Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) does not have the Amalfi Coast, Phuket, or the Cote d’Azur, but it has what the market increasingly seeks – authenticity and untouched nature. A country with cultural-historical assets, hospitable hosts, natural beauties, and access to the sea, it is only a three-hour flight from most European capitals. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in 2020 included BiH as one of three tourist destinations in the world with a growth potential of 10.5%. Last year, nearly two million tourists entered the country (1.935.745), 10.3% more compared to 2023.
Global tourism changes
In global tourism trends, as tourists increasingly turn to rural and eco-tourism, BiH has what to offer – its villages, wine routes, monuments, natural attractions… Yet this sector, despite its huge potential, is still in a development phase and does not contribute to the economy to the capacity it could.
In Canton Sarajevo (CS), which stands out for preserved natural resources as well as its position, according to the Tourist Board of CS, four rural household accommodations are registered, one of which is in the municipality of Trnovo (apartment Treskavica), and three in the municipality of Ilijas (“Mosevacka avlija, Vila Meyra, Etno Begovo selo”). However, there are many more active service providers. The largest numbers are located in Hadzici, Ilijas, Trnovo, and Vogosca, places suitable for the development of this type of tourism.
The offer is diverse, explains Haris Fazlagic, director of the Tourist Board of CS, and it includes stays in family homes, traditional cuisine, horseback riding, visits to farms, walking and cycling tours, workshops on medicinal herbs and old crafts, and excursions to protected areas (Bijambare, Skakavac, Treskavica).
“According to estimates, rural tourism accounts for about 5% of turnover, but with a tendency to grow especially in the summer months and weekend visits,” says Fazlagic.
“Tourists look for experiences that cannot be ordered through an app”
In Republika Srpska (RS), more than 260 rural households that offer some type of tourist service are registered. Most are concentrated around Banja Luka, Sipovo, Mrkonjic Grad, in Eastern Herzegovina (especially in Nevesinje, Trebinje, and Gacko), in Potkozarje, Semberija, and around Visegrad.
“Rural tourism in RS has special importance because almost the entire territory is rich in natural resources, cultural-historical monuments, tradition, and gastronomy,” says Ana Lakic from the Tourist Organization of RS. She adds that almost all forms of active recreation take place in these areas – hiking, rafting, cycling, kayaking, canoeing – and accommodation is offered in authentic camps, rural household accommodations, and guesthouses.
Although still insufficiently used in terms of organized offerings, this sector shows exceptional vitality on the ground, she emphasizes, and local communities are increasingly getting involved: rural tourist households and agricultural farms are registering, open-house days are organized, and local products are offered.
“Tourists today seek experiences that cannot be ordered via an app and increasingly choose destinations that are ‘disconnected from the system,’ where they can reset – without noise and crowds,” she points out.
As in other parts of BiH, in RS there are no precise data on revenues from rural tourism alone, but statistics show that the sector is generating growth, and it is expected that better categorization, the e-visitor system planned to be introduced in this entity, and digital promotion will bring greater formal income.
The most beautiful villages of BiH
In 2024, the most beautiful villages of BiH officially became part of the Federation of the Most Beautiful Villages in the World, and three villages from RS were included on this list: Krupa na Vrbasu, Pecka, and Bratac, while Krupa na Vrbasu was also recognized by the UNWTO (‘Best Tourism Villages’ of 2022 Named by UNWTO). With this recognition, BiH became the first country in the Balkans and the twelfth in the world to gain this prestigious membership.
Herzegovina-Neretva Canton (HNC) has for many years developed wine tourism and agrotourism.
The Tourist Board of HNC launched the “Herzegovina Wine Route” in 2007, and in 2017, the “Agrotourism Herzegovina” project, with the aim of activating local resources. Today, these are integral parts of the tourist offer of the region.
Currently, in this canton, there are about 30 wineries ready to receive guests, and about 15 agrotourism estates. At the same time, the number of holiday homes is increasing. In the wider Mostar area, there are now more than 500 of them, most of which also have a pool.
This investment momentum, say the Tourist Board of HNC, resembles the earlier expansion of private accommodation in Dalmatia. But it has its challenges, they say.
“One of the greatest is preserving village life, because young people increasingly move to urban areas. Rural areas were once lively, and today we face a trend of depopulation. Whether that process is irreversible remains to be seen. Serious analysis and measures are needed to encourage people to stay, as well as the development of arable and livestock production. Without the local population, there is neither sustainable rural tourism nor quality hosts,” HNC Tourist Board stated.
In response to these challenges, the allocation of state agricultural land in concession to family farms that meet legal requirements has begun. Foreign investments in this area are still limited, they note, since the sector does not bring profit in the short term.
Development, they explain, still depends on domestic people, because “Foreign investors will come only when the destination is sufficiently developed to guarantee a safe and quick return on investment,” the HNC Tourist Board explains.
Simplify the legal procedure
Tuzla Canton (TC), with the largest number of registered family agricultural holdings, carries a large – but still underused – potential for the development of rural tourism. One of the most important areas is the Protected Landscape Konjuh, which extends over the municipalities of Zivinice, Kladanj, and Banovici. Given the different protection regimes and permitted activities within this area, the Tourist Board of TC explains, it is necessary to additionally educate the rural population, but also the professional staff of public institutions that manage this area.
Merima Aljic from the Tourist Board of TC explained that developing this sector requires more than infrastructure alone – it is necessary, she says, to determine how interested the rural households themselves are in joining tourism, to educate them about the benefits it can bring, and through pilot projects to encourage family farms to expand their existing agricultural activities with tourist-hospitality services. It is also very important, she explains, to simplify the legal procedure. The development of rural tourism should, our interlocutor believes, be built with financial support from governments at all levels, and it should be a strategic direction of the entities and the Brcko District.
“Positive examples of rural tourism in TC are Etno Avlija Mackovac-Banovici, which, through its dedication and work, contributes to the preservation of the traditional values of our region, as well as Mionica Ranch in Gradacac,” says Aljic.
The fast pace of life has changed tourists’ preferences, she says, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, when tourists began discovering the beauties of rural destinations. Older people look for peaceful natural areas, while younger people seek adrenaline sports and discovering new locations, which both TC and BiH abound in.
“A big problem when it comes to applying for foreign investments is the non-functioning of the state-level body in the field of tourism, because the Constitution of BiH recognizes tourism as a divided competence between the entities and the Brcko District, while the state body within the ministry for coordination among them is non-functional,” Aljic points out.
Below 1% of the budget
Both entities have tourism development strategies. Budget grants, credit lines, and international partners are the main sources of tourism financing. Yet the sector, as one of the most prospective branches of the economy in BiH, still receives below 1% of the budget.
The Government of the Federation of BiH (FBiH) last year allocated four million BAM for capital investments and current transfers in tourism, twice as much as the previous year, with the announcement that larger investments should continue year after year. (The total FBiH budget exceeded seven billion BAM.)
According to official government documents, in 2023, 150.000 BAM was intended for providers of accommodation capacities in rural areas, with the aim of improving service quality in categorized facilities.
The Ministry of Economy of CS says it recognizes the potential of rural tourism, and that through its programs, the ministry provides financial incentives for equipping spaces on agricultural holdings for the purpose of preparing and serving food from their own products. “Support is implemented in accordance with the Rulebook on measures of financial incentives, conditions, and procedure for exercising the right to financial incentives in agriculture and rural development, thereby providing systemic and long-term institutional support to this form of tourism,” they state.
National Park Una, an example of a successful investment in ecotourism, has in the past two years received over 3.2 million BAM from the FBiH budget for infrastructure and projects with local communities. The park now records over 178.000 paid visits, an increase of 15% compared to last year.
“Smart era”
The Tourism Development Strategy of RS 2021-2027 identified rural and village tourism as one of the most important areas that need to be improved.
Through the activities of the Tourist Organization and ministries, projects aimed at revitalizing rural and natural resources via digital and “smart” solutions are increasingly supported.
Within European programmes, such as the SMART ERA project in which they actively participate, mapping, connecting, and digitalizing the tourist offer and implementing advanced offer solutions are being carried out.
The problems that slow the development of rural tourism in BiH are similar across the country, our interlocutors say.
Lack of infrastructure – access roads, signage, and basic sanitary conditions, weak mobile network, and internet – are just some of the challenges.
Less than three percent of the territory is under formal protection, which is well below the European average. Additional pressure is created by inadequate waste disposal, uncontrolled construction, and non-application of existing laws, which endanger the resources that should be the basis of the tourist offer.
Many owners of agricultural holdings do not have sufficient capital for initial investments in rural tourism, and credit products are often not adapted to small tourism businesses, especially in rural areas.
Education and human capacities are crucial for development
Furthermore, education and human capacities are crucial for tourism development. A lack of knowledge about tourism management, digital marketing, and sustainable development limits the professionalization of the sector.
“Many hosts work with ‘heart,’ but without the necessary knowledge and learn ‘on the go’. The rural offer is still not systematically presented on the market. There is a lack of connection between producers, hosts, and tour operators. A large number of restaurateurs still do not use domestic products enough, and the added value they can achieve in that way. Homemade cheese made on the slopes of Zelengora, served in one of the restaurants in Trebinje, has far greater value than some industrial product,” says Lakic and adds: “These challenges should be seen not as obstacles but as tasks to be worked on together – through smart dialogue, community support, international cooperation and a development vision based on natural and cultural wealth, not on short-term gain,” Lakic says.
In conclusion, from everything we have heard, rural and ecotourism make up a significant part of BiH’s overall tourist offer, but for this branch to reach its full economic potential and for its villages to become living economies, a great deal more investment in strategies and systemic support is needed, Forbes writes.
