When I tell people about any trip, the common answer I get is: “Amazing. But how much did it cost?” So, I have prepared a detailed cost breakdown for our Croatia – Bosnia trip. But do keep in mind that this is a snapshot frozen in time and prices do change as the time goes on as well as they fluctuate through seasons and are affected by the level of comfort you wish to have when travelling. So you can use this as a rough idea of the expenses involved, but do expect your final price to be a bit different in the end. Anyways, I hope you find this helpful.
Trip Details:
When the trip took place: Last week of May 2024 to the first week of June 2024
Total length of trip: 11 nights / 12 days
Number of travellers: 2 adults
Trip itinerary
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Breakdown of Our Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina Road Trip Costs
Cost of Activities and Sightseeing
| Activity | Cost per 1 person (EUR) |
| Rafting | 60 |
| Krka nature park entrance | 40 |
| Boat ride in Krka nature park | 15 |
| Plitvice lakes entrance ticket | 40 |
| Food & Crafts tour in Sarajevo | 40 |
| Snorkeling cruise | 55 |
| Klis fortress | 10 |
| Sarajevo cable car | 15 |
| Sarajevo Town hall | 5 |
| Tito’s Bunker | 10.5 |
Total: ~290.50 EUR per person
Accommodation Costs
During our 11-night trip, we stayed in a mix of hotels and Airbnb rentals. We went for the cheaper end, but made sure the places had free on site parking and the hotels had breakfasts included in the price as well.
| Accomodation | Cost for 2 people (EUR) |
| Hotel in Split (2 nights) | 207 |
| Hotel in Mostar | 59 |
| Hotel in Konjic | 61 |
| Hotel in Lozavec near Krka park | 93 |
| Airbnb Zadar (3 nights) | 183.81 |
| Airbnb Split (2 nights) | 124.1 |
| Airbnb Sarajevo | 35 |
| City tax in Split | 8 |
| Tourist tax in Lozovec | 3.4 |
Total: ~774.3 EUR per 2 grown ups
Transportation Costs
Our main method of transportation was a rental car which we had for 8 days, but we also walked a lot to avoid spending money on public transport when possible.
| Public transport in Split | Cost per person (EUR) |
| Public buss from Split to city center | 3.1 |
| Airport shuttle | 8.4 |
| Car | Cost (EUR) |
| Rental car with basic insurance | 145 |
| Car wash | 2.5 |
| ~74 l of gasoline* | ~120 |
Total: ~290.50 EUR
*We had a gasoline car that uses 5,7 liters per 100 km and our total distance was 1288km therefore we needed ~73,4 liters of gasoline. Average price at the time was around 1,64 (a bit cheaper in Bosnia and a bit more expensive in Croatia
Toll Roads and Parking Costs
I believe in most cases there are free road alternatives to these, but they take more time. So we prioritizes less time spent on the road over cost saving.
| Toal roads | Cost (EUR) |
| When driving from Split to Bosnia border | 10,5 |
| When driving from Bosnia border to Mostar | 2,4 |
| When driving from Mostar to Bosnia border | 2,4 |
| When driving from Bosnia border to Klis | 10,5 |
| When driving from Zadar to Plitvice lakes | 6,2 |
| When driving from Plitvice lakes to Zadar | 6,2 |
| When driving from Zadar to Šibenik | 3,5 |
Total: ~41.7 EUR
| Paid parking | Cost (EUR) per hour | Hours spent | Total (EUR) |
| Sarajevo | 1,5 | 7 | 10.5 |
| Plitvice | 1,5 | 7 | 10.5 |
| Nid | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Trogir | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| Blagaj | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Šibenik | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Zadar | 0,8 | 4 | 3.2 |
Total: ~40.2 EUR
In Mostar & near Krka we left car in the hotels free parking when we were exploring.
Also the costs of parking may very per season.
Other
| Commission for money withdrawal from ATM abroad* | 12.99 |
I believe this also depends on the bank you use.
The costs that are not shown above but one does have when travelling to Croatia and Bosnia:
- Flight costs (as they depend from your country of departure)
- Insurance
- Roaming abroad
- Cost for food and drinks. For example in Croatia in lower budget places fried squid with fries was somewhere from 17-20 euros per portion, grilled fish was 20 euros and more, burek was ~2.50 etc. In Bosnia the prices were much more affordable ~5 euros per chevapi and ~ 9 euros for other meat dishes.
Tips on how to make your Croatia – Bosnia trip more budget friendly
As you can see – our trip to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina wasn’t cheap. Therefore here are some tips on how you could try to bring the overall cost down.
1
Most of the things except car rental seem to be cheaper in Bosnia, so if you wish to bring the costs of your Croatia – Bosnia trip down, consider spending more days in Bosnia and less in Croatia.
2
Book accommodation and car rental early – prices in Croatia seem to get higher and higher closer to your intended travel dates. So booking early could reduce the overall costs of your Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina trip.
3
Bring enough cash with you as there is a commission for withdrawing from an ATM abroad. We learned the hard way that a lot of parkings, ice cream shops, bakeries and cafes in both Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are cash only.
4
Although the prices in cafes in big cities like Split are high (the first place we wondered about was 20+ eur per salad) there are cheaper options. You just have to look around. Also consider burek for a budget friendly breakfast or lunch. It is not the most healthy option but will save you some money and is still an option to enjoy local food.
5
When visiting nature parks (Krka and Plitvice) pack some food and water with you. Otherwise when the hunger hits you end up paying 4 euros for a packaged ice cream. Been there, done that. Would be wiser next time.
6
If you arrive / depart from Split airport and are traveling backpack only consider going by public buss (Nr. 37). It was doable also with a carry on size language, but did get a bit tight. If you are traveling with larger luggage probably wouldn’t recommend it as the buss got very full and there wasn’t much space.
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Looking for what to see in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Check out the itinerary from our trip