Kotor Travel Guide – Visit Kotor – Budget Travel In Montenegro

Visit Kotor to experience a medieval, walled old town situated at the foot of Mount Lovćen. Ancient squares are filled with modern cafes and dozens of street cats laze within the city’s labyrinth of cobbled streets.

Whilst I was in Dubrovnik, one of the other guests had made a day trip to Kotor and he couldn’t have been more enthusiastic about his visit. I had not yet decided where to go after Dubrovnik but his reaction made my mind up for me. I decided to take it slow and spend three nights there.

How To Get To Kotor From Dubrovnik 

There are direct buses from Dubrovnik to Kotor. You can buy tickets from the GetByBus web site but for this journey you have to print your ticket. As it was off season, I decided to just buy my ticket at the station on the day of departure. Tickets start from 15 Euro. The buses are coming from Bosnia and are likely to be delayed. My bus was over an hour late.

The bus takes around 2 1/2 hours and you will have to go through two sets of customs so keep your passport about your person.

Arriving In Kotor

The bus takes just around 90 minutes to reach the Bay of Kotor. It then makes its way around almost the whole bay before reaching the bus station. This part of the journey takes about an hour. The views are breathtaking.

After departing the bus, I had a short walk to my hostel.

Where To Stay In Kotor

These are the best budget hostels in Kotor, according to user reviews. These are affiliate links to the Agoda web site. I receive a small amount for any bookings made through these links at no extra cost to you.

• Hostel Pupa
• Old Town Youth Hostel
• Hostel Amigo

Hostel Pupa

I had a three night stay booked at Hostel Pupa. The hostel is just a couple of minutes from the old town and is situated right on the banks of the Bay of Kotor. The view from the hostel was a real bonus.

As it was low season, the big kitchen I’d seen on booking.com was not available but there was a small kitchen that was free to use. There was a small communal area in the reception where you could sit and have a drink and mix with other travellers. I spent one night sharing beers and popcorn and playing guitar with a small group, one of whom I had shared a room with back in Split!

The dorms were decent enough. The WiFi was strong and each bed came with a power socket, night light and privacy curtain. My only real complaint would be the bathrooms. They have automatic lights which turn off when there is no movement. I can understand why hostels install these systems and I agree they make economical and environmental sense. But, every 10 seconds? This meant that I would be plunged into darkness every 10 seconds and had to lean out of the shower and wave to get light. It was a frustrating experience. A good idea but poorly executed!

Apart from that, everything else was fine in the hostel and I had a good stay here.

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I paid £22 for a 3 night stay in a 8 bed dorm with shared bathroom.

Click here to book a stay at Hostel Pupa.

Things To Do In Kotor

Kotor is a small place and many people come here for a day trip. However, you can easily relax and spend more time here.

Kotor Fortress

Kotor Fortress stands atop the Lovcen Mountains. It can be reached via two access points in the old town. It is a steep climb with up to 1500 steps. Entrance to the trail is 8 Euros. However, there is a third access point which is free. This is the journey I took.

How To Get Into Kotor Fortress For Free

After having a good, strong coffee in the old town, I exited at the most northern point. From here, I turned right onto a trail that would wind its way up the mountain. There are no ticket booths here. If you look at the location of ‘Apartments Ana’ (map) on Google Maps, you can clearly see the perforated line zig-zagging its way up the mountain.

This is what you will be facing at the start of the hike.

Take plenty of water as it is quite a tough climb, especially if you spend the previous evening enjoying the city bars.

As I was in no rush, I took plenty of opportunities to have a rest and take in the wonderful views.

After a while, I reached a small cafe-shop (map). Apparently, this is a good place to stop for a drink and some locally produced snacks. The owners are supposed to be very friendly. They seemed to be busy doing maintenance when I reached the cafe so I kept on going, taking the trail directly in front of the cafe.

After a short walk, I came across the ruins of an old church.

I knew I was not far from my destination. I had not, however, expected to have to walk through a herd of mountain goats.

Finally, after around 90 minutes of climbing. I had reached the ‘unofficial’ entrance.

Despite the sign, you won’t get into trouble for using this entrance. All the local hostels tell their guests about it and it has been blogged about for years. No one has bothered to remove the ladder. I guess there are enough people paying to access the fort to keep the authorities happy and not interested in anyone gaining access this way.

After gaining entrance, I still had more ‘up’ to face before I reached the fort.

The fort itself is not overly spectacular but the views are incredible.

I was surprised to see how dangerous the fortress might be, especially when it is busy. Be extra careful up here!

To get back down, I took the ‘official’ route. Along the way, I passed a mountainside church and a couple of unimpressed cats.

From here, there were amazing views over the old town.

As I got lower, the cats got livelier.

The views were so amazing. Kotor is instagram-heaven!

As I reached the bottom, I discovered the official ticket office.

It turned out that the entrance booths were closed for the off season so it was free anyway! I’m still glad I did the route I did. It meant I didn’t simply go up and down. Instead I did a circular trek meaning I never once came back on myself. I would recommend this route.

Kotor Fortress Opening Times: 7 am – 8 pm.
Kotor Fortress Entrance Fee: 8 Euros.

Kotor Old Town

The walled, old town is a UNESCO heritage site. During the peak season, it can be very busy, as cruise ships bring hundreds of tourists into this small area. As I was visiting during the low season, it was very easy to move around the old town’s narrow streets and take photos without hundreds of other tourists getting in the way.

Kotor Kitties

The old town is home to many street cats who are clearly well fed and not at all considered a nuisance. They are very friendly and not at all fearful of tourists. It is obvious they get a lot of human interaction.

EDIT: I recently received a message from ‘Kotor Kitties’ who informed me of some of the problems the street cats face. Kitten mortality rate is around 75-90% and the cats are often unhealthy.  There are lots of souvenir shops in the old town selling cat souvenirs. However, only ‘The Cat’s Shop’ donate all profits from the cat souvenirs to help the cats so that is the place to buy. For more information, visit www.kotorkitties.org.

The old town is beautiful. You could take a map so you don’t miss any of the churches or you could simply wander with no fixed direction. Getting lost in the old town is the best way to discover it all!

Perast

Located further north on the Bay of Kotor is the small town of Perast (map). Most famous for its proximity to the ‘Our Lady of the Rocks’ island (map).

Perast can be easily reached from Kotor. Yellow buses drive along the main road every half hour (ask your accommodation for timetables). The bus costs 1 Euro and drops you right at the centre of the town. I managed to explore the whole town and visit the island within 3 hours. You might not even need that long. If you miss a bus coming back, there are a number of cafes and restaurants along the bay where you can sit and enjoy a drink.

The town is on the mountainside so it is quite steep. There are some wonderful buildings here and also some stunning views over the bay itself.

After exploring the town, it was time to visit the island. There are actually two islands to visit: ‘Our Lady of the Rocks’ and ‘Saint George’. During my visit, only ‘Our Lady of the Rocks’ was open to the public.

Alongside the bay, there are boats that will take you to and from the island for 5 Euros. They will leave immediately so you don’t have to wait for them to fill up. I was the only person on the boat that took me to the island.

The boat dropped me at the island and promised to return in 20 minutes. As the island is so small, this was plenty of time.

It is said that the island was created by locals throwing rocks into the sea and it took 200 years to form. The church and museum was closed on my visit.

The views from the island of the surrounding bay were incredible.

It was great having the island to myself, particularly as a boat full of tourists arrived just as I was about to leave. Good timing! My boat took me back to the mainland where I had to run to catch the bus back to Kotor. I definitely recommend taking the short trip to see this beautiful town.

Food And Drink In Kotor

The food in Montenegro is pretty much the same as other Balkan countries: lots of grilled meat and pastries from ‘pekara’ shops. There are a good number of restaurants and bars within the old town itself and even more outside the walled city.

BBQ Tangja

Recommended by a vegetarian traveller I stayed with in Dubrovnik and also by the staff of the hostel, I came to ‘BBQ Tangja’ (map) twice during my 3 day stay. I was toying with the idea of having a vegetarian dish but with so much meat on offer and it being their specialty, I ended up choosing from the meat menu. I ordered the smallest dish on the menu and it was huge!

Jazz Club Evergreen

I was gutted to find this place just as the live music had finished. Apparently, the band had been very good. I stayed for a drink anyway as the place was still lively with people dancing to Balkan music. Map.

Klub Invalida

I came here thinking that, it being a club, it might be a bit more lively than the empty bars I had visited up to that point. It was more lively as there were actually people in it, but it as not a club as I had imagined.

‘Klub Invalida’ (map) is a local’s bar. It feels like a community centre and I wasn’t entirely sure how I’d be received, being the only tourist. Thankfully, no one cared  about my presence and the bar staff were friendly. The beer is the cheapest you’ll find in Kotor.

Letrika Caffe Bar

My first night out in Kotor wasn’t looking too promising as the first to bars I visited were not the liveliest of places. I was about to give up when I heard music coming from down an alley. I followed the sounds and found ‘Letrika’ (map). Finally, a place with some life! I had a few beers and began chatting to some travellers from Mexico. Then a girl who I’d not said one word to randomly bought me a pint! It was a great night, spoiled somewhat by an aggressive Serbian guy who was a complete dick on three occasions. First, he pushed past people queuing for the toilet so he could go next. Then, he tried to force himself on a girl who could not have made it any clearer she had no interest in him. Then he grabbed hold of one of the Mexicans by the neck and wouldn’t let go. He was a complete arse and I hope he got what he deserved. Besides all that, the bar was great fun and the liveliest in the old town by far.

Pub ‘Old Town’ Kotor

Situated, as you might expect, in the heart of the old town, ‘Old Town Bar’ (map) is a no-frills bar that occasionally has DJs and offers outdoor seating. On my visit, the place was completely empty but most of the old town was, even though it was Saturday night. UPDATE: Google maps is showing that this bar is now permanently closed (19/02/21).

Is Kotor Worth Visiting?

I would definitely recommend spending at least 2 nights in Kotor. It is such a beautiful city with stunning surroundings that I feel a day trip wouldn’t do it justice. It is probably one of the most photogenic places I have visited. I loved my short time in this amazing place.

For more information, visit https://www.visit-montenegro.com/destinations/kotor/