We patterned our trip with Topdeck Travel's Balkan Itinerary but removed some places we did not want to see, and added a few more stops we are interested in. We are also inspired by Souvenir Chronicles about driving around the Balkans by car and they were very nice to answer our initial questions about driving a rental car around this area. 

When I started searching about this trip like - how the roads are, especially driving thru Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, appropriate visas, border crossings and checkpoints or other important parts of the road trip we wanted to know, there's only a few blogs that discusses it in detail how is it really like driving this region. Below is our Balkan road trip map, I deleted some of the stops we did, but only pinned the major cities of the countries we've had the pleasure of driving. We did the Balkans for at least 18 days and added Budapest and Krakow at the beginning and end of the trip (total of 25 days). 

Our Balkan Itinerary

We ventured the mysterious Balkan Territory,
these places are something only dreams are made of - 
crisp air, jagged mountains, trees passing by in a blur, 
sun radiating, countless vineyards, 
as we enter the coast line, the blue sea started gleaming and inviting us. 
A reminder that this is why we escape, this is the type of thing money cannot buy.

We arrived in Dubrovnik later that afternoon, we chose to stay at Grand Villa Argentina, it has a great ocean front pool with gorgeous view of Lokrum Island and the Old Town. We thought we will appreciate Dubrovnik better this way, the hotel is just a 10 minute walk to the Old Town and after a tiring day of sight seeing, we can lounge at the pool basking the Adriatic sun. This was the highlight of our trip, having the best of both worlds. 

The side that no one mentions probably because a lot of people can't pronounce it. Ironically, this place that people often or tend to forget, is an unforgettable place to see, a beauty in its own right. From the luscious trees and mountains of Sarajevo (Bosnia side), the landscape beautifully changes as we drive towards Mostar (Herzegovina side), to more of an arid Mediterranean look, as we are getting closer and closer to the Adriatic Coast. 

Herzegovina is famous for its wines and fruits and not only that, it has charming historic towns and handful of mosques that will keep your restless feet occupied. Since we rented a car, we were able to see nearby sights like Blagaj and the apparition site of the Virgin Mary - Medjugorje. We decided to not stay in Mostar and visit the area only as a day trip while driving towards Dubrovnik, Croatia. 

Stari Most or Old Bridge is the most iconic and celebrated bridge in the Balkans. The bridge is in between Medieval Towers. Mostar means "bridge-keeper" and was used to be a key gateway during the expansion of the Ottoman Empire. After standing 427 years, the bridge was destroyed during the Bosnian-Croat civil war, but it was slowly rebuilt using old methods and the original stone was used. 

The most popular sight in Blagaj is Tekija or Dervish House. The Buna River gushes out from the cliff cave. To get this view, we followed a foot path amidst the inviting restaurants surrounding the river area. 

Medjugorje is literally translated to "in between mountains". To visit this place we literally drove along the the steep mountain with horseshoe bends and as we approach the top, a small town greets you. It was a gorgeous ride to go here. Thousands of pilgrims from all over the world flock to visit this site. It was a good day for us to stop and be thankful for the blessings we received. 

Our over-all take on Herzegovina side of the country is the scenery between our destinations turned out to be as pretty and inspiring as the destination themselves. So if you are planning a trip and you have the ability to budget some extra time, take the long route, wander around, don't be afraid to get lost - it might lead you to something unexpected.