Break-up of Yugoslavia & The War in Mostar: Life Under Siege
Recommended by 100% of travelers
Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- 3 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Mostar was sieged for more than three years during the Bosnian War of 1992-1995, and left a devastated city afterward. This guided tour takes visitors to bunkers, ruins, and other significant sites to help tell the difficult stories of what happened in the city during the war. A guide concludes the tour by sharing personal experiences of the war.
- Learn about the history of Mostar during the Bosnian War of 1992-1995
- See how the recent past has affected the contemporary city and region
- Travel with a guide who shares personal stories about the siege of Mostar
- Pickup and drop-off from your hotel in Mostar
What's Included
- Professional guide
- Hotel pickup and drop-off (if option selected)
- Mostar War Museum Entrance Fee
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Pickup details
If your accommodation is not listed, please let us know address of your accommodation in Mostar.
Itinerary
1
Mostar
50 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Gojka Vukovića
50 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Kujundziluk Street
50 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 8 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
5.0
based on 136 reviews
emily_F, Sep 2024
This is an amazing tour that is not to be missed if you want to understand what happened in Mostar. Esmer, our guide, is passionate about history and sharing honestly what happened in his country. He and his family lived through the siege and explained what life was like. He did not shy away from discussing the current situation and his hopes and concerns about the future. His knowledge and mastery of a very complex history was superb. Recommended for adults and teens
Tara_H, Jun 2024
This tour was absolutely amazing!! Our tour guide Eskmie (sp?) was friendly, accommodating and so knowledgeable! The amount of information he gave us far surpassed any expectations we had. Bosnia has such a rich history — I had no idea. His personal stories about the war were heartbreaking but so important to truly understand what these people endured. I fell in love with Bosnia and Mostar specifically after this tour.
Megan_T, Jun 2024
Esmer was unbelievably passionate about the history of Bosnia and shared powerful personal stories of the war. As a local, he was greeting friends in the street and even took us to a tiny coffee place no tourist would ever find. We loved this different view of the city compared to the throngs of tourists we shuffled across the bridge with earlier in the day. He was also so positive about the future of the country even given its complicated past and complex political issues today. What a great way to learn and start to understand another culture.
Kathryn_W, Oct 2023
This is a must do tour! The guide was extremely knowledgeable and gave a local perspective on the fall of Yugoslavia that is often left out of international media. Very interesting, informative and enjoyable experience!!!
Jenny_C, Sep 2023
This is un there with our best tours of all time! We learned so much and the time flew by. Stop looking and book this tour, you won’t regret it. There is a reason they only have 5 stars. Truly the BEST!
Omar_K, Sep 2023
This Tour highly recommended. We found it very interesting and very informative. Haron is a very likable man, and he explained everything extremely well and in chronological order.
His passion for his job truly shines through.
One cannot praise the tour guide (Haron) and the valuable information provided during this tour enough. Absolutely worth the price. 👍🏽
Charlean_L, Jul 2023
This tour was very interesting with Huran. We learned a lot from him and he would make a great teacher. He's knowledgeable and keeps your attention. Awesome tour guide!
Juliano_B, Jun 2023
Esmer was great! Humble and knowledgeable, he was able to convay a very complex chain of events in an easy way we could understand.
Dawn_H, May 2023
This was the most valuable thing that we did in Bosnia. The guide was very good at explaining the background of the conflict, details of how Mostar was affected, and the situation in the country today. I would recommend this tour to anyone coming to Bosnia who wants to understand the breakup of Yugoslavia.
Ruth_W, May 2023
On our trip to Mostar we had pre booked a half day tour - The Break up of Yugoslavia & The War in Mostar: Life Under Siege. Myself and my husband love to explore where we visit as much as possible and find a guided tour is always the best way to do it. I was looking forward to the tour as I knew we would gain so much more knowledge about Mostar than if we had wondered round on our own, however I was just not prepared for how much we would take from this whole experience. I am ashamed to say that before my visit as a UK citizen I did not know much about the war even though I was in my late teens at the time.
Our guide Esmer collected us from our hotel at 9am and we spent the next 4 hours (should have been 3 but Esmer was so passionate about talking about the war) learning so much! Esmer took us to an disused air hangar, showed us some of the buildings that were still derilict following the damage they had suffered in the siege of Mostar, we also visited a museum dedicated to the war which is run by families of Bosnia soldiers who fought in the war.
I certainly left the experience feeling that it had touched something inside me. Esmer's whole outlook on life and what he, his family, his friends, his neighbours had experienced through this time took my breath away, but, he was objective, not only showing forgiveness to those who had been their adversary but also expressed acceptence that all sides do wrong in war.
Esmer is a credit to his parents who have clearly raised him to not live in the past but that we must learn to acknowledge, and remember but to move on and live in the here and now.
I cannot reccomend this tour enough, it was the absolute highlight of our holiday, we travelled from Split to Mostar then to Dubrovnik and I am so glad that we decided to visit Mostar on route.
No questions were off limits and I for one have learned a great deal not only about history and what lead to this war but I have taken a little peice of Esmer's grace with me too.
Maggie_S, May 2023
Wonderful experience! It ended up being a private tour with just my husband and myself. I appreciated that he didn’t cancel the tour due to low attendance. It was a special time to learn and gain so much knowledge about the Yugoslavic wars. Esmer was like a walking history book! He gave such insight and information we could never gain just reading about it. Seeing the bombed out buildings, going to the museum and the secret bunker for planes was fascinating. We left Mostar appreciating the people and all they have hardship they have endured.
Brian_S, May 2023
We enjoyed the tour. It's very information heavy and the sites are interesting but not exactly wildly photo worthy or anything. That being said, if you're spending time in Montenegro, Croatia and Bosnia, we loved breaking up our trip with a morning to learn about the history of the region and the war. Our guide was very knowledgeable, had interesting personal stories to share, and was all around a great person. After this tour, you'll appreciate why Mostar is so interesting and gain a whole new perspective for the bridge.
Emily_A, Jan 2023
Esmer was a fantastic local guide who tailored the trip to our needs (meaning, we were extremely hungry due to shop closures over the new year and he took us to the best bakery in town). He took us to a nearby hidden and abandoned hanger in a cliffside, then a newer locally-sponsored memorial/museum specifically about the experience of Mostar locals during the war (including local heroes). It was quiet there and gave us the chance to drink tea and ask questions about everything from the political situation in Yugoslavia and Mostar, to Esmer's and his family's experiences. He has clearly done this many times and quite impressively managed to draw a whiteboard timeline map of military movements that made clear sense of a complicated situation (logic and relationships in war between many groups is difficult to parse apart without someone to guide) -- all while the map was (for him, facing us) upside down and mirrored. We went on a short car ride to the other side of town and saw murals, still-standing sandbag bunkers in destroyed buildings, and essentially walked the streets that demarcated the line of combat between the Croatians and Bosnians. Non-war-related: Esmer shared the special method (ritual, really) for drinking Bosnian coffee, which we of course immediately found in the Old Town and tried. He also pointed out the best types of places for Cevapi and sent us links to documentaries and Youtube clips about high-diving in Mostar (as it was January, we didn't get to see any diving in person). He dropped us off at a museum at the end of the tour upon our request. Our favorite parts of the tour were probably when he picked a wild pomegranate for us to snack on while touring the hangar, the Bosnian coffee explanation, and sharing his perspectives on what it's like to continue living in Mostar after the war and preparing to raise his first child there (congrats again, Esmer!!)
James_B, Jan 2023
Our guide Esmer was excellent. His personal stories of his family’s experiences in the siege of Mostar are tragic but need to be heard. Hearing how the civilians were targeted and suffered brought us to tears a few times. But, the story ended with hope of Croat and Bosnian people living together again in peace. This was the most moving tour we have done. Everybody needs to hear this story and hope for a positive future of this beautiful city and country.
Keeran_V, Nov 2022
What a fantastic insight to such a beautiful but troubled city. Our tour guide, Esmer was beyond passionate, subjective and very unbiased on his portrayal of the war. He was incredibly informative and shared some deeply personal story’s that i will never forget. The tour was a good 3 hours and it was just the perfect amount of time, this is my second time visiting bosnia and i can’t wait to come again soon. Esmer also recommended a lovely cafe that served the best ćevapi called Rota, the perfect afternoon meal.
Everyone who visits mostar or surrounding areas needs to do this tour, you will not regret it.
Andrin_G, Sep 2022
We came back from Croatia to Mostar for this tour and it was absolutly worth it. Esmer was a excellent guide with a huge knowledge and passion. He could explain everything very good and the stories were so interesting and he shared his own experience with us. We learned so much and wd are so happy we booked this tour.
Thank you Esmer for this expierence! Good Luck
Alec_B, Aug 2022
Incredible tour. Esmer was informative, kind, and gave us a detailed tour about the war in Mostar. Couldn't of asked for anything better!
Patrick_O, Aug 2022
You won't hear first hand knowledge of the war, as the guide was a boy at the time, but he has an exceptional knowledge of the history of everything leading up to the war and during the war, and it's clear that he's very passionate about sharing this with guests and discussing it in detail. It was very eye opening and really helped understand Bosnia and what the people of Mostar went through during the war. I left with a far greater understanding of the war and what took place and why, so that I can now help explain it to others. If you have the time while in Mostar it is very educationational
Paul_H, Jul 2022
Excellent tour. Esmer is one of the best guides we’ve ever had. Passionate and objective. It was a privilege to go on the tour.
The things we were shown and the stories behind them were amazing.
I would recommend highly anyone in Mostar should do this tour.
ClaireTaylor, Jun 2022
Our guide Harun was extremely knowledgeable and managed to explain the complex history of the Balkan War in a clear, easy to understand way. Harun answered all our questions, and he was also charming and very good company. A perfect host. Very highly recommended.
Tami_N, Jun 2022
The tour was very personal and intense. Our guide was very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject matter. We left with a deeper understanding of the pain and complexity of the history of Mostar.
Gerard_O, Sep 2021
Very personal & insightful tour of Mostar & what lead to the devastating war in the 90’s, as well as the impact & fallout to this day.
Aimee_S, Sep 2021
I recommend this tour if you have just a few hours and want great views of the city as well as an in depth history of Mostar. The guide was able to convey so much passion in the tour that you'll leave loving Mostar and it's citizens as much as he does. Highly recommend!
Angie_C, Sep 2021
This tour provided insight into the incredibly complex war in the 90s and the recovery that followed. Vedad was an excellent teacher and very knowledgeable. I appreciated being able to view the city of Mostar from the nearby mountain at the end. It provided great perspective. I highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Mostar wanting to learn more about the recent past.
Lesley_B, Sep 2021
We had the pleasure of taking this tour with our amazing guide, Esmer. In two hours and thirty minutes he was able to tell us the entire history of the wars of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This was hands down the most informative and personal tour we have ever experienced. He gave us all the information, took his time to explain and answer our questions and showed different locations in the city of Mostar where you can still find some remains of the horror that took place during that time. Esmer is an excellent storyteller and what make this tour so unbelievably good is that he is an actual war survivor (how this may sound, it makes him a true expert). He told about his youth and everything he had been through. If you decide to take this tour (which we highly recommend) be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster and lots of information.
Brian_C, Nov 2019
Excellent tour with tour guide Esmer. He was professional but friendly and he gave a fascinating insight into the history and origin of the people in the area and the causes of the war in the region and finally what really happened in Mostar
Cynthia_H, Oct 2019
Had a memorable experience on this tour . I can't say enough great things about our guide Esmer. His presentation of the complex history of the city and the region was so helpful to better understand this lovely city. I very much appreciated the care he took to present all sides of the story, and his deep understanding of the geopolitics of the region. Loved this tour! It is essential for any trip to Mostar in order to truly appreciate the strength of the people and the place.
Dina D, Jul 2019
The tour gave an in depth look into a war that not many know about. He was very detailed and easy to speak with and provided numerous amounts of helpful links to learn more about Bosnia after the tour was over. Fantastic all around and would highly recommend!
Pat K, May 2019
Our guide was fantastic, he told us so much about the war and brought us around to several places to show us the ruins that still remain today. This was one of the best tours we were ever on, guide was so friendly and knowledgeable, he answered every question we asked and kindly gave us a little magnet as a gift at the end of the tour. I couldn't recommend this tour enough, a definite must for anyone interested in the history of the war. Just wish we could remember the guides name to personally mention him here.
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