We were in Mostar back in January 2022 and first, I have to apologize for taking almost a year to write this review. Based on the most recent reviews though,... read more it looks like nothing has changed about how wonderful Herzeg Day Tours is, so I'm here to add my praise to all of the other reviews. Going to Bosnia and Herzegovina was something that had been on my bucket list for a while. I was mostly interested in the history of the area. I remember the Bosnian War from the 1990s, but I was a young tween/teenager at the time. My memory is mostly of watching the news about the war with my parents. But beyond that, being so far away from the reality of war, I didn't know much about it. I knew that the country of Yugoslavia had split up into a bunch of smaller countries, but I was lacking knowledge on anything beyond that.
I have a degree in history, so history is something that always interests me. Bosnia and Herzegovina is unique in that some of their most important history happened only 30 years ago, which means that people who lived through it are still alive to tell us their stories and experiences. I was really interested in taking a tour from a survivor of the Bosnian War. I think its so important for history to be remembered, and the best way to do that is to talk to the people who lived through it. This way their history isn't forgotten.
I contacted Herzeg Day Tours at the last minute, letting them know that my husband and I were interested in taking a war tour of Mostar, and to ask if any tours were available. Camil responded quickly and offered us just a walking tour of Mostar, or an add-on of going into the hills surrounding the city. We chose to do the walking tour plus the ride up into the hills.
Camil is a survivor who fought in the war. He gave us his personal account of what he experienced, along with showing us key points of interest around the city. He showed us some barracks that he lived in and places where he fought. He told us about his family during the war, his opinions about the current Bosnian flag (opinions that seem to be shared by many who were in the war), his opinions about the tensions between the different ethnic groups in the country, where he was at when the bridge fell after being shelled, and lots more. He took us up on Hum Mountain where we also learned about the Bura wind which was blowing REALLY strongly that day. On the mountain, he taught us about both the Bura wind, and about how the hills around the city played a key role in the war. In the city, he taught us about the war, and just the city in general.
We were heading to Sarajevo that afternoon, and he was always mindful of the time. He asked us several times if we needed to stop the tour so that we could get on the road, or if we wanted to see more. Each time we chose to keep walking and seeing more.
Camil is also excellent at knowing exactly where to take photos and videos. He offered to take quite a few photos for us on Hum Mountain, and included a video of us almost getting blown over in the Bura wind. He took quite a few pictures of us by the Stari Most bridge, at several different angles. He's very aware of what tourists want as their souvenir photos.
Learning about the war from someone who experienced it is so different than reading about it in a history book. I would recommend that anyone who is interested in Yugoslavian history take a tour from a war survivor. And Herzeg Day Tours would be my go-to place for that tour. It makes the information so much more tangible and real. Especially when there are still so many physical scars from the war left in the city itself. Listening to Camil's stories while looking at the buildings that are still covered in bullet holes or walking through a cemetery that was once a park and used when they ran out of places to bury people, brings a sense of realness to the history that once seemed so far away.
This company offers other tours, unrelated to the war, and we'd love to come back one day and take some of those tours. Bosnia and Herzegovina is a beautiful country with so much to do and see. When we planned our trip we didn't plan nearly enough time in Mostar or in BiH in general. We really want to come back in the very near future to experience more of Mostar and the surrounding areas. I'd absolutely recommend Herzeg Day Tours to anyone looking to learn about the history of Mostar. And Camil was such a great guide that I would imagine that the other tours he offers would also be wonderful.