Attractions in Banja Luka

Kastel fortress is Banja Luka’s oldest historic site, with Roman, Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian layers in one place. Entry is free, and the café inside the fortress has one of the best views of the Vrbas. Right next to the fortress is Safikada’s grave, the city’s best-known love legend, with a late 16th-century grave and a candle-lighting tradition.

The Banja Luka riverside promenade runs right down to the water, with a view of Kastel, a summer stage and more than a hundred new trees. It is part of six kilometres of landscaped riverbank that starts in the centre.

In Srpske Toplice you will find Vrućica Beach: thermal springs used since Roman times and free public thermal pools, with no ticket and no booking.

For a trip out of town: Krupa na Vrbasu, twenty-five kilometres south, with waterfalls, watermills, a spring and a monastery.