Southwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina is a quaint and relaxing area of the country that still has lots to offer. During our day in Ljubuški, we took a Jeep tour, saw a few waterfalls, and soaked in the serenity of the Bosnian countryside. Read on for some can’t-miss activities and places to see when in southwestern Bosnia & Herzegovina!
Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. When you purchase through links on my site, I may make a small commission (at no extra cost to you!).
Ljubuški
After crossing the Croatia-Bosnia border, we decided to stay the night in the town of Ljubuški. We found a hotel slash restaurant with great reviews last minute on Booking.com, so we decided to give it a shot. I’m so glad we did because Motel Most became one of my favorite places we stayed during our whole trip through the Balkans!
We booked a lovely little room with two beds and a balcony overlooking the Trebižat River. The man at reception didn’t speak any English but we managed to communicate with gestures and get our room key. All of the guest rooms are located right above the restaurant, which makes it super convenient to grab breakfast or dinner during your stay.
After checking in, we decided to go for a walk around our hotel. There is a bicycle trail that runs parallel to the river and begins just steps outside of Motel Most. We passed fields of sunflowers, a community garden, and several groups of people fishing and relaxing by the water. The sun setting over the mountains was beautiful and exactly the kind of ambiance I was expecting to find in the Bosnian countryside.
The next morning, we decided to go to the hotel restaurant for breakfast and coffee. We ordered more food and drinks three separate times because it was just that good. Our cappuccinos, omelets, espresso shots, and homemade dessert were fabulous and very inexpensive. I’d definitely recommend eating at Restoran Most if you stay at the hotel — next time, I’d be sure to make it to dinner as well.
Hercegovina Go Safari Tours
On a whim, we decided to go on a guided Jeep safari tour with Hercegovina Go. (In reality, my dad saw the cool military ATV and was immediately hooked.) The tour starts from the Kravice waterfalls parking lot and lasts about 4 and a half hours. You get to see a lot of places that you probably otherwise wouldn’t and a lunch of freshly caught fish is included in the price!
Our guide, Antonio, was awesome. He was able to round up a few more people to go on our tour with us to lower the price for everybody. Additionally, he explained the history of all of our stops and told us what life was like in present-day Herzegovina.
Herzog Stjepan Fortress
The first stop on our safari tour through the Bosnian countryside was Herzog Stjepan Fortress.
This fortress on the top of Butorovica Hill sits 1300 ft (396 m) above sea level and overlooks the town of Ljubuški. It was probably built sometime around the 15th century for Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, the powerful Bosnian duke. Since then, the fortress has fallen into disrepair because of multiple earthquakes and a lack of funding. Today, the ruins are being restored thanks to funds from the European Union.
Side note: Bosnia and Herzegovina is currently a “potential candidate country” for entry into the EU. Since their application in 2016, they’ve failed to meet certain standards for entry (like constitutional reforms).
Bosnian countryside
After our stop at the fortress, we took a casual ride through the Bosnian countryside. We went through wide-open fields, over some marshy river lands, and down the streets of a few tiny villages. The whole time, Antonio explained the complicated social history of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia. I really enjoyed this part of the tour because we got to see parts of the region that we otherwise wouldn’t have and learn about it firsthand from a local.
We also stopped by Vodice, which is a natural water source built into the side of a cave in the middle of a small town. The water was fresh, cold, and absolutely delicious. After hearing about the cultural significance of the area, we filled up our water bottles and continued on to our next stop.
Koćuša Waterfall
Koćuša Waterfall is a small swimming hole in the village of Veljaci, a few minutes west of Ljubuški. Popular with locals in the summer, the waterfall itself stretches over 164 ft (50 m) wide. There is also a restaurant with tasty Bosnian food and seats overlooking the water.
Trebižat River boat ride
Our final tour stop of the day was to Čeveljuša, a boat launch site along the Trebižat River. Hercegovina Go arranged a floating lunch that included freshly caught fish and homemade cherry liquor (woohoo!). We ate our food as we slowly made our way down the river to another small, local swimming hole. Once we were done eating, a Bosnian family taught us how to properly swing into the water from the hanging tree swing. Our boat ride (and our whole tour overall) felt so authentic and real because we were able to see the region from a local perspective.
Kravice waterfalls
After our tour, Antonio dropped us back off at the Kravice waterfalls and we bid our farewells. Entry to the waterfalls was not included in our tour, but we decided to check them out afterward anyway. After paying a small entry fee, we walked down a short path to the main body of water. All around the lake, there are restaurants, bars, and places to sit and relax. People come here during the summer to picnic and beat the heat.
One of the best parts of Kravice waterfalls is that you can swim right up to them — there are basically no restrictions (unlike the waterfalls at Krka National Park in Croatia)! I swam up to one of the large rocks beneath a waterfall and just sat there, basking in the coolness of what I was doing. Unlike the smaller Koćuša waterfalls we had visited earlier, the lake at Kravice was actually quite warm, making it easy to spend a bit of time in the water.
If you come to Kravice, I’d recommend coming early to secure a spot on one of the lounge chairs. Since we came in the afternoon, it was already very crowded and we had no place to sit and leave our belongings.
Book a tour in Herzegovina
Thanks for reading this Bosnian countryside recap!
xoxo Niki
My bro saved this web page for me and I have been going through it for the past several hours. This is really going to help out me and my classmates for our class project. By the way, I enjoy the way you write.