Travel Guide Ljubuški

Ljubuški/Љубушки (pronounced "lioubouchki") has a population of about 4,000, of which 83% are Bosnian-Croats and 14% are Bosniaks. It is the capital of the municipality of Ljubuški (population 28,000), within the canton of West Herzegovina. The town is 8 km northeast of the Crveni Grm border crossing, 12 km southwest of Međugorje, 18 km northwest of Čapljina, and 28 km northeast of Ploče, Croatia. Bus connections: 6/day with Čapljina, 4/day with Mostar, 3/day with Međugorje, 2/day with Ploče, 1/day with Livno.This small, charmless border town hides its game well: the most beautiful waterfalls in the Balkans and the richest museum in Herzegovina are located here. The surrounding hills are home to a large fortress and vineyards producing fruity wines to be discovered in good restaurants or at the winemakers. Once inhabited by the Illyrian tribe of the Dalmatians, Ljubuški was for a long time a pirate base on the Adriatic, Christianized only in the 11th century. It has since recovered as a stronghold of the Catholic kings of Hungary, a rebellious stronghold against the Ottomans and the seat of a powerful Franciscan monastery. In the twentieth century, Croatian nationalism became well established. But if Ljubuški was the headquarters of the Croatian Defense Committee (HVO) during the last war, the expulsions of Bosnians here were less violent than in many cities of Herzegovina and most of them were able to return.