Sarajevo can be best reached by plane but you can also fly to one of the neighbouring countries and travel to Sarajevo by bus.
1. Flights to Sarajevo
The most convenient option to reach the workshop venue is to fly to Sarajevo International Airport. The journey time from the Airport to Bjelasnica Mountain is only 30 minutes.
The Airport is served by Lufthansa from Munich, Austrian Airlines from Vienna, Turkish Airlines from Istanbul, Croatia Airlines from Zagreb, Air Serbia from Belgrade, Adria Airways from Ljubljana, and BH Airlines from Zurich, Copenhagen and Istanbul. You can book various transfer connections using any kind of your preferred booking engine, such as opodo.com or expedia.com.
Cheap flights are available by Germanwings from Cologne/Bonn and Stuttgart (note: if you live in Germany you can use Rail&Fly to reach Cologne and Stuttgart by train), Norwegian from Stockholm and Pegasus from Istanbul. These airlines also offer various transfer connections.
In any case, book early because flight prices can rise rapidly. Also consider arriving on Saturday, 1st of February, instead of 2nd of February because flight prices may be lower.
If you prefer, you can alternatively fly to Zagreb, Belgrade or even Vienna and then travel to Sarajevo by bus.
2. Bus connections to Sarajevo
2.1. From Zagreb Airport take the shuttle bus to Zagreb Bus Station. There are several departures daily from the Bus Station to Sarajevo, all of which can be found here. The journey time is on average 8h and the return price is ~40€.
2.2. From Belgrade Airport you can take the shuttle bus to the city. There are several daily departures to Sarajevo: at 8:00h, 11:30h and 13:15h. The journey time is ~8h and the return price is ~33€.
2.3. From Vienna Airport take the public transport to Wien Erdberg Metro station. Buses to Bosnia-Herzegovina start from Eurolines-Blaguss platforms at Vienna International Busterminal - VIB that is located opposite to Erdberg Metro station (see here).
The fastest connection to Sarajevo is via the Medjugorje line operated by Globtour where the journey takes ~11h. (Note the remark "Beförderer Globtour" on the link in the previous sentence.) The return price is 79€; in addition you have to pay 2€/suitcase directly to the driver.
Sarajevo can also be reached by two bus lines operated by Centrotrans (links are available here and here); the return price is the same but the journey time is approximately 90 minutes longer. Thus we recommend that you ask for the bus connection operated by Globtour. Tickets can only be bought in person at VIB counters.
Note that the same bus connections also pass through Graz, the journey time is ~9h and the return price is 69€.
3. Travel from Sarajevo to Hotel Marsal
A map of the Hotel and its surroundings can be found here. The Hotel is just south of Sarajevo Airport, 30 minutes drive away.
We plan to organise a shuttle bus from Sarajevo Airport to Hotel Marsal and vice versa. Therefore, during registration, we will need to know from each participant (1) if they are interested in the shuttle bus and (2) if so, when they will land at and depart from Sarajevo Airport. Transfer can be arranged notwithstanding the exact hour when you land or depart; details on the schedule of the shuttle transport will be communicated by e-mail in due course.
(If you arrive by bus to Sarajevo, we can also organise transport from Sarajevo Bus Station to Hotel Marsal if you inform us about your travel plans.)
Alternatively, you can also take a taxi from the Airport to Hotel Marsal. Always ask for the price before you enter the taxi. The price from Sarajevo Airport to Hotel Marsal can under no circumstances be larger than 20€, even if they want to additionally charge you for the suitcases. Thus if a taxi driver tells you more than 20€, just take another car. But if the driver tells you a price less than or equal to 20€ and/or shows towards the taximeter then you can safely enter. We strongly recommend you to go straight out of the Airport building, pass by the vending machine for the Airport parking and take one of the "colourful" taxis - those coloured in red or in yellow: "crveni taksi" (red taxi), "zuti taksi" (yellow taxi) or samir&emir taksi (usually also in red). The mentioned taxis are usually very courteous and will not try to overcharge you. In any case, remember the 20€ upper limit!
Note: taxis may accept euro as means of payment but will return the local currency "marka". Taxi driver will issue a bill upon request.
You can obtain the local currency from (1) ATMs at the Airport (completely safe to use) (2) the post office (working times 9-17h, 1% exchange fee) or (3) the automatic exchange machine in the Airport building. There is also an ATM close to the Hotel.
And as a sidenote: if you happen to have some additional time and would like to see where the famous jumps from the Old Bridge happen, then you might consider visiting Mostar. Details on how to get there are available on request.
1. Flights to Sarajevo
The most convenient option to reach the workshop venue is to fly to Sarajevo International Airport. The journey time from the Airport to Bjelasnica Mountain is only 30 minutes.
The Airport is served by Lufthansa from Munich, Austrian Airlines from Vienna, Turkish Airlines from Istanbul, Croatia Airlines from Zagreb, Air Serbia from Belgrade, Adria Airways from Ljubljana, and BH Airlines from Zurich, Copenhagen and Istanbul. You can book various transfer connections using any kind of your preferred booking engine, such as opodo.com or expedia.com.
Cheap flights are available by Germanwings from Cologne/Bonn and Stuttgart (note: if you live in Germany you can use Rail&Fly to reach Cologne and Stuttgart by train), Norwegian from Stockholm and Pegasus from Istanbul. These airlines also offer various transfer connections.
In any case, book early because flight prices can rise rapidly. Also consider arriving on Saturday, 1st of February, instead of 2nd of February because flight prices may be lower.
If you prefer, you can alternatively fly to Zagreb, Belgrade or even Vienna and then travel to Sarajevo by bus.
2. Bus connections to Sarajevo
2.1. From Zagreb Airport take the shuttle bus to Zagreb Bus Station. There are several departures daily from the Bus Station to Sarajevo, all of which can be found here. The journey time is on average 8h and the return price is ~40€.
2.2. From Belgrade Airport you can take the shuttle bus to the city. There are several daily departures to Sarajevo: at 8:00h, 11:30h and 13:15h. The journey time is ~8h and the return price is ~33€.
2.3. From Vienna Airport take the public transport to Wien Erdberg Metro station. Buses to Bosnia-Herzegovina start from Eurolines-Blaguss platforms at Vienna International Busterminal - VIB that is located opposite to Erdberg Metro station (see here).
The fastest connection to Sarajevo is via the Medjugorje line operated by Globtour where the journey takes ~11h. (Note the remark "Beförderer Globtour" on the link in the previous sentence.) The return price is 79€; in addition you have to pay 2€/suitcase directly to the driver.
Sarajevo can also be reached by two bus lines operated by Centrotrans (links are available here and here); the return price is the same but the journey time is approximately 90 minutes longer. Thus we recommend that you ask for the bus connection operated by Globtour. Tickets can only be bought in person at VIB counters.
Note that the same bus connections also pass through Graz, the journey time is ~9h and the return price is 69€.
3. Travel from Sarajevo to Hotel Marsal
A map of the Hotel and its surroundings can be found here. The Hotel is just south of Sarajevo Airport, 30 minutes drive away.
We plan to organise a shuttle bus from Sarajevo Airport to Hotel Marsal and vice versa. Therefore, during registration, we will need to know from each participant (1) if they are interested in the shuttle bus and (2) if so, when they will land at and depart from Sarajevo Airport. Transfer can be arranged notwithstanding the exact hour when you land or depart; details on the schedule of the shuttle transport will be communicated by e-mail in due course.
(If you arrive by bus to Sarajevo, we can also organise transport from Sarajevo Bus Station to Hotel Marsal if you inform us about your travel plans.)
Alternatively, you can also take a taxi from the Airport to Hotel Marsal. Always ask for the price before you enter the taxi. The price from Sarajevo Airport to Hotel Marsal can under no circumstances be larger than 20€, even if they want to additionally charge you for the suitcases. Thus if a taxi driver tells you more than 20€, just take another car. But if the driver tells you a price less than or equal to 20€ and/or shows towards the taximeter then you can safely enter. We strongly recommend you to go straight out of the Airport building, pass by the vending machine for the Airport parking and take one of the "colourful" taxis - those coloured in red or in yellow: "crveni taksi" (red taxi), "zuti taksi" (yellow taxi) or samir&emir taksi (usually also in red). The mentioned taxis are usually very courteous and will not try to overcharge you. In any case, remember the 20€ upper limit!
Note: taxis may accept euro as means of payment but will return the local currency "marka". Taxi driver will issue a bill upon request.
You can obtain the local currency from (1) ATMs at the Airport (completely safe to use) (2) the post office (working times 9-17h, 1% exchange fee) or (3) the automatic exchange machine in the Airport building. There is also an ATM close to the Hotel.
And as a sidenote: if you happen to have some additional time and would like to see where the famous jumps from the Old Bridge happen, then you might consider visiting Mostar. Details on how to get there are available on request.
