Tourism
According to an estimation of the World Tourism Organization, Bosnia and Herzegovina will have the third highest tourism growth rate in the world between 1995 and 2020.
In 2012, Bosnia-Herzegovina had 747.827 tourists an increase of 9% and 1.645.521 overnight stays which is an 9,4% increase from 2012. 58,6% of the tourists came from foreign countries.
In 2006, when ranking the best cities in the world, Lonely Planet placed Sarajevo, the national capital and host of the 1984 Winter Olympic Games, as #43, ahead of Dubrovnik at #59, Ljubljana at #84, Bled at #90, Belgrade at #113, and Zagreb at #135. Tourism in Sarajevo is chiefly focused on historical, religious, and cultural aspects. In 2010, Lonely Planet's "Best In Travel" nominated it as one of the top ten cities to visit that year. Sarajevo also won travel blog Foxnomad's "Best City to Visit" competition in 2012, beating more than one hundred other cities around the entire world.
Međugorje has become one of the most popular pilgrimage sites for Christians in the world and has turned into Europe's third most important religious place, where each year more than 1 million people visit. It has been estimated that 30 million pilgrims have come to Međugorje since the reputed apparitions began in 1981.
Bosnia has also become an increasingly popular skiing and Ecotourism destination. Bosnia and Herzegovina remains one of the last undiscovered natural regions of the southern area of the Alps, with vast tracts of wild and untouched nature attracting adventurers and nature lovers. National Geographic magazine named Bosnia and Herzegovina as the best mountain biking adventure destination for 2012. The central Bosnian Dinaric Alps are favored by hikers and mountaineers, containing both Mediterranean and Alpine climates. Whitewater rafting is somewhat of a national pastime, with three rivers, including the deepest river canyon in Europe, the Tara River Canyon.
Most recently, The Huffington Post named Bosnia and Herzegovina the "9th Greatest Adventure in the World for 2013", adding that the country boasts "the cleanest water and air in Europe; the greatest untouched forests; and the most wildlife. The best way to experience is the three rivers trip, which purls through the best the Balkans have to offer."
Tourist attractions
Some of the tourist attractions in Bosnia and Herzegovina include:
- Sarajevo, the "Olympic City" or "European Jerusalem"; the scientific, cultural, tourist and commercial center of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- Shrine of Our Lady of Međugorje, with Annual Youth Festival; the site of a Marian apparition and subsequent Catholic pilgrimage destination.
- Mostar, the "City on Neretva" or "City of Sunshine"; the location of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Stari most and old-town Mostar.
- Višegrad, location of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge.
- Banja Luka, the "Green City", with sights such as the Kastel fortress and Ferhadija mosque.
- Bihać and the waterfalls of the river Una within Una National Park.
- Jajce, city of the Bosnian kings and the place where Yugoslavia was founded, Pliva lakes and waterfall.
- Prijedor, featuring its Old City Mosque, Kozara National Park and, at Mrakovica, Bosnia's largest World War II monument.
- The salt-lakes of Tuzla, birthplace of Meša Selimović.
- The Neretva river and the Rakitnica river canyons in Upper Neretva.
- The Trebižat river and its waterfalls at Kravice and Kočuša.
- The Buna with its spring and historic town of Blagaj.
- The Lower Tara river canyon, the deepest canyon in Europe.
- Sutjeska National Park, featuring the ancient forest of Perućica (one of the last two remaining primeval forests in Europe) and the Sutjeska river canyon.
- Počitelj historical village.
- Mount Bjelašnica and Jahorina, sites used during XIV Olympic Winter Games in 1984.
- The coastal city of Neum.
- Doboj and its 13th-century fortress.
- Stolac, featuring the Begovina neighborhood and Radimlja tombstones.
- Visoko, city of the Bosnian nobility and monarchy, historical capital of the Kingdom of Bosnia and the site of the alleged Bosnian pyramids;
- Tešanj, one of Bosnia's oldest known cities.
- Bijeljina, known for its agriculture and ethnic village Stanišić.
- Lukavac, featuring Modrac Lake, the largest artificial lake in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- Travnik, the birthplace of Ivo Andrić and once the capital city of the Bosnia Eyalet.
- Jablanica, Museum of Case White and Old bridge destroyed by Yugoslav army in Second World War.
- Ostrožac Castle, a 16th-century castle built by the Ottoman Empire and later expanded by the House of Habsburg.
- Gornji Vakuf
- Konjic, featuring Tito's underground nuclear bunker.
