Istanbul, Dubrovnik, Montenegro and Mostar

We will be sharing the first leg of our 17D16N trip (see overview To the Balkans from Singapore) in this post!

Istanbul, Turkey

We flew from Singapore to Istanbul for a connection to Dubrovnik.  I had been to Istanbul 13 years ago as part of a tour group to Turkey where I visited the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Topkaki Palace and took the overpriced bosphorus cruise. Glad to have more free and easy time to roam around the city this time. 

Istanbul is dotted with impressive looking mosques, a refreshing difference from the churches in European cities. No doubt it was the capital of the Ottoman Empire! Istanbul is culturally rich and diverse, and also hectic, busy and messy, a place we feel will be challenging to navigate with young kids. But these charms made it a place not to be missed in your travel itinerary someday. 

1. Istanbul is very hilly! Yes, the type that will make your legs tired and heart thumping. If you had thought that San Francisco is steep, Istanbul is steeper. Make sure to wear comfortable walking shoes or take the buses and trains where possible. 

2. Attraction ticket prices have ballooned these few years, this was confirmed by our walking tour guide. For instance, Basilica Cistern costs ₺800 (22€) and Topkaki Palace costs ₺1,500 (42€) in 2024. Hence, we had to be more choiceful with the attractions to visit. 

3. We went for a 2.5h walking tour with Sandermans partner, it was superb, covering the major landmarks and impressive history. Our tour guide Pinar was one of the best we had seen – full of energy, passion and animated! We got some good tips from the tour guide – to avoid crowds, visit Blue Mosque at 8.30am (we did so and it was a short queue). Rustem Pasha Mosque and Suleymaniye Mosque are also worth visiting. Rustem Pasha Mosque is a blue tiled mosque (like Blue Mosque), small and intricate just minutes away from the Spice market, and we particularly enjoyed the chat with the lady volunteer who initiated a conversation about the mosque. Suleymaniye Mosque stands tall overlooking the city and Bosphorus Strait, the views from outside of the mosque made it a worthwhile trip.  

4. We decided not to buy a ticket to climb Galata Tower. Instead, we visited the rooftop restaurant Anemon just beside the tower. For the same price you get food and drinks, and a great view of the tower and the surroundings! We went there for dinner just before sunset and witnessed the lovely transition till dusk and nightfall.  

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Travelling from Dubrovnik airport to old town was a breeze. The airport bus schedules are timed with flight arrivals and it took only about 30 min to reach the old town. 

We have been to many old towns in Europe, so how does Dubrovnik compare with them? Is it worth going? Our verdict: Yes, it is worth going regardless this is your first old town, or Xth old town. Read on to find out why. 

Btw, I did not watch Game of Thrones but Ben did years ago (he loved it but forgot most of it by now). We did not plan our itinerary there around GoT sights but seeing the Jesuit Stairs and Iron Throne (at Lokrum) in person still got him excited!

1. The city walls are the standout, a must do, and doable for all ages. Fort Lovrijenac (included in Dubrovnik pass) is also a must visit. It is better to walk the city walls early in the morning (open at 8am) or late afternoon to avoid the heat and crowd. We started at 8am and ended just before 10am (included a stop for drinks at a cafe on the walls).  

2. Dubrovnik is a small town and walkable within a few hours. We highly recommend the walking tour! It introduced us to the various stories and corners of Dubrovnik, fostering a greater imagination and appreciation of the town in its old days’ grandeur. It is little sad that the beautiful old town had lost the “authentic” vibes as residents had all moved out due to over tourism. Today it is a pretty and well-preserved historic town for visitors. 

3. It is best to find out how to reach the accommodation from the gates and old town before you book it! We only found out when we were there that the main Stradun of Dubrovnik old town is at ground level and many buildings are built at much higher elevation surrounding the street. There are no lifts. We stayed in a gorgeous room of a resident’s apartment within the old town, everything was perfect except for the arduous climb of 133 steep steps from the Stradun! During our 2D2N stay we climbed up 5-6 times, shag. We think one need not stay in the old town as well, can stay outside, near Pile Gate as it is a short gentle slope down to old town from there. 

4. Is Lokrum island worth it? We think it can be skipped, unless you are a GoT fan looking for the Iron Throne or into swimming. The greenery was alright only, and the “dead sea” wasn’t close to the actual Dead Sea. 

We originally planned to do the sea kayaking but felt unwell the day and skipped it. Let us know how it is if you had gone for it! We tried a few highly rated restaurants but felt underwhelmed. Dubrovnik was our first stop in Croatia and we were a little disappointed by the food. Fortunately, Croatian food tasted better as we travelled to other parts 😊.

Montenegro

We spent 2D2N in Montenegro. The Bay of Kotor and Perast are beautiful but can be done via a day trip from Dubrovnik or skipped if time is tight. We also visited Kotor town, Budva and Herceg Novi. Some parts of these towns were pretty but we had the “old town” fatigue by then. We drove up to Mount Lovćen and climbed up to the Mausoleum, the views were not bad. However, the long mountainous and narrow road drive (some parts only had one lane for 2-way traffic so we had to constantly look out for oncoming traffic and give way) did not make the trip worthwhile. 

Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Going to Mostar is a delight and one of the highlights of our trip! Behind its picturesque old town and Old Bridge lies the scars from the 1990s war, and the town offers an intriguing glimpse into the country.

1. Highly recommend the 2.5h Sheva’s Free Tour of Mostar that will make you appreciate a different dimension of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is an enriching tour and the Sheva did an excellent job in covering the history and tales behind the various sights. He managed to explain the complicated history in simple terms and having gone through the 1990s war itself, the sharing was meaningful and heartfelt. On several instances I had to hold back my tears when listening to him 😢.

2. There is a need to pay a fee to enter some mosques in Mostar, unlike the mosques in Istanbul. It is worth paying the fee to go up the Koski Mehmed Pasha Mosque Minaret for the best view of the Mostar bridge and old town! This is the place to go for the perfect picture of Old Bridge. The stairs up the minaret was not too narrow, and the climb was not difficult. 

3. In Mostar we were introduced to traditional Balkan cuisine, and this includes the fresh and tasty ajvar (condiment made from red pepper and eggplant), we really loved it! You can have these in Croatia too, just that in the Croatian Dalmatian coast, seafood with a touch of mediterranean influence is more popular. There are many restaurants at Mostar, one that we tried and like is the Food House Mostar. Sheva’s tour led us there as it included a welcome drink and dessert at the restaurant.

4. According to Sheva, the oldest working cafe in Europe is located on one end of the Old Bridge, called Najstarji Kafic. We did not have time to go but from the cafe you can watch people jumping down from the bridge!

We will be posting about our experience at places along the Dalmatian Coast next. Subscribe to receive only good stuff in your inbox. Thank you for subscribing!

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