Getting Around Mostar
Mostar is a compact city built around the Neretva River, and the historic core is best explored on foot. The city spreads across two banks: the eastern side holds the old town and the famous Stari Most (Old Bridge), while the western bank is more modern, with broader avenues and residential districts laid out during the Austro-Hungarian period. Knowing which side you are on helps you plan how to move between them.
Walking
Walking is the most practical way to see Mostar's main sights. The Old Bridge and the surrounding old town sit on the eastern bank, and the historic centre is dense and walkable. Bridges across the Neretva connect the two banks, so you can move between the old town and the newer western side on foot without much difficulty. Comfortable shoes are worthwhile, as the old town's lanes are uneven and the terrain slopes.
Rail
Mostar has a train station on Maršala Tita, and it also serves as a main transit terminal for buses. Trains connect Mostar with Sarajevo, with services running twice daily. The train has no air conditioning and is often oversold, so travellers looking for comfort may prefer the bus. An international train from Ploče in Croatia runs a few times per week on weekends during the summer. Platforms open about half an hour before departure, and a ticket costs around 16 Bosnian Marks. There is no metro or tram network in Mostar.
Buses and Public Transport
Buses are the main form of public transport for reaching Mostar and for longer journeys. The city has two bus stations: the main (east) station on Maršala Tita, near the Carinski bridge and the University of Džemal Bijedić, which is the main transit terminal for both buses and trains; and a west station on Vukovarska in the northwestern part of the city.
Frequent buses run between Mostar and Sarajevo, with departures roughly hourly in each direction. The journey takes about two and a half hours and costs around 17–20 KM depending on the company. Buses also connect Mostar with Ploče, Dubrovnik, Split, Zagreb, Podgorica, Jajce, Banja Luka, Belgrade, and most cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Timetables are available online, though not all connections are listed.
One thing to watch: the stop in Mostar for the bus from Podgorica that continues to Banja Luka is several kilometres from the city centre on an expressway, and a taxi from there costs about 10 KM.
Taxis and Ride-Hailing
Taxis are useful for reaching outlying stops and the airport area. For other trips, agree on the fare or confirm the meter before setting off.
Getting from the Airport into the City
Mostar International Airport (OMO) is located in the village of Ortiješ, south-southeast of the city. It handles regular Croatia Airlines flights to Zagreb on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, along with seasonal flights to destinations in Italy. Air Serbia has weekly flights to Belgrade, and in the summer season Eurowings, SkyAlps, and AJet (a low-cost arm of Turkish Airlines flying to Istanbul) also serve the airport.
For transfers, there are free local bus lines connecting Mostar centre with the airport, but these run specifically for the Zagreb flights. If your flight does not fall under that service, or if the timing does not suit you, a taxi is the straightforward alternative into the city.
Arriving by Car or Bicycle
Mostar is reachable from Western Europe via Croatia. From Zagreb, take the A1 motorway following signs for Karlovac, Split, and Dubrovnik, cross at the Nova Sela–Bijača border crossing, and continue through Herzegovina until the motorway ends at Međugorje; from there, signs lead to Mostar along the remaining two-lane road. Plans exist to extend the motorway to Mostar, but this may take several more years. From Sarajevo, it is a scenic two-hour drive through the Neretva river valley, a route also slated for future motorway upgrading.
Cyclists can arrive via the Ćiro Trail, a long-distance cycling route from Dubrovnik that follows the path of a decommissioned Austro-Hungarian narrow-gauge railway and crosses several 19th-century tunnels and bridges.