My Brief Stop in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Last updated on 11 July 2025

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We only had about 2 hours to visit Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Two hours! Barely enough time to properly explore and also grab a bite to eat for lunch, but I am so glad that it was part of our Contiki stops on our way from Dubrovnik, Croatia to Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

It’s places like Mostar that I absolutely love in Europe – the smaller towns, the wonky cobblestones, the little shops, delicious eateries … and also the iconic and well-known sites like the Old Bridge in Mostar. It’s so unassuming, but such a delight.

We arrived in Mostar on the Contiki coach and wandered from the coach park into the main township. And it was busy. Like, barely move, busy. Like pushing our way through hordes of people, busy.

It was chaotic, but still somehow charming. While the fighting-your-way-through crowds did take away some of the opportunities to really soak in the architecture, the scenery, and the shops, it also made the town feel very alive and vibrant.

Let’s visit Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

First stop in Mostar: lunch

The group I was with had a main goal of: lunch. So we found a spot just away from the main street called Food House Mostar, which served Ćevapi, which was something our trip manager said we needed to try.

It was quite busy (summer at lunchtime in the touristy spots is going to be) but the staff merged two tables together outside for us, and we ordered our traditional Bosnian food and a chilled Coke (but of course. When in Bosnia? 🤣).

One of my favourite things about travelling around Europe was getting to experience food from different cultures and countries. Ćevapi, which I hadn’t known about before, is like tiny, grilled meat sausages (often a mix of lamb, beef and pork), served with yummy flatbread, and often also with chopped onions and this incredible red pepper relish called ajvar. The dish usually comes with fries, too.

Sounds simple, right? But oh my word. Game-changer. It’s the kind of meal that makes you seriously consider moving to Bosnia just for lunch.

The Bazaar and Streets of Mostar

After lunch, we hustled our way through the crowds along the shops towards the river, barely having time to stop and browse. But the stores that we did see were bright and vibrant and colourful, selling everything from sunglasses and bags, to gelato, to jewellery, to art and other bits and bobs.

Stari Most and the Bridge Divers in Mostar

When we found our way to the Stari Most, or the Old Bridge, there was a man standing on the railing, about to jump off.

💡 Side note: Have you heard of the band the Mostar Diving Club? Okay, well I’ve known a few of their songs for years and years now, but I never put two-and-two together. Perhaps I thought it was just a fun, quirky name for a band, but I didn’t realise that they were referring to literal divers off a bridge in Mostar. The more you know, eh? 🤷🏻‍♀️

The Stari Most is a rebuilt 16th-century Ottoman-style bridge that runs over the Neretva River, the river that runs through the heart of Mostar. It stands a whopping 24m (78 ft 9 in) above the water, with two towers on either end. These are called the Halebija tower and the Tara tower, and are referred to as ‘the bridge keepers’.

Even without the added divers giving the whole thing much more drama that many bridges in the world have, it’s a very cool piece of architecture, and while I didn’t manage to get many good photos of it (crowds, our proximately to the bridge, the lack of time etc), you can get a really good sense of the bridge below.

Back to the divers. Diving from the Old Bridge is basically a local rite of passage. Which is terrifying. And no, thank you.

For centuries, the town’s young men have been hurling themselves into the icy Neretva (which is way colder than it looks, apparently!), and there’s even an official competition every July. Alas, we were there in September, so we missed that. But these days, daredevil tourists give it a go too. You’d definitely need skill, guts, and probably a touch of madness to make the jump. And it’s can’t be that safe.

Red Bull even made it part of their Cliff Diving World Series in 2015, something that I also didn’t know existed.

While we were watching, the man about to jump was taking money from the crowds, almost like busking, but the annoying thing was – and apparently this is quite normal – was that he was just taking an absolute age to actually jump. I can’t even remember if we actually saw him jump or if we gave up, knowing we had to be back at the coach at a certain time.

But props to him, and all the other Mostar divers, I guess? Definitely not for me.

💡 Fun fact: Australian comedians Hamish and Andy went to Mostar in 2018 and attempted the drive. You can watch that video here on YouTube.

Thoughts of Mostar from our 2-hour excursion

Then it was back through the crowds to the coach as we could continue on our adventure to the capital of Sarajevo.

Overall, I really enjoyed our brief stop. It not only broke up the coach ride on a drive day through the Balkans, but it was very cool to experience a little bit of Bosnian culture (something we’d get more of in the coming days in Sarajevo), eat yummy food, and check out some of the interesting architecture.

Would I go back to visit Mostar? Absolutely. I’d love to explore the town more, take time to browse the beautiful bazaar, and wander down those cobbled streets.

Our stop was brief, but it was definitely worth it.

Have you been to Mostar? Did you see anyone jump from the bridge? I’d love to know! Drop a comment and tell me all about it!