The Hill of Podbrdo of Medjugorje, Bosnia and Herzegovina is Our Lady first appeared to six children back in 1981. Since then, millions of pilgrims have, in a special way, encountered Our Lady for themselves when climbing the hill. Ever since the first days of the events, Podbrdo has been known as Apparition Hill.

Over the past two weeks, in honour of the end-of-year holidays, we’ve shared some of the fourth-quarter stirrings from a few places around the world. Sikh pilgrimages, Orthodox Christmas, Eid in the Maldives and more. We’ve offered our top five picks of places where you can tap into a mystical vibe if you’re not already adept at just finding the spiritual experience in all travel. Even after all that, we still had a few items on our list that we wanted to share.

Spiritual travel runs the gamut of transcendental experiences, from traditional religious pilgrimages to yoga retreats and shamanic healing. The global religious travel market generates almost $20 billion per year and is growing fast, however, religious belief is not a prerequisite. An interest in the culture and history of the world’s most mystical places is reason enough to visit our top five picks of spiritual travel destinations.

Every month, we delve into the travel experiences of people in the extended WHL Group network. This month we talk to Thierry Joubert, office manager at Green Visions, the whl.travel local connection based in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

An old trail leads up to the stone gates of Sarajevo and into Baščaršija, the old trading quarter dating back to the 16th century, of which the street of coppersmiths is pictured here. In the morning the sounds of splashing water from the water fountains around the mosques welcome me to the city. The sound of a craftsmen’s hammers hitting copper is matched only by the full aroma of baking coffee beans that invade the old town.