Kotor, Montenegro. One of the most underrated cities in Europe. This is definitely a summer destination for those looking to head to the beach, out on the boat, and soak up the sun. We visited during the winter and still had a fantastic time. It was just cold. The views. The views in the harbor city are breathtaking. Our Airbnb faced the mountains and water and made for a stunning way to wake up every morning.
Kotor is in a bay near the limestone cliffs of Mt. Lovćen, a fortified town on Montenegro’s Adriatic coast. Most of the city is walkable depending on where you stay. Most hotels and Airbnb will be close to the Old Town.
It looks like something out of a fairytale. The winding cobblestone streets, historic, well-preserved buildings. Vibrant cafe culture, churches, museums are reminiscent of something from medieval times. There is so much to do in Old Town. The winding streets can have you lost in no time. So much to see and take in.
We visited the Old Town a few times. Walked through a few churches and for some reason, churches are one of my favorite parts when visiting somewhere new. To see how the cathedrals and churches are decorated and displayed.
The Cat Museum is closed right now but if you like the four-legged felines this may be a nice stop for you. The museum presents a collection of cat-related memorabilia, ephemera & vintage artwork.
The cathedral with its uneven towers, which is also one of only two Roman Catholic churches in all of Montenegro, Saint Tryphon Cathedral is considered by many to be Kotor’s most beautiful building and a symbol of the city.
Climb the Old City. The 4.5 km long Kotor city walls surround the old town of Kotor, from the sea level up to 250m high to the fortress of San Giovanni (St John). The hiking will first take you to the Church of Our Lady of Remedy and then to St John’s Fortress. We did only half the climb and stopped at the church. an old lady (me) and two kids (lazy) got as far as we could that day haha. But the views from there were nothing short of spectacular. The hike/climb was peaceful and relatively easy. Because we went during the winter months it was cold and almost empty. We say 4 people on the climb.
Bring cash. Most places only accept cash and swiping your card is not as easy as in other countries. We did struggle with this but inside the walls of Old Town, we did find a few places that accepted credit cards and were able to grab dinner and even sweet treats.
Be sure to visit the Shopping Centre Kamelija. We went in just to get warm from the cold outside and found it amazing. From the outside, you couldn’t tell what you would find inside. This is a Quaint shopping center with fashion boutiques & a grocery store, plus a food court & kids’ playroom. We stopped at the food court to grab something sweet and light to eat while we rested and recharged.
Walk along the Bay of Kotor. Sprawling yachts, boats, and water vessels line the bay. The view from here is spectacular.
I am not sure how the bus systems operate but from our touring and walking, we didn’t see many busses during our stay. I would say it would be difficult to try and catch the bus but luckily depending on where you are staying everything is walkable. We never took a bus.
The main bus station is about 5 minutes from Old Town walls so pretty close to everything. You can purchase tickets there for your next destination. We grabbed tickets for Dubrovnik which cost 20€ for adults and 11€ for kids. Our Airbnb host was amazing and asked his dad to do it for us so we just got the tickets when picked up.
