Kotor, Montenegro – Oct 2025

After a week in Dubrovnik, we hired a taxi service to take us the 100 km (65 miles) to Kotor, Montenegro, where we spent six nights in the first week of October. It cost about $130 more than taking a bus but we think it was worth every penny. The private driver used a different border crossing than the mainstream one, and our border crossing was practically empty – and quick! It also made it possible for us to bring our groceries with us, saving us the trouble of restocking on basic items.

In Kotor, our rental apartment was just outside the walls of the Unesco listed Old City, where we took a guided walking tour of old town, pet some of the famous Kotor cats, and walked the top of its medieval walls. Outside of the old town, we had the pleasure of spending a day with a realtor/property management team (NLM Consultancy – Montenegro), exploring the area and seeing what our money could get us. As many of you know, Adam and I are not only traveling for the purpose of simply visiting places, we are also looking for where our next home will be.

We hiked almost 800 feet of switchbacks up the famous “Ladder of Kotor” to the goat cheese cafe where we had a glass of wine, bread, and of course some goat cheese. As a bonus we sat with a couple from New Zealand and had a fun chat. From there we took a lateral trail over to an unofficial secret entrance to the Fortress of Kotor and climbed through it. We descended back down into the old city from inside the fortress walls. The views were spectacular on both routes. Late in the week we took a boat ride out to an island in the bay.

The famous clock tower (built in 1602) and its plaza, just inside the Sea Gate in Old Town Kotor. This photo was taken from on top of the old town perimeter walls.
The date above the Sea Gate leading into Kotor’s Old Town is November 21, 1944, marking the day Kotor was liberated from Nazi Germany. This commemorates the city’s liberation by the Yugoslav Partisan army during World War II. The Sea Gate is one of three gates into the old city.
Saint Tryphon’s Cathedral (Catholic) in the old town of Kotor, Montenegro.
Although smaller, the Old Town of Kotor is every bit as charming as the old towns of Split, Zadar, and Dubrovnik.
We could see old town Kotor from the back balcony of our apartment rental. It was easy to pop over for our tour, some coffee, some cat watching and a great meal or two.
Just north of Old Town Kotor is a famous hiking trail called “The Ladder of Kotor”. It ascends 940 meters (3,080 feet) via switchbacks. At one point way back in history it was the only path connecting Kotor to some of the mountain towns. We only ascended about 240 meters (780 feet) and then cut laterally across to the Fortress of Kotor.
240 meters (780 ft) up the Ladder of Kotor is a little outdoor restaurant called “The Cheese Shop”, complete with a couple of Kotor cats (lower left corner of the photo) and a view to die for. It doesn’t look like much from this angle but wait until you see the next photo…
The view from our chairs in the Cheese Shop on the Ladder of Kotor. We sat for some wine and cheese and chatted with a couple from New Zealand.
After we left the cheese shop we took a lateral trail over to the Fortress of Kotor. From there we descended back down into the old city via the very steep fortress steps. Note that there is a fee of now 15 Euro to access the Fortress of Kotor, this has apparently increased recently.
Church of Our Lady of Remedy (built in 1518) which we viewed on our descent from inside the Fortress of Kotor. The church was constructed during a period when plague epidemics were common in the region. It was built as a place of gratitude and prayer for deliverance from the plague, and many locals would climb the steep path to pray for protection and recovery. The fortress around the old city of Kotor was very well defended by its fortress on the hill, with a very good view of any enemies approaching.
We took a boat taxi out to the Church of Our Lady of the Rocks, on its own island in the Bay of Kotor. According to legend, the island was made over the centuries by local seamen who kept an ancient oath after finding the icon of Madonna and Child on the rock in the sea in the mid 15th century. Upon returning from each successful voyage, they laid a rock in the Bay. Over time, the island gradually emerged from the sea and a church was built upon it.
The ceiling and organ inside of the Church of Our Lady of the Rocks.
Montenegro charges a daily fee of €1 per person per day for those staying in paid accommodation and it has to be paid within the first 24 hours of your arrival in Montenegro. It is very common for guests to have to go pay this tax in cash in person at a local tourism office, which we think is quite primitive. Our apartment rental host provided us with a link and a map where to go. When you leave the country they check if your tax has been paid and there are fines if you have not paid it.
The Bay of Kotor is huge and is NOT, surprisingly, a fjord. The Bay of Kotor was NOT carved by glaciers. This impressive bay was instead created when rising sea levels drowned an ancient river valley — a feature geomorphologists call a ria. Whatever it is called, it is stunning. After six nights here we flew to Athens, which will be covered in the next blog post.
Outside of the old town, we had the pleasure of spending a day with a realtor/property management team (NLM Consultancy – Montenegro), exploring the area and seeing what our money could get us. As many of you know, Adam and I are not only traveling for the purpose of simply visiting places, we are also looking for where our next home will be. For a variety of reasons, we feel that Montenegro could be a good option. Getting a newer modern furnished 3BD, 2BA penthouse with unobstructed 180 degree sea views and loads of outside terrace space, and completely in move-in condition, for under $500k was very tempting, but we have other places in the world we need to check out first.

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9 Comments

  1. Yes that cheese shop up to the fortress was a classic. The owner/guy there had a very dry sense of humour, I wonder how long he had been running that place for. Looked like for many years! What was the cheese like? Definitely was the best option to take the switchback up and the stairs down.

    • The cheese shope experience was indeed classic – because why not have a cheese shop halfway up a mountain accessible only by foot and donkey? The cheese was surprisely light and not too strong. We agree that switchbacks up and fortress stairs down were the best direction.

  3. This is incredible. I love the history that you provide with the photos, and the map especially is appreciated. Your photography is excellent! And I do love seeing the smiles on your faces. Move after move notwithstanding, ya’ll look fabulous.

  4. Hello my loves! I’m late to this party, normal for me to catch up after the fact. Missing you and looking forward to following you both on your adventures

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