Tito’s bunker (ARK D-0), near Konjic

What ARK D-0 actually is

ARK D-0 — Atomska Ratna Komanda — was the command bunker built to keep Josip Broz Tito and the Yugoslav leadership alive through a nuclear war. Construction ran from 1953 to 1979, twenty-six years of it, in complete secrecy: workers were brought to the site without being told where they were, and when it was finished only sixteen people knew the place existed.

It is 6,500 square metres of corridors, dormitories, offices and communications rooms across twelve interconnected blocks, built to hold 350 people and to survive a 25-kiloton strike. It was never used for its purpose. It stayed a state secret until after the war and now works as a museum and as the venue for the D-0 ARK Underground Biennial, which installs contemporary art in the original rooms.

Where it is

The bunker is at Ljuta, a few kilometres off the M17 outside Konjic, and you cannot see it from the road: the entrances were built to look like ordinary houses against the hillside, with the complex itself deep inside Mount Zlatar.

The operator drives visitors from the Ljuta gate to the entrance.

What the visit is like

Tours are guided, run 90 minutes and start at 09:00, 12:00, 15:00. Entry is by reservation only — there are no walk-ins.

A guide takes you through the twelve blocks: Tito’s quarters, the conference rooms, and the filtration and power plant that let the complex run sealed off from the outside. There is a good deal of walking and there are stairs. Tours are led in Bosnian and English.

How it fits a rafting day

Both fit into one day, and the 09:00 tour is the order we recommend: the bunker first, then the river.

On the morning option the rafting pickup waits for the group coming out of the bunker, so you go from the tour to the boats without a gap in the middle. The afternoon works the other way round — rafting starts earlier and is planned to finish in time for the last tour — but it leaves less room if the river day runs long.

What the add-on covers

The bunker is €25 per person on top of your rafting booking, and that covers entry.

The guide and the shuttle from the Ljuta gate are part of the operator’s tour. What we handle is the reservation and the security registration, which is the part people trip over: the site requires a copy of every visitor’s passport or ID in advance, and nobody is admitted without it. Add the bunker when you book rafting and we arrange both with the operator.

Practical

Inside it holds a constant 20–23 °C all year, so you need no extra layers in August and no coat in spring.

Wear shoes you can walk in. Allow for the drive out to Ljuta and back on top of the time underground.

Common questions