The Bosnia-Hezegovina Federation starts to compete for lost positions in tourism. Although the war damaged Mostar lost its leading status among the favourite holiday resorts, its position did not remain void. It was replaced by the town of Medžugorie, a St. Mary's pilgrimage town, where six children witnessed a heavenly apparition in 1981.

The so called Herzegovina's Lourds are the most frequented town in the divided Yugoslavia today, with over 300 thousand Catholics pouring in from the world over. Proportionally to the high visitor rate, a small agricultural settlement developed into an advanced centre of tourism with modern infrastructure and the federation highest annual per capita income. Encouraged by the success of their countrymen, also citizens of Gabela, a small town in the Neretva valley, a historically renown trade centre of the Dubrovnik Republic, decided to improve their revenues. According to historical data the town sited a salt store-house and custom-house in the 12th century, yet archaeological excavations confirm pre-Christ era settlement in the area. American classical philologist R. S. Price claims in this respect, that the antique Troy was located in the vicinity of present Gabela, rather than in Asia Minor. He supports his daring theory in the book Homer's blind writings, published in the USA in 1984. And this is the point of attraction the Gabela citizens base their town's tourist lure strategy believing that it won't take long for the development to begin. Their strong point is also the vicinity of the Adriatic sea, good road and railway connections, and other attractive sights in the region, i.e. Medžugorie, a Hutovo Blato ornithologist site, a medieval fort in Počitelj, famous vintners' village of Čitluk, and a developed Adriatic resort Neum.

Slovak Trade FORUM