Adriatic coast of Montenegro
After visiting Durmitor National Park, Tara River Bridge and some challenging off-road driving we arrived at our final destination in Montenegro – Adriatic coast.
Bay of Kotor
Town Kotor is located along one of the most beautiful bays of Montenegro. The old town of Kotor was built during the Middle Ages, between the 12th and 14th centuries and listed as a UNESCO World Natural and Historical Heritage Site since 1979 (to be more precise, UNESCO lists the whole complex – Bay of Kotor, City of Kotor and surrounding territory).
In the Middle Ages Kotor was a natural harbour on the Adriatic coast but this place was inhabited already about two thousand years ago. Our accommodation was located in Dobrota village, about 3.5 kilometres from Kotor however in reality it is sometimes even not possible to determine when one town ends on the coast and another one begins. Dobrota looks straight onto Mt. Vrmas and the seaside promenade of the town runs for several kilometres along the shore.
Numerous little stone jetties are splendid more than anywhere else. We booked our accommodation in Dobrota in advance, it was located in a large private house. The main advantage of the accommodation was that it was in a quiet area with a large terrace and shady garden, about 20 metres from the coast.
Adriatic coast
The rest of our time in Montenegro we spent either walking around the town and enjoying the sun or visiting other towns and beaches of the Adriatic sea. The city walls of Kotor are very interesting (they are about 5 kilometres long, up to 20 metres high and up to 10 metres wide).
A very interesting site in the Kotor area is an artificial island Gospa of Skrpjela (Lady of the Rock). According to stories seamen from Kotor and Perast created islands bringing with their sailing vessels large stones.
There is a church on this island. Another very special is the island of Sveti Stefan. In reality, this is a town hotel located on an island. It is connected to the mainland with a narrow strip. The town was built in the 15th century, and it became a town-hotel in 1960. Many famous people have visited Sveti Stefan. To visit the island there is an entrance fee but near the entrance, there are beautiful sandy beaches (one full day we spent there).
Our longest trip was to Skadar Lake. The Skadar Lake (Skadarsko Jezero) is the largest lake on the Balkan Peninsula, it is situated in the far Southeast of Montenegro. The shore of the lake is full of bays, peninsulas and riffs, however, it is most popular because of bird watching – there have been more than 280 bird species registered so far at Skadar Lake, which is more than half of the European ornithological fauna.