How many days do you need in Kotor?

1. 1Fortress climb & Old Towngates open 7:00 in summer1 day
2. 2Perast & Our Lady of the Rocksgo early or late1 day
3. 3Serpentine, Lovćen & Cetinje25 hairpins; return via Budva1 day

The short answer by trip length

• 1 day: fortress at opening, Old Town in the morning, back in the lanes after 6pm. You miss the bay.

• 2 days: the town and fortress on day one, Perast and Our Lady of the Rocks on day two.

• 3 days: what we had. Add the 25 hairpins of the serpentine road to Njeguši, Lovćen National Park and the old royal capital of Cetinje.

• 4 or more: a beach day on the coast toward Budva, or a slower look at the other bay towns.

A day trip from Dubrovnik is the version to avoid in summer: the border can add hours each way, and the cruise crowds peak exactly when day-trippers arrive.

Day by day: 3 days in Kotor

Day 1, the fortress and the Old Town. Climb the walls to St. John's Fortress when the ticket gates open at 7:00 (May to September). It is about 1,350 steps, 45 to 60 minutes up, with almost no shade, and costs €15 (≈ $16.7) for foreign visitors; bring cash. Details are in our Kotor fortress guide. Spend the rest of the morning inside the walls: the Sea Gate, Trg od Oružja, the Cathedral of St. Tryphon and the Maritime Museum. Midday is for shade and lunch; come back to the lanes in the evening.

Day 2, Perast and Our Lady of the Rocks. Perast is a small baroque town further round the bay, and short boat rides from its waterfront reach Our Lady of the Rocks, the man-made islet with a church built on a reef. Go early or late in the day: midday is when the tour boats arrive.

Day 3, the serpentine, Lovćen and Cetinje. The old Austro-Hungarian road climbs 25 numbered hairpins above the bay to Njeguši, known for its smoked ham, then on to Lovćen National Park and Cetinje. Driving up and coming back via Cetinje and Budva avoids descending the hairpins against traffic; see our Kotor serpentine guide and Cetinje guide.

More options from Kotor, ranked by payoff against travel time, are in day trips from Kotor.

Where Kotor fits in a wider route

On our route Kotor was the first stop in Montenegro: Dubrovnik (3 days) → Kotor (3) → Štavna (2) → Gusinje (3) → Žabljak (3). After the coast we went straight into the mountains: Štavna is a highland plateau at about 1,800 m below the Komovi peaks, and Gusinje sits on the edge of Prokletije National Park; see our Gusinje guide. Then came Durmitor; see how many days in Žabljak.

• From Dubrovnik: buses take about 2 to 2.5 hours plus the border at Debeli Brijeg, where summer queues of 2 to 3 hours are common. See Kotor to Dubrovnik.

• Flights: Tivat is the closest airport; Podgorica is the other option.

• Driving on: Montenegro's mountain roads mean narrow tunnels and police checks; read driving in Montenegro first. Our full 22 days in the country are in the Balkans itinerary.

When to go and where to stay

Late May, June and September are the best months: the bay is warm enough to swim and the cruise crowds are thinner than in July and August. We were there in late August, which is high season: the fortress is only pleasant at 7am, and the Old Town fills up when ships are in port.

Stay inside the Old Town walls or a short walk outside them so you can be at the fortress gate at 7:00 and in the lanes after the day-trippers leave. Our Kotor guide covers the town in more depth. Restaurants on the coast often add a kuver cover charge; see kuver in Montenegro. Entry rules are in do I need a visa for Montenegro.

Costs and practicalities

• Fortress: €15 (≈ $16.7) per foreign adult, collected from 1 March to 30 November; Montenegrin residents and children under 12 free. Bring euros in cash.

• National parks: Lovćen charges its own entry; a pass for all five Montenegrin national parks for a year has been listed at €13.50 (≈ $15.0), worth it if you go on to Durmitor as we did.

• Restaurants: many coastal places add a kuver for bread and service; tipping on top is optional.

• Money: Montenegro uses the euro, although it is not in the EU or Schengen, so expect passport checks entering from Croatia.

• Cruise days: check the ships in port before choosing which day to do the fortress and the Old Town; on busy days, swap with the Perast or serpentine day.

Common mistakes

• Climbing the fortress at midday in summer. No shade, slippery stone and the most people. Go at 7:00 or in the last couple of hours before sunset.

• Relying on the Ladder of Kotor gap to skip the fee. It is a hiking trail, not an official entrance, with a drop on one side.

• Visiting only on a cruise or a Dubrovnik day trip. You see the town at its most crowded and leave before the evening.

• Descending the serpentine for the first time in heavy traffic. Drive it upward if you are nervous.

Frequently asked questions