A Road Trip Itinerary for a Month in the Balkans

The Balkans are probably the most underrated and off-the-beaten-path regions in the world, but that also makes it tough to plan out a trip accordingly. Last year I spent one month exploring Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro and that 21 days could have easily been extended into a three or four-month trip, at least.

I’ve summarized my entire itinerary day-by-day from my Balkans trip. Obviously the amount of time may be more or less than the amount of time I had, so you can use my itinerary as a guide to decide how long you may want to stay in each city or country. Like I said, I could have spent much more time in the region, so even if you have about a week to explore, it will be worth the trip.

My trip actually originated in Turkey and ended with a week in Paris. From Istanbul, I flew into Sarajevo with Pegasus Airlines for about $30 and used Paris as my stopover on my original ticket.

Day 1- Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

• Arrive into Sarajevo in the afternoon
• Check-in at Old Town Accommodations which is a 5 minute walk from Old Town
• Explore and have dinner in the Ottoman Old Town section which is bustling with locals and tourists

Day 2-Sarajevo

• Have breakfast at a cafe in Old Town
• Hike up to Bijela Tabija (The White Fortress) built in 1550 which is visible from almost anywhere in Sarajevo
• Visit the location of the abandoned 1984 Winter Olympics site
• Take a free walking tour of Sarajevo filled with history lessons, tips are appreciated and well worth it. If you would like to participate, you can email walkingsarajevo@gmail.com to reserve a spot.
• Visit the shopping mall which has the Al Jazeera Headquarters in the neighboring building
• Enjoy night life of pubs and open air cafes

Day 3-Mostar

• Take the morning train to Mostar to get a full view of the lush countryside. Train only departs twice a day.
• Check in at Rooms Deny in Old Town Mostar, Stari Grad near the Old Bridge (Stari Most).
• Walk to Stari Most and explore the interesting architecture of architect’s Partisan Memorial Cemetery in Mostar  which has been neglected and vandalized over the years. It reminded me of the neglected garden in The Secret Garden. Still a site to see.
• Rent a bike and go mountain biking, but stay on well-marked trails. Do not explore off trail. There are land mines.

Day 4-Mostar

• Tour facilitated by our hostel to the best spots in Herzegovina near Mostar including breakfast at the Blagaj River which comes with a cooking lesson, a tour of the Tekija Dervish Monastery (Sufi House), hours spent swimming and having lunch at the Kravice waterfalls, visit Pocitelj a medieval town, and the pilgrimage site of Međugorje. I recommend taking part in a tour, the groups are small, you’re guided by a local and everything is included for about $30.

Day 5- Mostar to Dubrovnik, Croatia

• Take a bus to Dubrovnik, Croatia from Mostar
• Check in at Sun Villa Hostel in Old Town Dubrovnik in a historic building
• Went swimming (and got a glimpse of the filming of Game of Thrones)
• Explore and have dinner in Old Town Dubrovnik
• Walk the city’s walls around Old Town

Day 6 and 7- Dubrovnik

• Lazily lounge around at the beautiful Radisson Blu Resort & Spa, Dubrovnik Sun Gardens

Day 8- Drive to Kotor, Montenegro

• Pick up rental car from Uni Rent
• Drive to Kotor, Montenegro with scenic views the entire way with various places to stop
• Walk the fort walls and up to the chapel of St. John in time for sunset (wear comfortable shoes)

 Day 9- Lovcen National Park

• Drive to Lovcen National Park and visit Petar Petrović Njegoš’s Mausoleum
• During the drive to Lovcen, we stopped in Rijeka Crnojevica to have lunch and hike around.
• Hike and picnic within Lovcen National Park. There are several well-marked trails that stretch for miles and miles.
• Drive back down to Podgorica and rent a room for a night from an apartman

Day 10- Drive from Podgorica to Durmitor

• Drive to Biogradska Gora and hike around the reflective lake and trails nearby
• Stop in a village to pick up cold cuts, fresh bread and goat cheese
• Continue drive to the village of Zabljak near the Tara Canyon
• Check in at a cozy bed and breakfast owned by a sweet family, Sepic Accommodation
• Hiked in Durmitor National Park and around the Crno Jezzero (Black Lake). Durmitor is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
• Have dinner at Werewolf Tavern

Day 11- Durmitor National Park

• Hike all day in Durmitor National Park. There are a few different lakes near the park’s main entrance that are several miles from the trail head, many of which are clearly marked and steep.

Day 12- Durmitor National Park

• Hike to the magnificent peak, Bobotov Kuk about 20 minutes away from Zabljak. (see article: Hiking to Bobotov Kuk in Durmitor)
• Drive to Trebinje, Bosnia which is the first major town after leaving Montenegro
• Check in at the Bellevue hotel (we were one of two guests as it was their off-season)

 Day 13- Korcula Island

• Drive to Mljet, Croatia to catch the ferry to Korcula Island
• Explored vineyards and chapels
• Went swimming at the beach in front of our apartman

Day 14-Korcula Island

• We found a secluded pebble cove to swim fit for a mermaid. The water is warm, turquoise, clear and quite calm.
  Drove to Old Town Korcula, the birthplace of Marco Polo, had lunch and explored the town

Day 15-Korcula Island

• Took the ferry back to Mljet and drove to Split on the new highway
• Explored Old Town Split and the Diocletian palace and watch live musical performances in the Diocletian palace
• Had seafood dinner at Sperum 5 in Old Town

Day 16- Korcula Island

• Head to our hotel’s private beach and tan out on the deck
• Explored Old Town during the day. The Old Town in Split has modern shops like H&M and Aldo, so it’s not a typical Old Town with just souvenir shops and restaurants
• At night, check out the summer beach clubs in Split

Day 17- Zadar

• Drive to Zadar and explore the Old Town
• Found the “sea organ” and the Sun Salutation Light Installation which are side by side. If you can get there in the evening, you will see it illuminate in different colors

Day 18-Plitvice Lakes

• Drive to the beautiful Plitivice Lakes. We were planning on checking out Krka as well, but we didn’t have enough time to. Plan to spend about 5 hours at Plitvice exploring, hiking and marveling over the natural wonder.
• Decided to drive into Slovenia (ended up being an expensive mistake thanks to lack of planning)

Day 19- Slovenia to Zagreb

• Drive back from Slovenia to Zagreb (make sure to have a vignette to avoid getting fined)
• Zagreb has several museums to check out. Bring your student ID with you for discounts and you can buy a three museum pass at a discount.
• Hang out on Tkalciceva street which has several pubs, bars, live music, restaurants, hostels and a lively and youthful scene

Day 20- Zagreb

• Picnic at the Park Ribnja. Some nights they have music at the park open to the public
• Explore Old Town Zagreb and the shopping district

For a list of things to do in Zagreb, check out my article, 5 Ways to Enjoy Zagreb for Free

 

 Day 21- Depart from Zagreb

 

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This was my 21-day itinerary for Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro and I could have easily spent a few more weeks in each country and explore them in-depth. The descriptions are vague, however it is like that to give you an idea of the day-to-day activities that are available and you can create your own off-beat adventures.Your itinerary should depend on what your interests are.  If you want a party scene, Dubrovnik and Split have an outgoing nightlife. Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina offer great outdoor adventure tourism with rafting tours, zip line, rock climbing, and mountain biking. On top of that, these countries are very affordable at the moment especially if you are on a tight travel budget. There are accommodations every where so I didn’t list all of the hotel and hostels I stayed in within my itinerary, but the ones I did mention are ones I highly recommend as they were very welcoming, clean, and convenient as far as location. You should not have a hard time booking a decent place at a low-cost, but feel free to ask me if you would like any recommendations.

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