The Balkan Tour

The Balkan Tour, done in 2008, is the mother of all tours, as it was our first expedition. We had an absolute blast and promised ourselves to come back to at least some of the places. As of writing this article (2023) we still have to do it...

How it all started

One day we had a wild idea of visiting Dubrovnik for a few days, just to see the medieval Old Town. Some time later we decided to change it to Athens, as it looked even better from a tourist perspective. And as we were looking at the map, it struck us - maybe we just drive there?

And that is exactly what happened.

Preparations

Back in 2008 the only reasonable online hotel booking experience was the Hotel Reservation System. Roaming fees were common and mobile internet was really expensive - but also there were not that many devices to support it, as Andoid 1.0 was released in September that year. People also relied on separate GPS devices to use in their cars and those devices had limited map coverage basically anywhere east of Germany - so a paper map was also needed as a backup. Luckily, we got a road atlas of Europe that included city plans of major cities, including those in the Balkans.

We were able to plan the entire trip with online maps, booking all hotels on the way well in advance. The lack of wide-spread internet meant that we had to print copies of the reservations and carry them with us.

Things have changed since then, haven't they?

The route ended up as follows:

• Gdańsk (Poland)
• Wrocław
• Wien (Austria)
• Graz
• Maribor (Slovenia)
• Zagreb (Croatia)
• Jajce (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
• Sarajevo
• Mostar
• Dubrovnik
• Kotor (Montenegro)
• Podgorica
• Tirana (Albania)
• *Ιωάννινα (Ioannina, Greece)
• Αθήνα (Athens)
• Θεσσαλονίκη (Thessaloniki)
• София (Sofia, Bulgaria)
• București (Romania)
• Cluj-Napoca
• Tokaj (Hungary)
• Budapest
• *Kraków (Poland)
• Gdańsk

Day 1: Gdańsk to Wrocław

As we visited Wrocław a few times before, we decided to skip it almost entirely. Back then (I will use this phrase often in this article - the world really is a different place in 2023 compared to 2008!) the roads in Poland were in a terrible shape and driving from Gdańsk to Wrocław took more than 8 hours - so after arriving in quite late afternoon we decided to do a quick walk around the Old Town, eat something and get to sleep before the next travel.

Day 2: Wrocław to Vienna

Another day spent on driving. We were briefly considering stopping in Brno, but quickly realised it is not possible, as getting out of Poland took way more time that it should. Luckily the closer to Vienna we got, the better the road was.

Days 3, 4 and 5: Vienna

I have had a pleasure of visiting Vienna twice before that trip and every time it was a blast. It easily is in the top 10 best cities to live and be in.

(more on Vienna to come)

Day 6: Graz, Maribor and the road to Zagreb

The route to Zagreb, our next stop, was leading through two bigger settlements: Graz and Maribor. It was too good of an opportunity to pass it and we decided to do a few hour stop in each of the cities.

Graz

Graz is a charming city.

(more on Graz to come)

Maribor

This was my first (and so far the only) visit to Slovenia. This country is more famous for its nature rather than cities, and probably for a reason. The scenery and landscapes along the way were really beautiful, but the same sadly could not be said about Maribor. I remember the city as a gray and dull place, as if its potential has not been discovered. Then again I am pretty sure things have imrpoved in the last 15 years.

Days 7 and 8: Zagreb

What a lovely place that is!

(more on Zagreb to come)

Day 9: road to Sarajevo

I have driven thousands of kilometres since 2008, but the road through the mountains in Bosnia and Herzegovina is easily the most spectacular I have ever taken. The roads are quite narrow, full of turns and tunnels, but the views along the way are very rewarding.

Jajce

A small town on the way from Croatia to Sarajevo, famous for its castle on the hill. Sadly, we did not have enough time to see the city itself - we just stopped by the shop, snapped a photo of the hill and drove away.

Day 10: Sarajevo

I praised Zagreb already - Sarajevo is on par. It has a vibe of a city that has been through some rough times, but it knows it came back stronger. This city is diverse, full of cultures and people mixing, coexisting and influencing one another. A surprise for me, who lived most of my life in a somewhat homogenous city that was diverse and full of cultures throughout most of its history.

(more on Sarajevo to come)

Day 11: Mostar

If Sarajevo was a pot in which cultures mix, then Mostar is the exact opposite of that. The river Neretva splits the city into two - and so is the separation between churches and mosques. There are two impressive sights of Mostar. The first one is obviously the bridge, completely destroyed by the Croatian Army during the Balkan war and rebuilt 10 years later (so 4 years before the trirp). The second is the abandoned building near the Spanish square - a silent witness to the war.

Days 12 and 13: Dubrovnik

(more on this overpriced place to come)