sshephard

Has anyone driven to Mostar? I am wondering if driving is problematic (I've heard the signage is ambiguous to non existent). I also wonder about rental car agreements and whether you can take a car rented in Croatia across the border?

sessa

We are going to Croatia in March and are planning to drive to Mostar (and possible Sarajevo) as well. From my research, I have heard that the drive is not bad, only that the signage is in the Cyrillic alphabet so you will want a map with the same. You also need to check with your specific rental car company about border crossings as this varies by company. And I heard something about needing a green card to take the rental car across borders.

Hopefully others with experience will chime in.

julia_t

I'm driving from Split to Mostar in 3 weeks time, then down to Dubrovnik.

If you look at viamichelin.com you will see there are several routes, though the easiest and most used is along the coastal highway, and then up the Neretva valley.

I have read nothing about signage in Croatia and that part of Bosnia being in Cyrillic. It is further south towards Montenegro where you find that, and I believe that if you take the lesser road from Mostar to Dubrovnik via Trebinje you may find this. (I'm considering taking this route.)

I have bought a very good map, and am not anticipating any problems with signage. I will post back on my return and let you know how I find it.

Some rental companies will not allow you to drive into Bosnia or Montenegro, or take the car on ferries. Because of this I booked mine with economycarrentals.com who allow this, for an extra 50 euros or so for the cross border card. They are also pretty much the cheapest rental company, and I got the recommendation for them here at fodors.

sessa

Sorry, I didn't mean that the signage in Croatia is in Cyrillic. I thought I had heard it was in Bosnia, but perhaps they were confusing this with Montenegro.

Thanks, Julia_t, for the helpful info! Look forward to hearing about your trip!

sshephard

Me, too.

kendy

Yes I have driven from Podgora to medugorije then on to Mostar. I rented the car in Podgora Croatia and had no trouble I used my foreign licence to rent and advised I was taking the car to Bosnia there was no problem. Driving in Bosnia was no trouble and the sign posts were all readable. The only problem was trying to find the old city and THAT BIRDGE. however it was no problem after I asked a few questions most young people speak English. Dont get caught with Bosnian currency it is no good outside the country. They will accept euros and Croatian money. Best of luck

julia_t

Hi, I'm just back from Croatia and Bosnia.

I drove from Split to Mostar along the coastal highway, then up the Neretva river valley. I had no problems at the border crossing and was let through after just a cursory glance at my (UK) passport. The roads were absolutely fine, signage was OK, I kept to the painfully slow speed limits - and was overtaken constantly! The drive actually took a good 3 1/2 hours from Trogir.

On arrival in Mostar I did get a bit confused actually finding my hotel in the Old Town, but I called them up, told them where I was parked, and they came to get me! Terrific service, and a great place to stay. Nowhere more central I don't think, certainly nowhere more picturesque and charming.

http://www.motel-mostar.ba/eng/enter.htm

The next day I drove down to Dubrovnik, back down the way I came. I decided against taking the lesser road through Trebinje because of time constraints, and also my confidence in driving on the wrong side of the road - for me that is- was not high after a scary experience in Trogir a couple of days previously. Anyway, I passed through the same border crossing into Croatia - I was just waved through, and the same going through the other crossings on the coast road at Neum.

That drive to Dubrovnik took a little over 2 hours, and was remarkably easy.

My car hire company, www.economycarrentals.com gave me a wallet with a green card and other relevant documents, but I was never asked for them anywhere.

I'd say go for it. It really isn't a difficult drive at all on the main roads. The minor roads (the yellow ones on the maps) are a different story though!

sshephard

Thanks, julia_t for your report. I got interesting in Mostar when I watched the first part of Michael Palin's new series on eastern Europe.

sessa

Thanks for the info Julia! I think we are going to stay at the same place in Mostar so glad you liked it. Did you think 1 day there was enough?

julia_t

There is not really all that much to see and do, so a full day would be enough.

I arrived early afternoon on the Sunday and left almost exactly 24 hours later. In that time I had seen pretty much everything in the Old Town, done loads of shopping in the bazaar, had 2 leisurely lunches, dinner plus other drinks breaks, and an excellent 2 hour guided tour (we used Fortuna Tours based in the Old Town, 30 euros for 2 of us, our guide Asim has grown up in Mostar and gave us a fascinating insight into what it was like to be a child in a divided Mostar).

It was quite busy during the afternoon with the day tours, but in the evening it was delightful to be able to wander freely and I'd say it is well worth working an overnight stay into your itinerary.

tidy

Would you recommend spending the night in Mostar or just doing it as a daytrip from Dubrovnik or Split?
Tidy

akrobat

We did a day trip from Cavtat, just south of Dubrovnik, to Mostar and found it to be plenty of time. We even had time to stop at another quaint medevial-looking town that was mentioned in our Lonely Planet book on the way back. We did not find the drive problematic in the least. The border crossing was simple - our US passports were barely looked at. Once we got to Mostar it was a little confusing finding the bridge area but we figured it out quickly (it's not that large of a town). The only "problem" we encountered were some men trying to charge us to park in a free parking area (according to the sign). In the end we paid the money - it was only 5 euro and I didn't want to take a chance that it was a legit thing (though I am 99% sure it wasn't).

RMoore

We are also looking to make this drive -- from Dubrovnik to Mostar to Split -- so this is very helpful. Thanks. A bit off topic -- but, with driving to Mostar, does anyone know how secure it is to have a rental car there? In otherwords, should we look for a place to stay that has secured parking?

lanejohann

im sure you will be ok
we didnt get up to mostar from dubrovnik..we were told it was about three hours away ...too long to do in a day we thought and then get back
i thought driving in croatia would be fraught with dangers but no..the roads are good and people speak english and are very helpful..i didnt have one bad experience with anyone

RMoore

Thanks. I have been reading a lot of posts and feel good about Croatia driving/parking. My question is specific to Mostar. Somewhere I read a post where they specifically sought out a place with secured parking. Just wondering if that's needed.

lanejohann

one tip with a hire car...try to give it a localised look..buy a newspaper and leave it visible in the car
as far as security..thieves may go for the mercedes so we were told but they will probably overlook the average car
do not leave valuables in any car...youre not insured if the car is broken into anyway

julia_t

I parked my rental car on the street close to the Motel Kriva Cuprija, by the Crooked Bridge. It was where they told me to park, there were derelict houses next to new apartments but they said it would be safe and my rental car was fine. I wouldn't make secure and private parking your priority.

I posted above about the drive between Split-Mostar-Dubrovnik a few posts above, and also a Mostar trip report which you can read here...

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35086450

Have a wonderful time!