Museums in Sarajevo

Sarajevo's museums are best chosen by the question each one answers, and the number of them that fit into a day answers nothing. The long view of the country, childhood during the siege and daily life in an Ottoman house are three separate questions, and each has its own address, its own ticket and its own closed day. Pick the question first, then look at the weekday.

The National Museum and the Haggadah

The National Museum is the long view, and it is the one that closes on Mondays. A ticket costs €10.23 (20 KM), citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina pay less with an ID card, and pupils, students and pensioners pay less again. The doors are open Tue–Fri 10–19, Sat–Sun 10–18, and between 18 and 19 on Tuesday to Friday adults pay less, which suits anyone who spends the afternoon somewhere else.

The Sarajevo Haggadah, a manuscript from around 1350, sits in an air-conditioned room of its own inside the museum, which is kept at a controlled temperature. The ordinary ticket gets you in on Tuesdays and Thursdays and on the first Saturday of the month, always between 12 and 13. Any other hour means a guided visit arranged by email at least three days ahead,. The sensible plan is to build the museum around that midday hour.

The War Childhood Museum

The War Childhood Museum is at Logavina 32, and the stops nearest to it are Baščaršija and Katedrala. Admission is €7.67 (15 KM), and young people aged 6 to 17 and students pay less. It is open daily 11–19, last entry 18.30, with entry in slots of 30 minutes that you buy online or at the desk. On the last Thursday of the month it is free from 17 to 19. It stays shut on 1 January, 1 March, 1 May and 25 November.

The Museum of Sarajevo: five annexes

The Museum of Sarajevo is spread over five buildings: Brusa Bezistan, Despić House, Svrzo's House, the Museum of Sarajevo 1878–1918 and the Jewish Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Each one costs €2.56 (5 KM), and students, children and pensioners pay less. Four of them open every day except Sunday, while the Jewish Museum works Monday to Friday and on Sundays from 10 to 13.

If you can see only one, make it Svrzo's House at Glođina 8, an 18th-century home of the Glođo family and later the Svrzo family. It holds four houses around two courtyards and two gardens. The combined ticket for all five, €10.23 (20 KM), pays off only if you really visit all five, because five single tickets come to more than the combined price. Anyone seeing two or three should pay at each door.

The City Hall and the Tunnel of Hope

The City Hall dates from 1896 and turns 130 in 2026. It charges €5.11 (10 KM) and is open daily 9–17. The permanent exhibition is in the basement and has eight themed sections, together with the foundation stone carrying the names of the builders. The Tunnel of Hope in Butmir costs €10.23 (20 KM), takes cash only and has a page of its own.

SightThe Tunnel of Hope page explains which ticket to buy, why the desk takes only marks and how much of the tunnel is open to walk.Tunnel of Hope Sarajevo: Tickets, Cash and What You See in Butmir →

The Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at Zmaja od Bosne 5, is open every day from 9 to 19 according to its official page. Gallery 11/07/95, at Trg fra Grge Martića 2/III, is open every day from 9 to 21 and offers a discount to groups. Both fit around a longer visit to the city.

"—" means the official page gives no price, hours or closing days.

3 daysThe three-day itinerary puts the War Childhood Museum on day one and the National Museum on day three, so each lands on a weekday when it is open.Sarajevo in 3 days →

Hidden gemsThe page on quieter places goes further into Svrzo's House and Brusa Bezistan, with the Jewish Museum that opens on Sundays.Sarajevo off the main path: houses, a bezistan and a bobsled track →

MistakesThe page on common mistakes covers the Monday and Sunday closures and the joint ticket bought for the wrong number of museums.Mistakes everyone makes in Sarajevo →

BudgetThe budget page shows where museum tickets sit in the cost of a stay, and which evening and last-Thursday hours cut them.What Sarajevo costs →

When to goThe page on when to go lists the opening seasons and the winter hours that change what a museum day looks like.The best time to visit Sarajevo →

Where to stayThe page on where to stay shows which areas put these museums within walking distance.Where to stay in Sarajevo →

FoodAfter the museums comes lunch, and the food page covers what to eat in the bazaar.What to eat in Sarajevo →

Getting aroundThe tram, the taxi and the cable car to the places on this list are laid out on the getting-around page.Getting around Sarajevo →

Day tripsWhen the museum list is done, Vrelo Bosne, Mostar and the mountains offer a way out of town on the day trips page.Day trips from Sarajevo →