Note: this is the third article about my recent train journey through Bosnia and Herzegovina. Read the first article here and the second article here.
I woke up bright and early before dawn to continue the second day of my journey across Bosnia and Herzegovina. I rode over to the Bosna river and witnessed the dramatic early morning sight of the Kuršumlija mosque and the Maglaj fortress. Maglaj is just waking up as I make my way to the train station nearby. In 2025 there is only one pair of trains a day between Maglaj and Sarajevo, with an additional service from Maglaj to Zenica which leaves at 4:48am.
Train 4: Maglaj to Sarajevo (ŽFBH) 6:07am – 8:47am
Maglaj station is another relatively large station on this line, with multiple tracks presumably used for freight back when there was more traffic here. The ŽFBH train is already waiting when I get there a little bit before 6am. It’s a two car train pulled by another Yugoslav built ASEA electric locomotive. One of the cars is an old Yugoslav compartment carriage like the ones I travelled on the day before, but the other car is an SJ open plan carriage from the 1960s! These old Swedish carriages were donated to BiH after the war.
These cars are incredibly charming, with all original fixtures and upholstery. They’re also quite unique compared to other old rolling stock in the Balkans. The seats are very comfortable even though they haven’t been cleaned in a long time. Since the train station was closed when I boarded the train, I buy the ticket from the conductor for 25KM (about 13€). Even with the surcharge for buying on board, that’s a pretty steep price. The conductor writes the ticket for me and I pay with cash.
The ride is comfortable if not fast. As the train follows the Bosna river a large rainbow appears!
As we get closer to Zenica, an important industrial center, the train starts to fill up a bit. Some workers use this line to commute. Tall chimneys of Zenica steelworks and modernist housing blocks come into view as the train crosses from one side of the Bosna river to the other.
We also pass Podlugovi station, made famous in the eponymous song by Zdravko Čolić. A short branch line spurs here towards Vareš, site of a former steel mill. Earlier this summer tourist trains ran on this line a few times for the first time in years. Unfortunately I didn’t get to do it this time, but hopefully there will be another opportunity in the future. The route we’re on takes the Šamac – Sarajevo railroad, built by over 200 000 youths (including my grandfather!) in a youth work action. It opened in 1948 to replace the old narrow gauge Bosanski Brod – Sarajevo railroad. It is double tracked and electrified with 25kV AC.
While traveling, I’m once again consulting my 1990/1991 JŽ timetable. This express train takes 2 hours and 40 minutes between Maglaj and Sarajevo in 2025. This is relatively close to most express trains in 1990/1991. The Olimpik, ŽTP Sarajevo’s flagship service, made the same distance in 2 hours and 15 minutes in 1990. It left from Bosanski Novi at 4am and arrived in Sarajevo at 9:10am. The overall state of this infrastructure isn’t that bad at all — it’s the lack of trains crossing between ŽS and ŽFBH railroads that makes this trip so long and difficult.
As we get closer to Sarajevo, I notice that the train slows down to a crawl before each road crossing. Many automated crossings aren’t working, so the train needs to slow down and blow the horn to alert cars. This slows down the journey. There were fewer automated crossings on the ŽS railroad – most of them were manually operated.
We reach the outskirts of Sarajevo with minimal delay, but the train then dwells at Rajlovac freight depo for a while, so we finally reach Sarajevo station about 15 minutes late. By this point it’s pouring outside.
Ours is the only train at Sarajevo station at this hour. The large train station is mostly empty, but I’m pleasantly surprised by the number of open businesses in the monumental modernist station hall with the recognizable curved roof. A few cafes are open, along with a couple of travel agencies.
I go to the ticket window to buy my one-way ticket to Ploče for tomorrow morning. A paper sign indicates online tickets can be picked up at “box office” number 7. At the time that I was traveling, their online ticketing wasn’t working at all, but in late September 2025 this functionality seems to have been restored and you can purchase tickets online once again. However, you need to pick them up in person at a station, hence the sign.
I get my ticket to Ploče the old fashioned way. I pay with cash, but then I notice a credit card terminal, making a mental note for the future. Like the ticket I bought on the train, it’s written out. The price is also the same – 25KM. Seems like a better deal for Sarajevo – Ploče than Maglaj – Sarajevo!
After a short break at Sarajevo station I decide to brave the rain and ride my bike to the nearby History Museum Of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Originally built as the Museum of Revolution of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1963, the museum features a few permanent exhibitions on the siege of Sarajevo. It’s my first time at this museum and I’m very pleasantly surprised by the quality of its displays. I especially appreciate the “We, refugees” exhibit featuring stories of people who fled Bosnia and Herzegovina to find refuge in Germany because of the war. In the museum courtyard, a new exhibition Wer Ist Walter? tells the story of anti-fascist resistance in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The exhibition is associated with a recent research project investigating resistance against Nazism in Europe.
I spend a few hours in this fantastic museum and the weather finally clears up a bit. I ride through Sarajevo next to the Miljacka river. It’s my first time biking in Sarajevo, and unfortunately the city doesn’t have any cycling infrastructure. Through my whole time in Sarajevo I only see one other person on a bike. That’s unfortunate, because I get around town on a bike pretty quickly.
I decide to take the recently restored cable car to the top of mount Trebević. It’s my first time going there. There’s an old cable car cabin at the station, commemorating the 1984 Winter Olympics. I recognize the cabin, it’s the same type used on the old Zagreb cable car. The ride is comfortable and the view is beautiful.
As a visitor in Sarajevo, I always try to be respectful of this beautiful city and its people, cognizant of the proximity of trauma and siege which can still be seen and felt in its streets. Taking the cable car up to Mount Trebević, I realize that this is the first time I’m seeing the city from this perspective, up from above, from the hills it was attacked and shelled from for years. I try to take this in with the same respect.
Once I get to the top, I walk around the former Sarajevo Winter Olympics grounds. I soon come across the bobsled track, made famous through countless internet photoshoots. I resist the urge to obsessively document this ruin of Sarajevo’s pre-war glory. It feels disrespectful. The only people walking on and around the track are foreign tourists. I only get onto the track to photograph the large Palestinian flag, one of many signs of solidarity with the besieged Gazans which you can see in Sarajevo. Otherwise I just quietly walk next to the concrete structure, feeling unexpectedly emotional in its presence. I touch the concrete. It’s wet from all the rain earlier today, but it’s solid. The moss growing on it is beautiful.
I make my way back down and ride my bike to the recently restored Bistrik station, a beautiful stop on Sarajevo’s narrow gauge railroad towards Višegrad. Almost all railroads in BiH used to be narrow gauge until after World War 2 when standard gauge railroads were built with youth work actions, most often using the same right of way as the old narrow gauge railroads. The narrow gauge railroad to Višegrad was never replaced with standard gauge after it closed down in 1978, but Bistrik station building was beautifully restored a few years ago. This station was famously featured in the movie Walter defends Sarajevo.
On my way back to my hotel I take the tram, one of the new Stadler Tango NF3s. The tram is very comfortable to ride and I hope Sarajevo gets more of them to replace its aging fleet of donated trams. I get to my hotel and crash pretty early, getting ready for the third and final day of my rail journey across Bosnia and Herzegovina.