Dedicated to those planning to visit Montenegro
Plans to spend your vacation in Montenegro and get to know this Balkan country were formed back in pre-Covid 2019, but a number of reasons prevented this, and the dream was destined to come true only in September 2021. Preparing for the trip, I scooped basic information about the country from youtube and blogger articles. On TurPravda, the stories were rare, the reviews about the villas were outdated, but when last year there were trouble-free conditions for visiting Montenegro, the stories of Turpravda about this country fell like a cornucopia. Therefore, I did not hurry with my story, I gave the opportunity to settle impressions and address it first of all to those who are going to visit this country for the first time.
Montenegro in the past 2021 showed 90% of the tourist flow in 2019, and this is in the absence of direct flights from Russia. I think this country will be in great demand this year as well, since no other country in Europe can offer such a concentration of natural, cultural and historical sights at a moderate price tag, and in the face of rising inflation, this is more than relevant. True, the past year also showed the other side of the medal of such popularity of Montenegro. At the peak of the season, and this is July and August, the country's infrastructure could not withstand such a flow of tourists at all, the beaches were crowded, many hotels were at a stop, there were traffic jams on the roads, there were not enough staff in restaurants, the price tags increased. So, if you have the opportunity, I would advise you to choose the time of the trip not during the peak season.
Montenegro's visiting card is Ballerina against the backdrop of old Budva
Another visiting card of Montenegro is Sveti Stefan
Hello Montenegro!
Choosing a vacation spot in Montenegro
To make your stay in Montenegro successful and devoid of disappointments, you need to plan your trip to this country in advance. I advise you to draw up a preliminary program of your vacation, which, in our opinion, for those who visit it for the first time, should reasonably combine acquaintance with the beauties and sights of Montenegro and relaxation and relaxation, studying the country's national features, including gastronomic ones. Having decided on vacation plans, it will be easier to choose a place to stay in the country, and there are so many of them and they are so different, despite the small geographical size of Montenegro, that you can get confused in choosing your vacation spot. For the initial acquaintance with the country, the cities and towns of the Budva Riviera are ideal, and this is Budva, followed by Becici, Rafailovici, Przhno, Sveti Stefan and finally Petrovac. Of these places, it will be easiest to carry out an excursion program around the country, combining it with a beach holiday. Taking into account the territorial remoteness and terrain features, it will be more difficult to carry out from the cities of the Bay of Kotor - Herceg Novi, Perast and Kotor. In addition, these cities have a rather problematic beach holiday. We know about the cities of southern Montenegro only by hearsay, and these are Bar and Ulcinj, but a full-fledged excursion program around the country is difficult if you do not rent a car.
What should you focus on when choosing a villa and accommodation in Montenegro? First of all, the geographical location, the terrain features, the remoteness of the villa from the beach and transport, the infrastructure of the settlement (beaches, shops, transport, restaurants, car rental, travel agencies), the presence of facilities under construction nearby, and, of course, the reviews of tourists and bloggers.
Our choice fell on Petrovac, the outermost village of the Budva Riviera, and here's why. This is a cozy, small village in which there is no big difference in heights if your villa is located below the level of the bus station. This is a resort for families, there are no big parties, noisy establishments, public transport, all its active life takes place either on the waterfront with its many restaurants, cafes, shops, tour agencies, or on the beaches of the village, and there are several of them in Petrovac. In addition to the city beach, Luč ice beach, which has a "blue flag", adjoins the southern part of the village, the bay of the beach is framed by rocks on which pine trees grow. A very picturesque place, deservedly ranked third in the top beaches of Montenegro. In the direction of Budva from Petrovac, there is a path of health, a picturesque road along the Adriatic Sea, surrounded by pine trees, passing through three tunnels, and ending with a large pebbly beach, Perazici Do. A kilometer from the Lucice beach to the south is the village of Buljarica, with the same name, a very long beach.
At the end of the Petrovac embankment, there is a local landmark - the Castello Fortress, a great place to view the entire village and take photos. There are a lot of both private villas for tourists and star hotels in Petrovac. It is a pity that our tour operators have contracts for tourist accommodation with only a small part of the accommodation offers in Petrovac. Traveling independently booking to help. For those living in studios in the village, there are several supermarkets, a local market with vegetables and fruits, as well as fresh seafood, several bakeries with fresh pastries. In addition to the promenade, with its restaurants, and the beaches, there is nowhere to go in Petrovac, so you should definitely saturate your vacation there with independent or organized trips around the country. There are all conditions for this - numerous tour agencies, a bus to Budva every hour, which will take you to any village on the Riviera, or a bus station with buses to any city in Montenegro, car rental for lovers of independent travel.
This is how Petrovac met us with a sunset
Castello Fortress – view from the path of health
The rocky ridge from which the path of health begins in Petrovac
View of the restaurant on the fortress and Petrovac
Lucice Beach in Petrovac
Pictures near Petrovac are fascinating
Paradise near Perazici Do beach
View of Petrovac from the observation deck
Cities and towns of the Budva Riviera
During our trip to Montenegro, we passed and passed all the cities and towns of the Budva Riviera, and we know about them firsthand, which allows me to express my subjective opinion about each of them, maybe this will help someone in choosing places of residence on the coast. Since Petrovac was described in the first part, the next significant village on the coast, where tour operators offer accommodation, is Sveti Stefan. Between Budva and Petrovac, the Mediteran Express runs every hour, which will take you to Sveti Stefan for 2 euros and 20 minutes. Immediately at the stop, a chic observation deck opens up on the Sveti Stefan peninsula, which gave the village the same name, and on the entire Budva Riviera. From the stop to the peninsula, where the famous closed-type hotel is located (it did not work in 2021), there is a steep path past the villas and olive trees, the elevation difference is very significant, which must be taken into account when choosing a villa in Sveti Stefan. If not for this steepness, then this village could be considered an ideal place for a beach holiday, given the beautiful landscapes and beautiful two beaches on the sides of the peninsula, both beaches are accessible to everyone, there is a beautiful park area and cafes around them. A visit to Sveti Stefan and a walk from it to Budva, through the Milocer Park and the royal beaches, I consider it a must when living on the Budva Riviera.
The next settlement along the coast is the village of Przno, a former fishing village, and now a very cozy place for an elite holiday. By the way, in this village there is a five-star hotel with a casino, which is open all year round. The same hotel also owns a gorgeous beach, which occupies most of the coast in the village. But an ordinary tourist who chooses Prž no as his place of rest will not be offended by the availability of beach pleasures. Between Sveti Stefan and Przno there are two wonderful and legendary beaches - the beach of the King and the Queen, the latter is more behind the scenes and is located a five-minute walk from Przno. These beaches were deprived of any infrastructure in the form of cafes, toilets, sunbeds, umbrellas in 2021, but this is both their minus and plus, since you feel alone on such a beach with Montenegrin nature, there are not many visitors to them. Przno is a small village, there are no supermarkets in it, this should be taken into account by holidaymakers renting studios for self-cooking. But there is a good fish restaurant where people come to enjoy seafood with a gorgeous view of the sea, even from other cities and towns.
Closer to Budva, along the coast, there are two villages without a clear border between them, these are Rafailovici and Becichi. Many vacationers in Montenegro choose these villages for their stay as a compromise option, providing, on the one hand, a good beach holiday, and, on the other hand, the absence of fuss and other problems of living in a large tourist city, which is Budva, but at the same time is geographically close to it . However, these villages have their own nuances that you need to know when choosing housing. Rafailovichi look more comfortable, their plus is the adjoining to the coastline of the main housing in the village, both private villas and hotels, there are many tempting restaurants along the coast, but the beach area itself is very narrow, crowded with people during the season, so for a full beach holiday you need go either to Becici or to Kamenevo beach.
The difference between Becici is a large and long beach with a developed infrastructure, but the main housing of the village is located above the Yadran path that runs along the coast, and this is a significant elevation difference, which is hardly suitable for vacationers with health problems. Only large hotels are located on the first line. In addition, the territory adjacent to the beach area is not landscaped everywhere, in some places construction work is underway, which does not add aesthetics to the rest. The construction of villas in these villages was carried out in conditions of land shortage, so most of the buildings look chaotically, like a stone jungle on the slopes of mountains descending to the sea. However, everyone has different aesthetic needs, there are plenty of people who want to relax in these villages, since there are obvious advantages.
The cherry on this Montenegrin coast is, of course, Budva, the largest tourist center on the entire riviera. There is enough housing for every taste and budget. The main thing is to look at how far from the coast this housing is located and with what elevation difference you need to get to it. This is a party city with a full range of resort entertainment and an ideal place to explore Montenegro on excursions and independent trips. Now about the cons of Budva. The main beach of Budva - Slovenska beach, is far from perfect due to its overcrowding in the season, and as a result of its sanitary condition. The beaches of Mogren 1 and Mogren 2 look more advantageous in this regard, mainly due to the rocky framing of the beaches, but there were enough people in September as well. The old town of Budva resembles a large souvenir shop, which is no longer of real tourist value, unlike the old town in Kotor, where we got real aesthetic pleasure. But this is all subjective, but the noise, the bustle, the excessive number of vacationers during the season, the inflated price tags in Budva, this is its objective reality, at least when it comes to holidays from June to September. But tourists in Montenegro do not live by the sea alone, it's time to talk about other sights of this wonderful country.
Sveti Stefan with a closed-type hotel (not open in 2021)
King's Beach between Sveti Stefan and Przno
The entourage of the fish restaurant in Przno
Przno beach
One of the beaches in Rafailovici
City beach in Rafailovici
Church in the old town of Budva
Mogren beaches in Budva
In Montenegro, there are often no street names, only numbers
Excursions in Montenegro
What makes Montenegro beautiful is its abundance of natural, cultural and historical sights in its small territory, and the opportunity to visit any of them within daylight hours and already have dinner in your villa with a glass of wine, discussing your impressions of the day. For a short period of its independence, Montenegro has made a big breakthrough in the development of tourism, all routes around the country have been carefully worked out, the infrastructure of both organized collective excursions and independent trips around the country, both on a rented car and by public transport, is very well established. Therefore, it is important for every tourist arriving in Montenegro to know in advance which sights to saturate their stay in this country with visits, and how it is reasonable to combine it with a beach holiday.
Since Montenegro is 90% mountainous, for obvious reasons, the main attractions are associated with mountains. The excursion called “Canyons” will give you the opportunity to get acquainted with mountain ranges and canyons, mountain lakes, serpentines, and changing weather in the mountains. And those who want to know where the adrenaline comes from could fly for 20 euros on a zipline over the canyon near the Dzhurdzhevich bridge. About 500 km in the north of the country, under the stories about the country of the guide, are rich and almost not very tiring.
After giving yourself a day off from the Montenegrin mountain landscapes, a mandatory visit is a boat tour of the Bay of Kotor, the largest and most beautiful fjord in the Mediterranean. Along the coast of the bay are the medieval cities of Kotor, Perast, Herceg Novi, which flourished during the period of the Venetian Republic. Near Perast, a visit to the man-made island of the Virgin on the reef is provided. Kotor is a real historical gem of Montenegro, worthy of a separate visit and leisurely acquaintance, and for those who have enough time and energy, climb to the fortress of St. John. Different travel agencies offer different options for moving around the Bay of Kotor, with exits either from Kotor or from Tivat. We were pleased that our tour started from Kotor, in the morning there is not yet a large crowd of tourists in the city. Herceg Novi also turned out to be a city that makes you want to get to know it better, but the “city of a thousand steps” is located on a mountain slope and acquaintance with its sights requires excellent health.
What else can you do during a standard week of a package tour in Montenegro?
To get acquainted with the historical monuments of the country, combined with breathtaking local views, almost all tour agencies offer a trip called Maxi Montenegro, which includes a visit to the ancient capital of Montenegro - Cetinje, Mount Lovcen, where the mausoleum of the great ruler of this Balkan country - Peter Njegus, is located, from where unparalleled views of the mountain ranges and Boka Kotorska Bay open. In addition to visiting historical sites, this tour allows tourists to visit the village of Negushi, see how the famous Montenegrin prosciutto is produced - dried-smoked pork ham, taste it and buy it and local cheeses for a gift. Practical advice - wherever you buy prosciutto, in Njegusi or in the market in Budva, take the one that you tried and liked it, avoid ready-made sealed packages. When you return from this trip, you will follow a super steep serpentine with 25 turns, built by the Austrians, so you are guaranteed an unforgettable experience and a gorgeous photo session.
The list of excursions can be continued for a long time, and it is not limited to Montenegro. Travel agencies from any city of the Budva Riviera will offer you trips to Croatian Dubrovnik, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina. We were going to Dubrovnik, but our vaccinations with Koronovak did not suit the Croats at that time. A complete list of excursions in Montenegro and beyond can be found on the Olimpus. me website, and if you wish, you can order them online. Speaking of useful links, I would like to recommend Mila Demenkova's blog, where you can get a lot of useful tips when planning your trip to Montenegro.
Moracha river canyon
View of the Tara River Canyon from the Dzhurdzhevich Bridge
Dzhurdzhevich Bridge
Emotions overflow
Alpine Black Lake
A black lake is really black in certain light
Old Kotor surprisingly combines historical buildings with residential buildings
Walls of old Kotor
In Kotor, you want to rent every house, every street
Land views in Boka Kotor Bay are fascinating
Perast
Islands near Perast, man-made Virgin on the reef on the right
Ships and boats bring tourists to the island
Herceg Novi has the longest embankment in Montenegro
Concrete beaches in Herceg Novi
Marina in Herceg Novi.
Gastronomy and shopping in Montenegro
Planning our trip, one of the goals was to get acquainted with the national cuisine of this Balkan country, as well as wines from autochthonous grape varieties. Since we lived in a studio room, as a rule, we had breakfast and dinner at our villa, but lunches were held in the restaurants of Petrovac or Budva, or during sightseeing trips. Montenegro is traditionally considered a meat country, but upon closer acquaintance, everything turned out to be not so simple, most meat products are imported from EU countries, mainly from Spain, so what Montenegrin prosciutto is made of is a big question.
To be honest, everything that we tried in restaurants did not cause us much enthusiasm. Of all the minced meat dishes, I liked splash, a large flat cutlet, the most, but Montenegrin chivapchichi can hardly compete with kebabs known to our taste. All meat dishes clearly lack spices, seasonings and herbs. As first courses, they most often offer the so-called chorba, meat or fish, the latter caused us sincere disappointment, it seems that it was made from sprats in tomato sauce. Real seafood in restaurants is quite expensive, since fishing in the country is in private hands, there is no industrial catching.
Since Montenegro is a predominantly mountainous country, growing vegetables is quite problematic, most are imported from Serbia and other neighboring countries, so the price for them starts from 2 euros. But figs are plentiful, from street trees to dried mats in the markets.
Most tourists buy local delicacies at the market in Budva, prosciutto, cheeses, olives, olive oil, figs are of quite decent quality, but as I already mentioned, you should definitely try everything before buying, and follow the packaging of the product you like. It also requires attention when buying goods in supermarkets. It is not always possible to see the price tags of goods on the shelves or the product does not correspond to the indicated price list.
Wine in Montenegro is represented mainly by two local varieties, white Krstac and red Vranac. White local wine did not inspire us, Vranac is more fleshy, tart and fragrant. For an unpretentious consumer, wine prices start at 2 euros per liter, decent quality starts at 4 euros per bottle.
The so-called bakers help our tourists survive in Montenegro, where you can buy local pastries, pizza, and even fried chicken and baked vegetables from 6 in the morning. There are no special language barriers either in stores or on the market, you can always find understanding.
P. S. Despite the fact that our trip to Montenegro turned out to be quite rich in content and impressions, I am aware that there is still a lot of things that are not known in this wonderful country. If you think about the next trip, then I would choose one of the small villages of the Boka-Kotor Bay for the base camp, rent a car, and slowly get acquainted with the "mountains that have not yet been visited. " But the thirst for new countries and experiences directs the weather vane of desires to new lands. All inspiration and health in the new tourist season.
View of Boka Kotor Bay from an airplane, after takeoff in Tivat. Goodbye Montenegro, see you soon
