Things to do in Banja Luka

Banja Luka is the second-largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the de facto capital of Republika Srpska, roughly 230 km and 3 h 30 by road from Sarajevo. The Cyrillic alphabet dominates signage and the Serbian tricolour flies alongside local flags, a noticeably different atmosphere from the capital, stated here without taking sides.

Kastel fortress overlooks the Vrbas river, and the Orthodox Cathedral of Christ the Saviour was rebuilt after communist authorities destroyed the original in 1941. The pedestrian centre is lively and the riverside greenery along the Vrbas is one of the city's better features.

Ottoman-era remains are scarce compared with Sarajevo or Mostar: a 1969 earthquake flattened much of the old fabric, and reconstruction followed a Yugoslav-era style rather than a historic one.