Bay of Kotor 3-day itinerary

Enter through the Sea Gate into Kotor's UNESCO-listed old town. The medieval walled city was Venetian for 400 years and it shows, with marble squares, baroque churches, and elegant palaces squeezed between mountains and fjord. Visit St. Tryphon Cathedral (1166, €3.50), the Maritime Museum (€4), and the Church of St. Luke (both Catholic and Orthodox altars). The alleys are full of cats, and Kotor's unofficial mascots have their own museum.

Tackle the San Giovanni Fortress hike, 1,350 stone steps climbing 280m up the mountain wall behind the old town (€8 entry in summer, free off-season). The fortifications were built by the Venetians, Austrians, and Byzantines over a thousand years. The climb takes 45–90 minutes depending on fitness and heat. At the top: the ruined fortress, a church, and one of the most extraordinary panoramas in the Mediterranean, the entire bay spread below.

Dinner in the old town. Galion restaurant on the waterfront for grilled fish and risotto (mains €12–20), or the more budget-friendly Bokun for Montenegrin classics: njeguški steak, ćevapi, and grilled vegetables. Post-dinner, walk the city walls at night. Sections are illuminated and the reflections on the bay water are magical. Try the local Nikšićko beer (€2–3) at a bar on Trg od Oružja (Arms Square).

Bus or drive to Perast (20 min, €1 bus). This tiny baroque village has 16 churches and 17 palaces for barely 300 residents, a legacy of its Venetian maritime glory. Walk the waterfront promenade past crumbling palazzo facades with wrought-iron balconies. Visit the Perast Museum (€2.50) in the Bujović Palace for maritime history, model ships, and views from the terrace. The village is car-free and silent except for church bells.

Boat to Our Lady of the Rocks (€5 return), the artificial island church built over centuries by sailors dropping stones and sinking old ships. Inside: 68 paintings by Tripo Kokolja and 2,500 silver votive tablets. Back on shore, swim at one of the bay's swimming platforms, where the water is deep, calm, and warm (24–26°C in summer). Lunch at Conte on Perast's waterfront for seafood pasta and local wine (mains €10–16).

Drive the bay road through Risan, the oldest settlement on the bay (3rd century BC). Visit the Roman mosaics (€2), remarkably preserved floor mosaics depicting Hypnos, the god of sleep, from a 2nd-century villa. Continue around the inner bay through Stoliv and Prčanj, villages with Venetian architecture slowly being restored. Return to Kotor for dinner at Bastion on the city walls with panoramic views (mains €14–22).

Drive the legendary Kotor Serpentine, 25 hairpin bends climbing 1,000m above the bay with increasingly insane views at every turn. Continue into Lovćen National Park (€3 entry) to the Njeguš Mausoleum at 1,657m, a dramatic tomb of Montenegro's poet-prince Petar II Petrović-Njeguš, carved into the mountain peak. The 461-step tunnel from the parking lot leads to panoramic views over all of Montenegro.

Stop in Njeguši village, birthplace of the Petrović dynasty and home to Montenegro's finest prosciutto and cheese. Sample njeguški pršut (smoked ham) and sir (cheese) at a roadside producer, where a tasting platter costs €5–8 and the quality rivals Italian prosciutto. Continue down to the coast and Budva Old Town, a compact walled peninsula with Venetian architecture, narrow lanes, and the dramatic Mogren Beach reached through a cliffside tunnel.

Walk to Mogren Beach through the tunnel along the cliffs, where two connected beaches have dramatic rock formations and clear water. Watch sunset from the Budva citadel walls (€3.50) overlooking Sveti Nikola island. Or continue to Sveti Stefan for the iconic view of the island-hotel connected to the mainland by a narrow causeway. Return to Kotor through the Sozina tunnel (30 min) for a final old town dinner.