I’ve got a week there, will hopefully give me a chance to see a lot but probably going to be in the north for all of it - although I hear the north is stunning anyway
Fair enough. Well, if you’re heading to Shkodër, you must visit Shkodra lake - largest lake in sourthern Europe - as it is breathtakingly beautiful. Beyond words stunning. That, and the Venice Art Mask factory. Such an amazing factory.
Tirana is such a small, yet cool capital city, that is very centralised around Skanderbeg Square. A couple of days, that’s all you’ll need, the highlight of which was Hoxha’s nuclear bunker on the outskirts of the city.
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So my foot is a prick and I had to cancel most of the trip. Istanbul was cool but was barely able to get out of Sultanahmet because of it, so will need to get back someday to see the rest.
I’ve been more mobile in Sarajevo, and I’ve loved it. Fascinating place. I’ve gone to every museum mentioned in this thread, most brilliant and absolurely devastating.
I’ve eaten baklava every day, and burek or pide most days, it has been delightful.
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Go find a Bosnian grandma and she’ll soak a bandage in rakija, wrap your foot in it and you’ll be right as rain before you know it!
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Istanbul then. Going for the football but spending a couple of days. Staying in Sultanahmet-ish area.
Main things to see? Advice for a solo traveller?
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you’re going to be in the thick of the main tourist bits - Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia - but I would recommend some slightly more local stuff like going down to Eminonu and getting one of the famous fish sandwiches (trust me) and then getting a ferry from there across to Kadikoy and having a potter around the market and then wandering up the old lovely streets to Moda or get ostentatious down Baghdad St (Badgat Caddesi).
I used to live in Kadikoy so I know the other side better than where you are. If you’re staying Europe side then Cihangir and Beyoglu are nice areas.
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Thank you! Is getting around easy enough? It doesn’t seem particularly walkable which is what I usually like best but is there a straightforward “buy this thing and get on any tram/bus/ferry” type option?
Will be going to Fenerbahce on the ferry I reckon for the game itself
it’s been a while since I was there (2014) but there is a Metro that traverses the sea, a tram that sort of does, buses obviously, ferries are very common and regular and cheap. for the main tourist things the tram and Metro will do you, but for a city that is larger than London it has a much less developed light rail.
two points though:
- I am not sure if there is a unified Oyster card type deal for all of them. I used to have a ferry card and paid cash for Metro because I only used it every so often. I don’t even remember how the buses worked.
- There is another option that tourists are scared of but they are fuckin BRILL - the dolmus. This is basically lads with minibuses who drive set routes (usually from A to B no stops) and they don’t go until they’re full. Minimal cost and you’re never waiting long - and if you go on the piss they’re a godsend as taxis are a bit pricey.
If you’re going to Fenerbahce then you can get the ferry and walk up, I used to live nearby.
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Great tips, thanks a lot!
yes, this.
also maybe avoid the big bazaars particularly the Grand Bazaar. is amazing inside but the stallholders are very aggressive and don’t take no. one time I found myself trying on shit fake jeans 3 sizes too big and the guy was like “looks good, £120 (in lira)” and literally ran out of there (once I had got my actual trousers back on).
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Going in November, so busy copy and pasting stuff from this thread into a word file. ‘No trying on jeans in the grand bazaar’ is getting highlighted in bold.
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Not my thing anyway tbh, I’ll go there to have a look but the idea of actually actively “shopping” on holiday isn’t up my alley
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Interesting seeing this as I’ll be spending two nights in Istanbul on the way back to Aus this coming January. I was surprised to see how cold it gets there in January!
Looking at the cheapest places to fly at Christmas and Sarajevo seems to be the winner. Would this be a terrible idea? I guess with the big muslim population some stuff will stay open?
To the best of my knowledge things just kinda keep going including public transport etc. They just use it as an excuse for a merry time.They have a token german-style Christmas market, for instance.
The majority of Roman Catholics for whom it’s Christmas on the 24th/25th of December live in the Hercegovina region and identify as Croats. Maybe in those areas things would be closed. 6th and 7th of January would be public holidays for Orthodox Bosnian Serbs.
It’s worth mentioning that there’s never a promise that any given thing will be open/working in Bosnia - many state institutions and museums are hamstrung by the politics situation (usually concocted by bad faith Serb and Croat nationalist politicians). For example, the national museum was closed for ages due to unpaid power bills owing to such a dispute.
I’ll speak to some friends on the ground this week for a better insight into how that period looks in Sarajevo itself and try and report back!
I’m absolutely certain you’d have a great time whatever the circumstances. Bosnians are an absolutely top tier GBOL!
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My friend just confirmed for me - religious holidays are not state holidays but are celebrated by each group. So Muslim Bosnians take time off at Bajram and only Roman Catholic Bosnians will take time off over (our Gregorian calendar) Christmas days.
In Sarajevo public transport and businesses operate regular hours on the 24 and 25 of December.
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Ok, we’ve gone ahead and booked it. Should be an interesting adventure, especially as we’re bringing two kids…
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Cool! If you have any particular interests let me know and I’ll do my best to recommend something! I’m on a personal mission to promote Bosnia (longtime Balkan traveller, musician and language learner)
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Got back from Istanbul yesterday and miss the cats so much 
Such a lovely place. Actually found it far more chilled out than I expected (didn’t even have one person in the Grand Bazaar try to sell me anything!). Didn’t really do much - just wandered about and rode the ferry and it was all perfect really.
Really great for veggie/vegan food too!
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In Istanbul for a couple of nights in Jan. How easy is it getting around? e.g. from the airport etc?