century, with its primary to serve as a dervish Zikr praise-chanting site. It was and still is a sacred place for Muslim pilgrims to gather in the spring and pray to God surrounded by unique and unrepeatable scenery of river Buna as well as an attractive cultural and architectural monument visited by thousands of tourists from all parts of the world.
If you are staying in Mostar, you can get here by bus, car, or perhaps a day trip booked through your accommodation villafortuna.ba/excursions. Make sure to try the local specialty, grilled trout – thanks to its cold and clear waters, many restaurants on Buna river are spawning this delicious fish, endemic of streams.
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Kravice waterfalls – swim beneath the waterfalls
With over 200,000 tourists visiting every year, Kravice waterfalls is definitely a place you shouldn’t miss while in the Herzegovina region. This magnificent natural phenomenon and most beautiful cascades in Herzegovina are from 26 to 28 m high, with a lake below the falls of 120 m in radius. The calcium scale layer from the bottom to the top of the falls is covered by grass and moss.
Make sure to wear your swimsuit under your clothes – unlike some of the other lakes and nature parks in this region (Plitvice lake, etc.) where lake swimming is forbidden, here you are more than welcome to take a dip and trust us – during crazily hot summer months with temperatures soaring over 40 degrees Celsius, a refreshing swim in pretty turquoise waters of Kravice waterfalls will be the highlight of your day.
Also, it is good to know there is a cafe on site where you can grab lunch and coffee.
Bonus: while here, do not miss an opportunity to visit a museum of the Franciscan monastery – Humac which, together with its rich archaeological exhibit collected over a broader area of Herzegovina from the Old Stone Age (Paleolithic) to the present day, keeps the oldest document of this region – the Humac Tablet from 1185.
For those of you looking for more adrenalin-rush activities, we suggest you join our safari through Herzegovina, with Pinzgauer terrain vehicles allowing you to reach the most inaccessible areas of untouched nature.
If all of the above mentioned didn’t awaken your imagination and make you consider putting Bosnia and Herzegovina and especially the Herzegovina region, on your travel bucket list, then feel free to contact us www.fortuna.ba/contact and give us an opportunity to arrange for you the perfect Bosnia and Herzegovina vacation package!