Things to do · Sarajevo · Bosnia and Herzegovina
16 best things to do in Sarajevo
16 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answer
The essential sights in Sarajevo are Baščaršija and the Sebilj, Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque and Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918. Of the 16 picks below, 6 are free, 7 work on a rainy day and 3 suit children. Allow about 3 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Baščaršija and the Sebilj
- Free sights
- 6
- Good on a rainy day
- Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918
- Time to see the highlights
- 3 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baščaršija and the Sebilj | Baščaršija | 2–3 hours | Free |
| Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque | Baščaršija | 30 minutes | Low cost |
| Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918 | Baščaršija | 45 minutes | Low cost |
| Sarajevo City Hall (Vijećnica) | Baščaršija | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Ferhadija and the Meeting of Cultures | Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre | 1 hour | Free |
| Sacred Heart Cathedral | Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre | 20 minutes | Free |
| Tunnel of Hope (Sarajevo War Tunnel) | Ilidža | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| War Childhood Museum | Kovači and Vratnik | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Galerija 11/07/95 | Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre | 1–1.5 hours | Mid-priced |
| Trebević cable car and Olympic bobsleigh track | Bistrik | 2–3 hours | Low cost |
| Yellow Fortress (Žuta Tabija) | Kovači and Vratnik | 1 hour | Free |
| Svrzo's House | Kovači and Vratnik | 45 minutes | Low cost |
| Morića Han | Baščaršija | 30 minutes | Free |
| National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina | Marijin Dvor | 2 hours | Low cost |
| Vrelo Bosne | Ilidža | 2–3 hours | Low cost |
| Sarajevo Roses | Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre | 30 minutes | Free |
The 16 best things to do
Market · Baščaršija
1.Baščaršija and the Sebilj
The old bazaar, founded in the 15th century, centres on the Sebilj, a wooden Ottoman-style fountain in Pigeon Square. Around it run lanes named after the crafts once practised there, such as Kazandžiluk, where coppersmiths still hammer coffee sets, and Bravadžiluk, lined with ćevapi grills.
Drink from the Sebilj; local legend says anyone who does will return to Sarajevo.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Iconic
- Food
- Shopping
- Kids
Religious site · Baščaršija
2.Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque
Built in 1530–1531 for the Ottoman governor Gazi Husrev-beg, this is the most important mosque in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a tall stone minaret, a fountain courtyard and the founder's tomb. It was part of a complex that still includes a madrasa, a library and the covered market.
Visit outside prayer times; scarves are usually available at the entrance for women.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- History
- Architecture
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Historic site · Baščaršija
3.Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918
On the street corner at the north end of this Ottoman stone bridge, Gavrilo Princip shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie on 28 June 1914, an event that led to the First World War. The small museum on the corner covers the assassination and Sarajevo under Austro-Hungarian rule.
Read the plaque on the corner, then walk east along the river to City Hall to retrace the archduke's route.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Iconic
- Rainy day
Architecture · Baščaršija
4.Sarajevo City Hall (Vijećnica)
The striped neo-Moorish City Hall was completed in 1896 and later housed the National and University Library. It burned in August 1992 during the siege, with most of its collection lost, and reopened in 2014 after restoration. Today it hosts exhibitions, concerts and a museum of the building's history.
Look up at the restored glass ceiling of the central hall, then visit the exhibition in the basement.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- Architecture
- History
- Rainy day
- Iconic
Street · Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre
5.Ferhadija and the Meeting of Cultures
A line on the paving of Ferhadija Street, marked 'Sarajevo Meeting of Cultures', shows where the Ottoman bazaar gives way to the Austro-Hungarian city. Within a short walk are the Ferhadija Mosque, the Catholic Sacred Heart Cathedral, the Orthodox Cathedral of the Nativity of the Theotokos and the old synagogue, now the Jewish Museum.
Stand on the marker and look east, then west, to see the change in architecture.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Architecture
- Photo spot
Religious site · Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre
6.Sacred Heart Cathedral
Sarajevo's Catholic cathedral, completed in 1889, is a neo-Gothic church modelled partly on Notre-Dame in Dijon, with twin towers that are one of the city's best-known landmarks. Outside, a Sarajevo Rose marks where a mortar shell struck during the siege.
Visit in the morning, when the square is quiet and light falls on the façade.
- Time needed
- 20 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Architecture
- History
Historic site · Ilidža
7.Tunnel of Hope (Sarajevo War Tunnel)
During the siege, a tunnel of about 800 metres was dug under the airport runway to link the encircled city with territory beyond it, carrying food, fuel, weapons and people. A short section is preserved at the Kolar family house in Butmir, with a museum explaining how it was built and used.
Combine it with Vrelo Bosne; both are on the western edge of the city near the airport.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Rainy day
Museum · Kovači and Vratnik
8.War Childhood Museum
Opened in 2017, the museum displays personal objects donated by people who were children during the 1992–1996 siege, from toys and diaries to ballet shoes, each with the owner's own short story. It received the Council of Europe Museum Prize in 2018 and now also collects testimonies from other conflicts.
Allow time to read the stories slowly; it is a small museum but emotionally intense.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Rainy day
Gallery · Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre
1.Galerija 11/07/95
This memorial gallery near the Catholic cathedral documents the Srebrenica genocide of July 1995, in which more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were killed, through photographs, video testimony and documentary films. It also covers the wider siege of Sarajevo.
Use the audio guide and plan something quiet afterwards; many visitors find it a heavy visit.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- History
- Rainy day
Viewpoint · Bistrik
2.Trebević cable car and Olympic bobsleigh track
The cable car, destroyed in the war and rebuilt in 2018, climbs from Bistrik to Mount Trebević in about 10 minutes, with views over the whole valley. From the top station, paths lead through pine forest to the abandoned 1984 Olympic bobsleigh and luge track, now covered in graffiti.
Go up in the late afternoon for the view, then walk a section of the bobsleigh track before heading down at sunset.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Views
- Kids
- Outdoors
- History
- Photo spot
Viewpoint · Kovači and Vratnik
3.Yellow Fortress (Žuta Tabija)
An 18th-century bastion on the hillside above Baščaršija, now a café terrace and the city's favourite sunset viewpoint. During Ramadan, a cannon is fired here at sunset to mark the breaking of the fast.
Arrive 30 minutes before sunset to find a spot on the wall; the walk up through Kovači takes about 15 minutes.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Views
- Couples
- Photo spot
Historic site · Kovači and Vratnik
4.Svrzo's House
An 18th-century Ottoman-era family house with separate men's and women's quarters, wooden ceilings, low divans and a cobbled courtyard. It shows how a wealthy Sarajevo Muslim family lived and is managed by the Museum of Sarajevo.
Combine it with the climb to the Yellow Fortress, a short walk uphill.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Architecture
- Off the beaten path
- Rainy day
Historic site · Baščaršija
5.Morića Han
The last surviving Ottoman caravanserai in Sarajevo, dating from the 16th century, once sheltered merchants and their horses around a central courtyard. Today the courtyard holds a café and restaurant and a carpet shop, and it is a peaceful place for a Bosnian coffee.
Order a Bosnian coffee in the courtyard and watch how it is served in a copper džezva with rahat lokum.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Food
- Architecture
Museum · Marijin Dvor
6.National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Founded in 1888, the country's oldest museum covers archaeology, ethnography and natural history in four Austro-Hungarian pavilions around a botanical garden. It holds the Sarajevo Haggadah, a 14th-century illuminated Hebrew manuscript from Spain, along with medieval stećak tombstones in the garden.
Ask at the entrance whether the Haggadah room is open during your visit, as access to it varies.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Rainy day
- Art
Park · Ilidža
7.Vrelo Bosne
The springs of the Bosna river emerge at the foot of Mount Igman in a park of clear streams, small wooden bridges, swans and meadows. You can walk or take a horse-drawn carriage along the 3-km Velika aleja avenue from Ilidža.
Take tram 3 to Ilidža and walk or ride the carriage along the avenue; bring a picnic.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Kids
- Nature
- Outdoors
- Couples
Historic site · Ferhadija and the Austro-Hungarian centre
8.Sarajevo Roses
Across the city, scars left in the pavement by mortar shells that killed people during the siege were filled with red resin, creating 'roses' that serve as memorials. Several are in the centre, including near the Catholic cathedral and on Ferhadija.
Look down as you walk the centre; many visitors pass several roses without noticing them.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | War Childhood Museum, Galerija 11/07/95 and National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| History | Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque, Ferhadija and the Meeting of Cultures, Sacred Heart Cathedral and Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918 |
| Views | Trebević cable car and Olympic bobsleigh track and Yellow Fortress (Žuta Tabija) |
| Outdoors and nature | Trebević cable car and Olympic bobsleigh track and Vrelo Bosne |
| Food and markets | Baščaršija and the Sebilj and Morića Han |
| With children | Baščaršija and the Sebilj, Trebević cable car and Olympic bobsleigh track and Vrelo Bosne |
| On a rainy day | Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918, Sarajevo City Hall (Vijećnica), Tunnel of Hope (Sarajevo War Tunnel) and War Childhood Museum |
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Sarajevo?
Baščaršija and the Sebilj. The old bazaar, founded in the 15th century, centres on the Sebilj, a wooden Ottoman-style fountain in Pigeon Square.
+What can you do for free in Sarajevo?
Baščaršija and the Sebilj, Ferhadija and the Meeting of Cultures, Sacred Heart Cathedral, Yellow Fortress (Žuta Tabija) and Morića Han. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Sarajevo when it rains?
Head indoors to Latin Bridge and Museum Sarajevo 1878–1918, Sarajevo City Hall (Vijećnica), Tunnel of Hope (Sarajevo War Tunnel) and War Childhood Museum.