Travel Guide Vrbas Valley

The Vrbas/Врбас (pronounced "veurbas") river valley stretches 70 km from north to south between Banja Luka and Jajce. It is skirted along its entire length by the M16 road. Bus connections from Banja Luka with the Bočac-Tours company (departures at the main city bus station, next to the railway station and 200 m east of the bus station).The Vrbas ("pasture" in Slavic) here offers beautiful scenery for just over a third of its total length (192 km). Sandwiched between the massifs of the Čemernica (1,339 m a.s.l.) to the east and the Manjača (1,239 m a.s.l.) to the west, the valley becomes more and more impressive the closer one gets to Banja Luka. The river has indeed carved two deep gorges in the limestone: first the Podmilačje canyon (8 km long), then the Tijesno canyon (5 km) with cliffs rising 600 m above the water. A strategic axis defended by three medieval fortresses, the valley was captured by the Yugoslav army (under Serbian control) in 1992, becoming the scene of terrible exactions, including the Manjača concentration camp. Today it is a protected area, sparsely inhabited and, for 21 km in length, a famous site for rafting. Near Banja Luka, the course benefits from a 5 km section, very technical and lit at night, which is worth regularly hosting international competitions, including twice the World Rafting Championships, in 2009 and 2021.