Domestic products of the coastal hinterland

The coastal belt and mountain slopes facing the Adriatic Sea create a cultural and historical entity of a Mediterranean type. Intensive development of beach tourism, which started in the 1960s, has led to the neglect of agriculture and migration of population to the coast. However, due to growing interest for offers that valorise the potentials of villages, such as architectural heritage, landscape attractiveness, favourable climatic conditions and agricultural production, this trend is changing.

Hospitable hosts will be happy to tell you the history of the area that is set between the mountains and the sea and make you feel like part of the family. They will tell you family anecdotes from the Ottoman period, about miller life, about the traditional manner of building in stone, about the indigenous variety of wine, preparing meat in an open fire and many other interesting stories.

They will present their crops of vegetables and fruits with pleasure, where you will pick the fruits you want to eat, and you can also help them with filed work, such as planting, mowing, etc. The hosts are proud of their crops grown without the use of artificial agents – carrots, potatoes, cabbage, onions and garlic, beets, figs, plums, cornelian cherries, pears and apples. They also grow chard, lettuce, arugula, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes...

A special place is occupied by a wide range of dairy and meat products among which are cream and a variety of cheeses, mostly made from cow's milk, and meat and meat products from pork and beef – ham, various sausages, bacon etc.
When it comes to traditional dishes, specialties are homemade lamb and veal prepared under the bell or on the spit, various pies, homemade bread and corn bread, jams, homemade juices, wines and brandies.
Old tools and items that were once used in everyday life and agriculture are usually kept in houses. Locally adapted breeds of domestic animals are the result of careful selection of livestock breeders through centuries, and they are part of the cultural identity of the area in which they were created. Some of the authentic indigenous breeds of domestic animals that can be encountered in this region are cow “buša”, Bosnian mountain horse, Balkan goat and others.
In addition to visiting a household and familiarising with the way of production and tastes of domestic products, we also recommend the thematic trail “From salt to a medieval town” which reveals the story of establishment and development of one of the youngest towns on the Adriatic – the medieval town of Herceg Novi.