Tourist Potentials

In the heart of the Balkans, in the North and East of Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is Republika Srpska. Although territorially small, Republika Srpska has rich, but remote natural resources. They represent its main characteristic and a great advantage, since the climate zones spread from the mediterranean, in the southern Herzegovina, to moderate-continental one, which prevails in the northern parts.

Nature, the great creator, has generously given bounty and beauties to these people who and respect their land as the most sacred thing, lf we have to choose the most precious jewels from the natural wealth of Republika Srpska, those will certainly be its high mountains of Zelengora, Treskavica, Jahorina, Romanija, then Grmec, Kozara, Ozren and many others, rich in forests and wild game.

In the lowlands of Republika Srpska there are fruitful cornfields of Posavina and Semberija, and Lijevce Polje. The hilly area of Potkozarje and Podgrmec and Karst of Herzegovina, with its fields like green brooches, represent the varieties of natural beauty. Water flows of the powerful rivers Una, Sana, Vrbas, Ukrina, Drina and Tara, most certainly, the clearest rivers in the whole Balkans, are rich in all fishes.

History has, since the Roman times and Slav settling to the constructive, and also destructive 20th century, left numerous cultural-historical monuments and traces of rich spiritual inheritance of the peoples who have lived and survived on this meeting point and crossroads of cultures and civilizations - in the Balkans, the cradle of Europe.

In the great of Krajina region, there is Kozara Mountain, also well known for its forests, both cediduous and coniferous, with green pastures and mountain springs. Kozara offers many possibilities for hunting deer, boars, hare, pheasant and wild duck, which makes this mountain a hunting reservation of rare quality in this part of the Balkans. On the mountaintop - Mrakovica, there is a memorial monument "Mrakovica", dedicated to the numerous World War II victim from this region. Potkozarje, in the foot of the Kozara Mountain, is a fruit-growing area. Few rivers around Kozara: emerald green Una - "Pearl of Krajina", Sana, wiRepublika Srpska has the National park "Sutjeska", a unique one in Europe, which, long ago, had been a deep, thick forest. The remaining of that very forest is today the Perucica, a thousand years old forest that covers 1,291 hectares. However, this National park has got its name after the mountain river of Sutjeska, which has made its way through the heights of the mountains Zelengora (2,014 m), Lelija, Maglic and Volujak. Tjentiste, a tourist resort on the banks of the Sutjeska river, should be in every itinerary, because of its motel, sports-recreational center, and an artificial lake, which give this place an extraordinary beauty.

Republika Srpska has the National park "Sutjeska", a unique one in Europe, which, long ago, had been a deep, thick forest. The remaining of that very forest is today the Perucica, a thousand years old forest that covers 1,291 hectares. However, this National park has got its name after the mountain river of Sutjeska, which has made its way through the heights of the mountains Zelengora (2,014 m), Lelija, Maglic and Volujak. Tjentiste, a tourist resort on the banks of the Sutjeska river, should be in every itinerary, because of its motel, sports-recreational center, and an artificial lake, which give this place an extraordinary beauty.

Bardaca is a unique birdland in Europe.

Along with other gifts that Nature has given to Republika Srpska, there are mineral and thermal water springs, which were known in the Roman times. These spring shave become spas, recreational centers, and sanatoriums, equipped with most contemporary diagnostic and physiotherapy equipment. In the vicinity of Banja Luka there are few spas: Laktasi, Slatina, Srpske Toplice, famous for their healing of the heart and vascular problems, as well as high blood pressure, with methods approved by the World Health Organization. In the suburbs of Teslic, there is a famous spa "Banja Vrucica", with its hotels "Kardial" (A category) and "Posavina", "Hercegovina", "Krajina" and "Srbija" (high B category). Thermal-mineral water of this spa is very good for treating heart and vascular diseases, nervous system and digestive tract problems, all with sport, recreation and active resting.

In the pine woods near Visegrad there is mineral spa "Vilina Vlas", "Banja Guber" is in Srebrenica, "Kulasi" near Prnjavor and Mljecanica", which is in Potkozarje. For more than ten centuries, Serb people on this territory has been practicing Orthodox religion, and its unique culture and tradition. In this long tradition, the sense of belonging to the ancestors inspired their children to lave traces in this world, by building sacral monuments.

Herzegovina, the inhertance of saint Sava, has many churches and monasteries. The most beautiful one is "Tvrdos" monastery, an exquisite building from 15th century and the Episcopal residence, than "Dobricevo" Monastery (15th century), and "Lovnica" Monastery, near Sekovici, which dates from 13th century and is still well preserved.

Thus, throughout Republika Srpska, there are monasteries: on the Ozren Mountain - a monastery the same name, in Banja Luka - Trapist Monastery, famous for its hard cheese then, in the Krajina Region - monasteries of Gomionica, Mostanica, Liplje and little wooden churches - unique in the sacral architecture, preserved from destruction through centuries.