One Love
Bjelave hillside hostel with garden, kitchen and the cheapest beds in Old Town's gravity well
One Love sits up in Bjelave — the residential hill above Baščaršija — at Pehlivanuša 67, a 7-minute downhill walk to Sebilj fountain. The hostel runs a soundproofed multi-bed dorm setup with a working shared kitchen, washing machine and a small back garden, and is one of the only hostels in town that doubles as a tour desk for the Tunnel of Hope and Mostar runs. 8.8/10 across 886 reviews and a long-running fixture of the Sarajevo backpacker map.
One Love is one of Sarajevo's long-running fixture hostels — the kind that's been on the backpacker mental map since before the Sarajevo Film Festival became an international event. The address is Pehlivanuša 67, up in Bjelave, the residential neighborhood that climbs the hill north of the Old Town. From the front door it's seven minutes downhill to Sebilj fountain, eleven minutes back up.
The hostel runs four mixed dorms and two private rooms in a converted family house. Soundproofing on the new partitions is decent, less so on the old internal walls — light sleepers should grab a private. Hot water is reliable, AC works in the bedrooms, washing machine is genuinely free (rare). The shared kitchen has full equipment including an oven, two stovetops, a microwave and the kind of mismatched plates that mean everyone takes one.
The back garden is the actual selling point. It catches afternoon sun, the host runs unofficial BBQs with travelers a few times a week in summer, and it's the natural place to meet other guests away from the noise of Baščaršija. The tour desk is staffed in the evening and runs the Tunnel of Hope, the Times of Misfortune siege tour and Mostar day trips — with honest opinions on which guides are worth booking.
Who it's for: long-stay backpackers, solo travelers on a budget, anyone who values a kitchen and quiet over being on the bar circuit. Who it's not for: travelers with mobility issues (Bjelave is steep), or anyone who plans to leave the Old Town only once.
- 01Pehlivanuša address means seven downhill minutes to Sebilj — and a quieter night's sleep above the bar circuit
- 02One of the only Sarajevo hostels with a working garden, used for breakfast, BBQs and impromptu late evenings
- 03Long-running tour desk with honest opinions on which Tunnel of Hope and Mostar guides actually deliver
- 04Real shared kitchen with full pots, pans and a working oven — rare in this price tier
- Location score 8.1/10
- 886 reviews — long-running fixture
- Working back garden
- On-site tour desk
“It was a nice place to stay in Sarajevo. Wonderful view from the balcony, room and bathroom were clean, and the owner was very helpful, thanks a lot.”
“The beds were comfortable and the view from the 6-person dorm is incredible overlooking old town. There's a couple markets and cheap local food options near by that are easy meal…”
“No breakfast offered, but I was fine with that, because there were kitchen facilities, I could prepare my meals as I liked.”
- Sebilj fountain7 min walk (downhill)
- Yellow Fortress (Žuta Tabija)9 min walk (uphill)
- Latin Bridge10 min walk
- Konzum supermarket4 min walk
- Buregdžinica Bosna8 min walk
- Trebević cable car15 min walk
