How to Reach Bosnia and Herzegovina?

All the info you need about how to get to Bosnia & Herzegovina.

By Air

Bosnia & Herzegovina can be reached by one of four international airports in the country. The current operational status of the airports is as follows:

Sarajevo International Airport

Sarajevo International Airport (IATA: SJJ) is located in the suburb of Butmir and is relatively close to the city center, just a 15 minute ride. There is no direct public transportation, and taxi fares to/from the airport are very affordable. A ride to the center will typically cost around $18 USD.

Wizz Air is operating from Sarajevo International Airport as its hub with one Airbus A320. Sarajevo International Airport is currently undergoing expansion but it is not operationally affected.

Sarajevo Airport

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Sarajevo International Airport, giving you various options of air travel to Bosnia & Herzegovina:

  • Air Arabia – Seasonal: Sharjah
  • Air Serbia – Belgrade
  • AnadoluJet – Istanbul-Sabiha Gökçen International Airport; Seasonal: Antalya, Bodrum
  • Austrian Airlines – Vienna
  • Croatia Airlines – Zagreb
  • Eurowings – Cologne/Bonn, Stuttgart
  • FlyBosnia – Seasonal charter: Antalya, Hurghada
  • flydubai – Dubai-International
  • flynas – Jeddah, Riyadh
  • Gulf Air – Bahrain
  • Jazeera Airways – Seasonal: Kuwait City
  • Kuwait Airways – Seasonal: Kuwait City
  • Lufthansa – Frankfurt
  • Norwegian Air Shuttle – Seasonal: Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm-Arlanda
  • Nouvelair – Seasonal charter: Monastir
  • Pegasus Airlines – Istanbul-Sabiha Gökçen International Airport
  • Qatar Airways – Doha
  • SalamAir – Seasonal: Muscat
  • Swiss International Air Lines – Zürich
  • Turkish Airlines – Istanbul
  • Wizz Air – Abu Dhabi, Basel/Mulhouse, Beauvais, Billund, Charleroi, Cologne/Bonn, Copenhagen, Dortmund, Eindhoven, Gothenburg, Hahn, Hamburg, Memmingem, Malmö, Sandefjord, Stockholm-Skavsta, London-Luton (begins 29 March 2022), Treviso (begins 29 March 2022).

Banja Luka International Airport

Banja Luka International Airport (IATA: BNX) is located near the village of Mahovljani, 18 km north-east of the city of Banja Luka, the second largest city in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The Airport is currently closed for runway repairs until 15 February 2022. Ryanair and Wizz Air use the airport as their hubs. The following airlines operate regular flights to and from Banja Luka:

  • Air Montenegro – Seasonal: Tivat
  • Air Serbia – Belgrade
  • Freebird Airlines – Seasonal charter: Antalya
  • Ryanair – Bergamo, Charleroi, Gothenburg, Hahn, Memmingem, Stockholm-Arlanda, Vienna, Nuremberg (begins 31 March 2022)
  • Wizz Air – Basel/Mulhouse, Dortmund, Hamburg, Malmö, Stockholm-Skavsta.

Tuzla International Airport

Banja Luka International Airport (IATA: TZL) is the second largest airport in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The Airport is the low-cost hub of Wizz Air. The following airlines operate regular flights to and from Tuzla:

  • Freebird Airlines – Seasonal charter: Antalya
  • Wizz Air – Basel/Mulhouse, Berlin, Billund, Cologne/Bonn, Dortmund, Friedrichshafen, Gothenburg, Hahn, Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, Malmö, Memmingem, Nuremberg, Vienna, Milan-Malpensa (begins 28 March 2022); Seasonal: Stockholm-Skavsta, Växjö.

Mostar International Airport

Mostar International Airport (IATA: OMO) is located 4 km south-east from the city of Mostar. Currently, the airport primarily serves for Catholics making the pilgrimage to nearby Medjugorje. The following airlines operate regular flights to and from Mostar:

  • AlbaStar – Seasonal charter: Madrid
  • Croatia Airlines – Seasonal charter: Dublin, Shannon
  • Eurowings – Seasonal: Dusseldorf.

By Train

Train services are infrequent due to much improved and expanded air travel. There are two daily trains running from Sarajevo to Zagreb (10 hours), the capital of Croatia, and onward to the rest of Europe.

Seasonal summer train line Sarajevo-Čapljina was introduced on 15 June 2017. Connecting bus lines by Autoherc transport company transfer passengers further to Adriatic coast with destinations in Neum (Bosnia & Herzegovina) and Makarska (Croatia).

Seasonal Train to Capljina

By Car/Bus

Bosnia is a beautiful country to drive in as the scenery is often spectacular. However, due to the mountainous terrain, driving can be difficult in some locations. However, Bosnia and Herzegovina already has around 220 kilometers of excellent highways and construction of new highways is in a full swing.

Driving on roads other than highways can be a challenge and do not expect it to be fast. Two-lane roads between major cities and smaller towns can be narrow and curvy, sometimes lacking guardrails or be poorly maintained. Roads can sometimes be blocked due to traffic accidents, or driving can be slow due to heavy vehicles, old vehicles and agricultural equipment using the road. Be alert for drunk drivers and drivers traveling at excessive speeds. 

Petrol stations can be hard to find in some spots – often the best place to fill up is on the edge of towns and cities rather than in them. Mechanics who speak English may be hard to find, in case you need your car repaired. Police regularly set up road blocks on the road and don’t be surprised to be pulled over. Drivers should carry with them their “green card” liability insurance, drivers license and ownership documents, which may be inspected at border crossings. Be sure to have the rental document (sometimes handwritten) that shows the actual dates that the car is contracted for.

Buses are plentiful in and around Bosnia. Most international buses arrive at the main Sarajevo Bus Station which is located next to the railway station close to the center of Sarajevo. Frequent coach services run from Sarajevo to:

Croatia: Zagreb, Split, Rijeka, Pula and Dubrovnik

Serbia: Belgrade; Slovenia: Ljubljana

Montenegro: Kotor

Longer-distance buses operate to Macedonia, Austria and Germany. From Mostar, Banja Luka and Tuzla there
are also frequent international services. International bus services are nearly always in luxurious 5-star coaches.

Sarajevo Bus Station

By Boat

Ferries are available from Neum to other cities on the Adriatic connecting to Croatia and other countries. There are no international ferries across the Adriatic to Italy, but these do operate from Dubrovnik and Split (Croatia).

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