Via Dinarica mega hiking trail connects western Balkans

A vast system of trails, the Via Dinarica, is set to stretch from Slovenia to Albania.

The series of hiking and biking paths, which is currently in development, will link Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia along the Dinaric Alps.

According to Olja Latinović a, project coordinator from the NGO Terra Dinarica, the initiative aims to reopen existing systems of trails, such as ancient commercial routes, as well as creating new paths. In addition to bolstering tourism in the region, it is anticipated that the project will boost development of the most rural areas along the trail.

“The Via Dinarica represents a great opportunity for the development of our region,” Ante Vukadin, a member of a mountaineering organisation and contributor to the plans for the trail told the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, “We had around 400 visitors over a season of six months in 2015 ... when the project is developed, we expect to have around 2,000 tourists and hikers coming.”

Although the idea for the trail was conceived in 2006, development of the plan could only begin with the help of international donors such as the United States Agency for International Development, United Nations Development Programme and European Union.

Source: Balkan Insight