Bosnia and Sarajevo in particular are prime destinations for those who love to discover abandoned places. Just a decade before the war started, the capital city hosted the Olympic Winter Games in 1984. Many of the facilities, like the bobsleigh track and the ski jump, still exist. Some of them became the frontline during the battles between the Serbian troops and Bosniaks.
Especially now, almost thirty years after the 90s conflicts, the bobsleigh track has become a popular place to visit. While it was more of an insider destination in the 2000s and 2010s, now tourists flock to Mt. Trebević, using the recently opened cable car. Even though it isn't a secret urbex spot in Bosnia anymore, it's worth the visit. While walking down the track, you will have moments of complete solitude and therefore enough space and time to take amazing pictures.
As already mentioned, the Olympic Bobsleigh Track has a moving history. It was inaugurated in 1982 in the small mountain area of Mt. Trebević, just a bit above Sarajevo. In February 1984, it attracted tens of thousands of spectators following the competition. Later, it also hosted a few other international events before the outbreak of the Yugoslav war set an end to its use in 1991.
During the Serbian Siege of Sarajevo, the track was damaged and used as an artillery position. It practically became the frontline, and, if you look closely, you will notice some holes drilled into the concrete, which served for shooting at the Bosnian positions. After the war, the construction became a new hotspot for urban explorers, graffiti artists, and cyclists.
Visiting the Trebević Bobsleigh Track is fairly easy. Since the late 1950s, a cable car has been bringing people up to the mountain resort. Since 2018, it’s been in operation again, after a stop for almost 30 years. The price for a return ticket is around 30 KM (15 euros), and it gets you a seven-minute ride each way. By the way, before you enter the bottom station, you will find a vending machine that sells nice nostalgic Olympic fridge magnets featuring the famous mascot of the time.
Arriving at the top station, you can visit the terrace on the upper floor and get some coffee. Outside, you need to look a bit for the way to the actual bobsleigh track. It takes around ten minutes to reach the entrance, which is at the 1st start house. To walk down, it probably takes around half an hour. But, of course, you will stop quite often to enjoy both the morbid charm of the structure as well as the nature surrounding it.
The whole track is around 1.3 km long, and at the end, you will find the finish bridge with the big letters BOSNA and SARAJEVO. Next to it, you can sneak into the Refrigerant Plant and Master Control Building, which is fully destroyed and also covered in graffiti.
In 2014, larger cleaning and restoration actions took place. Particularly, landmines were removed in the surroundings of the bobsleigh track, so, unlike in places like Sazan Island in Albania, you don’t have to watch out too much when leaving the track. However, it is still advised to stick to the main paths instead of wandering too much into the forest.