The charming Balkan modesty Bosnia and Herzegovina timidly hides in the shadow of its more untwisted tourist neighbors - Croatia and Montenegro . Tours to Bosnia and Herzegovina can not yet be recognized as a favorite among Russian tourists - first it was hampered by the sad legacy of the conflict in the Balkans, then - the visa regime and not too convenient flight . Yes, and the Croatian and Montenegrin tourism policy "chopped off" a significant contingent of potential Bosnian tourists . However, now things are very different . First there is no need for a visa to Bosnia and Herzegovina "ruso turisto" for up to 30 days, which inevitably follows from the second: the emergence of direct charter in Sarajevo . Finally, there are other pleasant "chips": good ski resorts, a decent number of attractions, a very beautiful nature and delicious cuisine . In short, it's time to take a closer look at Bosnia and Herzegovina!

Capital - Sarajevo

The main cities - Banja Luka, Tuzla, Mostar, Zenica

How to get to Bosnia and Herzegovina

In winter, Moscow Airlines in Sarajevo regularly flies the "Moskovia" airline: in the 2013-2014 season, one flight runs weekly on Fridays from December 20 to end of March. In the winter and especially on New Year's holidays in Bosnia and Herzegovina put charters. During the rest of the year, you can transfer to Sarajevo with a transfer: on the wings of Lufthansa via Munich, "Turkish Airlines" through Istanbul, "Austrian Airlines" through Vienna.

Another option: fly from Russian cities to neighboring countries - Montenegro, Croatia or Serbia, then get to Bosnia and Herzegovina by train or bus: regular communication is established with Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik, Belgrade and Podgorica. A bus from Zagreb, for example, runs for 8 hours, the journey costs about EUR 30.

Visa

Russian citizens are not required to visit Bosnia and Herzegovina for up to 30 days

Customs

The import and export of foreign currency to the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina is unlimited, the export of the national currency is possible within 200 YOU. When importing products made of gold and precious metals (excluding a reasonable number of personal ornaments), it is necessary to fill out a customs declaration, which will need to be presented when exporting these products from the country. It is forbidden to import narcotic and psychotropic substances, weapons and ammunition. Export of art objects and antiques is also prohibited. You can import 200 cigarettes or 20 cigars, or 200 gr., Without duty. tobacco, 1 liter of wine or strong spirits, 1 capacity of perfume or perfume

Money

Despite the presence of its own currency, tourists almost everywhere can pay the euro - not only in hotels, but also in ordinary shops, restaurants and gas stations. For this reason, it is better to import the European currency into the country, since US dollars are not accepted in cash anywhere, and they will have to be exchanged for Bosnian stamps.

You can exchange currency for stamps in banks, exchange offices, at the hotel reception. Receipts for the exchange must be retained, as when leaving the country they will be required for a reverse exchange of stamps for EUR. In the capital and tourist cities there will be no problems with withdrawal of funds from a bank card (Visa and Mastercard systems), but when traveling to the country, it is better to stock up with cash.

Banks are open from 8:00 to 19:00 from Monday to Friday .

Tipping is standard 10% of the invoice amount, they are not mandatory, but are desirable.

Useful telephone numbers

Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Moscow: ul. Mosfilmovskaya, 50 p. 1; tel .: (499) 147-64-88, 147-64-89; Web site.

Embassy of Russia in Sarajevo: st. Uriyan Dedina, 93; tel .: (33) 668-147, 210-913; website

Single emergency number 112, police 122, fire 123, ambulance 124, telephone reference 1182

Codes of some cities: Sarajevo 33, Banja Luka 51, Mostar - 36, Tuzla - 35.

Transport

There is no domestic air service in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but with a small country the inconvenience to tourists is not.

It is possible to move around Bosnia and Herzegovina by trains and buses . @ Buses follow the schedule, however, between remote departure cities may be irregular . Important point: vidid the actual division of the country into Serbian and Muslim regions bus service is arranged between either Serbian or Muslim cities . The bus from Banja Luka, for example, goes to the Serbian Sarajevo, and to get directly to the center of the capital will have to make a transfer . The fare is low: from Sarajevo to Mostar, for example, you can get there for 14 YOU .

The railways of Bosnia and Herzegovina are not in the best condition, many branches have not yet been restored after the military conflict. Even in the popular directions of trains are often not enough, and in the high season are available overcrowded. Nevertheless, the trip on the train will be appreciated by nature lovers without special requirements for comfort: the routes are laid on the slopes of the mountains, and the view from the windows is amazing, especially in the direction of Sarajevo-Mostar.

Taxis are available in major cities, they can be found on taxi stands at popular tourist places or catch on the street. Not all cars are equipped with counters, so the cost of the trip is strongly recommended beforehand, before landing in a taxi.

In Sarajevo, public transport is represented by trams, trolleybuses and buses. The journey costs about 2 YOU, you can buy a day pass for 5 YOU.

Rental car

Car rental agencies are in Sarajevo, Mostar and Banja Luka; in other cities with car rental, things are not so simple . For rent, you will need international driving license issued at least 1 year ago and age 21 years . Particular attention should be paid to the condition of the car - often cars are not new, and technical problems are frequent . The rental price starts from 40 EUR per day or from 250 EUR per week .Traffic rules are identical to European ones, signposts of settlements are often written in Cyrillic alphabet . There is no clear speed limit, it is generally considered to be 50 km / h in settlements and 80 km / h in the countryside . Use of seat belts is mandatory, talk by mobile phone while driving it is forbidden and will entail a solid penalty . It should be remembered that most roads are laid on the slopes of the mountains, which requires the driver to concentrate more attention, and also slows down the speed. .

. The safety of tourists

In general, the inhabitants of Bosnia and Herzegovina are very friendly and especially warm to tourists from Russia - the brotherhood of the Slavic peoples is not an empty sound . The level of crime in the country is very low, the only trouble lies in wait for tourists - manikiki in the old town of Sarajevo . Of course, it is necessary to exercise elementary vigilance: do not take large amounts of money and jewelry with you for walks, and always keep personal things in sight . Among other things, in a conversation it's better not to touch on religious issues - remember that both Orthodox and Muslims live in the country .

Climate

In Bosnia and Herzegovina a temperate continental climate with a cool summer and a mild enough winter. The maximum temperature in July in the valleys (where the main tourist cities are located) is + 27 ° C, in the mountains - from + 10 ° C to + 20 ° C, depending on the altitude. During this day, sudden changes in weather are not uncommon. In the winter, the thermometer shows no lower than -10 ° C, usually from 0 ° C to -5 ° C. In the mountains, snow falls in November and lies until April, so the ski season here is pleasantly long.

The best time to visit Bosnia and Herzegovina for outdoor recreation and excursions is from May to September. For mountain-skiers in search of an ideal snow cover, it makes sense to come in December-February.

Actual information: weather forecast in the cities of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the next few days

Hotels in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The situation with resettlement in Bosnia and Herzegovina is rather ambiguous, "Soviet" past without thoughts of comfortable tourism and the legacy of the Balkan conflict. In general, there are few hotels in the country, available either cheap and absolutely without any frills, or "with a complaint", but expensive compared to neighboring Croatia or Montenegro. Category - from two to four "stars", which based on a real set of services is very subjective. There are practically no "five" in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the same time, in recent years there are more and more private boarding-houses, cute, with home decor and kitchen and at an affordable price. The largest selection of hotels - in Sarajevo, Mostar, Banja Luka and Neum; in other cities of the country with the location may be a problem. Backpackers can stay in hostels and hostels, active tourists in rented cars - in suburban motels, which often offer unexpectedly high quality services at low rates.

Voltage in the network 220 V, 50 Hz. Sockets two-pin, the adapter is not required. Frequent nighttime power outages in the winter - in the province is more evident in the capital and major cities of each hotel has its own generator

Shopping Shops are open from Monday to. Friday from 9:00 to 20:00. Private and souvenir shops "adapt to the customer": buy essential goods or favors in the memory can be any day of the week from early morning until late evening

From Bosnia and Herzegovina can bring ceramics (including a beautiful decorative plates), woven. products - towels with embroidery, home textiles, mats and carpets, silverware, leather clothes and shoes. Also worth paying attention to the "edible" souvenirs - a general Balkan strong drink rakiyu, local white and red wines (the latter are called "black wine" here).

In the markets definitely need to haggle: identifying foreign tourists, local sellers not in the least embarrassed to wring exorbitant prices

Cuisine

The cuisine of Bosnia and Herzegovina was skillfully taken in a little bit from everywhere: from the Turks - kebabs and other dishes from chopped meat, from neighbors in the Mediterranean - the abundance of vegetables and greens, from the Slavs - the mass of milk products such as are for cheese and meat . Of greater alia used beef and mutton, and pork; the way of cooking - quenching with vegetables or grilling . Fish is not very popular due to a tiny country's exit to the sea, but in the coastal areas one should definitely try fish goulash, pies with fish and seafood . Mostar, for example, is famous for "pastry" "- a trout dish .

" Chevap "- a local version of kebab, served with bread or pita or" burek "- the usual cheburek with meat (actually" burek "), cheese is suitable as a light snack on the excursion day ("Simica"), spinach ("potatoes"), potatoes ("krompyrus") or silt and apple ( "yabukovatsa").

For more substantial meals should be ordered roast meat with vegetables "Bosanski Lonas" kebab "shish" stew with rice and vegetables meat "güveç" grilled chop "the soldier", impressive the size of cutlets "pleskavitsa", cabbage rolls "zhaprak" . The vegetable salad is always put on the table, the most popular kind is called "Serbian" and consists of tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, onion and aromatic herbs . The meal is washed down with beer that is in Bosnia and Herzegovina of excellent quality, a drunk beverage from millet "buza" white or red wine - wonderful local varieties are tasty and fragrant .

should definitely take a dessert "okoloturetskie" sweets - baklava, Turkish delight and halva, crumbly cookie "Ghurab" and cookies with hazelnuts "sudzhuk". However, the Slavic traditions there was a place: numerous pies with apples, berries and curd filling will not make you feel in a foreign land. They can be used with Turkish coffee or tea with aromatic herbs.

Entertainment, sightseeing and sightseeing of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sights of Bosnia and Herzegovina - amazingly beautiful nature, where emerald valleys alternate with picturesque slopes of mountains, and architectural monuments of Byzantine and Ottoman periods, many of which, alas, were destroyed in the years of the Balkan

Sarajevo, founded in the middle of the 13th century, is interesting with its picturesque old city, which practically did not change its eastern appearance - there is a labyrinth of narrow streets, ancient mosques, noisy markets and old Turkish bazaar, as well as the only Moritz-Khan Inn that was preserved from Ottoman times . The Archduke Franz-Ferdinand was killed on the Latin bridge in 1914, which served as the reason for the outbreak of the First World War . Still worthwhile to climb the Yellow Fortress, from where you can see the amazing view of the city, take a walk along the banks of the river Bosna and visit interesting museums - Bosnian Historical, National, Svří Museum and Art Gallery .

Attractions Mostar - Old Bridge, included in the UNESCO List, and its museum, the Ottoman mansion of Muslibegovitsa, the Historical Museum of Herzegovina, the mosque Mehmet Pasha and the Boulevard of the Revolution. The village of Medugorje, 17 km from Mostar, is famous for the fact that the Virgin Mary was born here to six children in 1981, and Blagai, 10 km away, is a medieval fortress.

In Banja Luka you should see the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a fortress 16 in the banks of the River Vrbas, the Presidential Palace (Banja Luka is the capital of the Republika Srpska), and also to experience the curative effects of sulfur sources.

The egg is interesting with picturesque streets rising at almost unnatural corners along the mountain slopes, the church of St. Luke, waterfalls and water mills on the Pliva river.

Other sights of the country: the city of Trebin with the Serbian national shrine, the Hercegovachka-Gracanica church, the monastery of Zhitomyslich in the Neretva valley , the Kravice waterfall, the residence of the Ottoman governor and the house-museum of the national writer Ivo Andric in Travnik, the fortress in Blagaji, the bunker of Josip Broz Tito in Konya. Photos of Bosnia and Herzegovina (27)