PLACES TO VISIT

AN ANCIENT VESSEL ENTERING THE BAY OF KOTOR
AN ANCIENT VESSEL ENTERING THE BAY OF KOTOR

 

 

 

KOTOR

PERAST

GOSPA OD SKRPJELA

HERCEG NOVI

RISAN

TIVAT

PRCANI

DOBROTA

IGALO

BIJELA

SAVINA

KOTOR

KOTOR CITY WALLS
KOTOR CITY WALLS

It is a beautiful town with a useful harbour, that was also a cultural center during the Middle Ages. This natural harbour was an important artistic and commercial centre with its famous school of masonry and iconography.

 

A large number of monuments were seriousely damaged by the 1979 earthquake, but the town has been restored largely with UNESCO's help.

 

The town has changed many rulers and administrations during its vibrant history. It was ruled by the Illyrians, Romans, Byzanthians.

 

 

 

One can enter the town through three gates: the Western Gate, the biggest one, which  could be accessed only from the sea, the Southern Gate, the oldest one, surrounded with massive stone blocks and, built during the Venetian domination back to 1555 and, the Northern Gate.

PERAST

A view from Perast
A view from Perast

It is one of the most beautiful Baroque town on the Adriatic.

 

Today the historic city has only 300 inhabitants.

 

This little town is situated at the foot of St. Elijah hill (873 m), where the innermost bays of Risan and Kotor converge.

 

This town has derived its strenght from the interaction between mainland and bay, the inherent contrast of stone and water, the dialogue of island and wave, sometime in harmony but often in conflict.

GOSPA OD SKRPJELA

The church of Gospa od Skrpjeta
The church of Gospa od Skrpjeta

The construction of Gospa od Skrpjela (Lady of the Rock) is an exquisite anomaly of the history. Around a small crag, local people started to build another island. It began with the hulls of scuttled ships and was reinforced by stones carried boatload after boatload to form a seat for a votive chapel. In the small square in front of the church it was arranged a so called "place of reconciliation". The idea was that quarrelling parties in local disputes, might work out fair solutions in the shade of the church and so avoid the Venetians courts. The stone benches are a reminder of the personal and community dramas that must have been enacted here.

HERCEG NOVI

Bay of Herceg Novi
Bay of Herceg Novi

Situated on the slopes of Mount Orjen, the highest mountain in the Dinaric Alps, Herceg Novi faces the entrance to Kotor Bay.

 

 

It is recognisable by the abundance of mimosa trees and its numerous flights of stairs. It is a "city of the sun", with Mediterranean feeling.

 

The festival of the mimosa will be organised in Herceg Novi in February 1-24.

 

The centre of Herceg Novi is Stari Grad. Fortress Spanjola and Fortress Forte Mare are only a part of the cultural heritage of this town.

Igalo Mediterranean Health Centre
Igalo Mediterranean Health Centre

In the immediate vicinity of Herceg Novi is also located Igalo, with the climatic cure resort of international reputation.

 

The Mediterranean Health Centre is the largest and the best-known institution for Multidisciplinary and European Spa Treatment in the Mediterranean.

 

Following the old European tradition of natural treatments, the Institute has gained an international reputation for its successful treatment of clientele with the wide range of medical problems.

RISAN

Risan harbour
Risan harbour

 

 

Today Risan is a small port with roughly 3500 inhabitants. It is the oldest settlement in the Bay.

  

Lying in the innermost portion of the bay, the settlement was protected from the interior by inaccessible limestone cliffs of the Orjen mountain, and through several following narrow straits in the Bay of Kotor from the open sea.

 

 

TIVAT

The natural harbour of Tivat - The Kalimanj Marina
The natural harbour of Tivat - The Kalimanj Marina

 

 

Tivat is located  in the central part of the Kotor Bay.

 

There are plans for further developmet of the city, including the construction of a big marina for standard yachts and mega-yachts.

 

In the city itself there is a natural harbour called the Tivat Kalimanj Marina.

 

Tivat is the only town with an airport.

The small island of Ostrvo
The small island of Ostrvo

 

 

Although it is the youngest town in the region, it has a lot of interesting and attractive destinations.

 

Renaissance Summer House Buca in the centre of the city, the flowers islands with sacred monuments (Sveti Marko, Ostrvo, Cvijeca, Nikola and Gospa), and the magnificent beach at Plazi Horizonti.

PRCANJ

Aerial view of Dobrota and Prcanj
Aerial view of Dobrota and Prcanj

 

It is a treasury of cultural and historical monuments, dominated by a beautiful church, built of narrow stones.

 

Visitors are captivated by its antiquity, Mediterranean flavours and stunning beaches.

 

In the 19th century, Lord Byron visited Prcanj and indulged in a romantic story with a local noblewoman.

 

DOBROTA

View of Prcanj from a Dobrota terrace
View of Prcanj from a Dobrota terrace

 

Dobrota looks straight to mount Vrmas.

 

The seaside promenade in Dobrota runs for several kilometers along the shore, besides numerous little stone jetties and, old palaces.

 

As in Perast, Prcanj and other places in the Bay of Kotor, the large number of churches still today witness the strong faith of the old people of this tiny town.

IGALO

The bay of Igalo
The bay of Igalo

 

 

Igaro is the most Northerly place on the Montenegro coast.

 

It is a bathing beach and at the same time a promenade along the coast.

 

A part of the beach is sandy and the other one is in concrete.

 

 

BIJELA

The centre of the town of  Bijela
The centre of the town of Bijela

 

 

Winding upwards from the Bay of Kotor through narrow  river gorges, you  arrive to Bijelo,  the largest town in Northern Montenegro. 

 

The first of Bijelo principal attractions is the Church  of Saint Peter.

The walls of Bijela
The walls of Bijela

 

 

 

 

Considered by many as the Northern gateway to Montenegro, Bijelo is known as much for it’s picturesque winters, as the large number of famous Montenegrin writers, novelists and poets who were born here. 

 

 

 

Bijela Shipyard
Bijela Shipyard

 

Bijela is famous for the biggest ship repairing yard in the Southern Adriatic covering a total area of 120.000 sq., the "Adriatic Shipyard Bijela"

 

The Shipyard, established in 1927, has a large experience and extraordinary human and technical capacities.

 

It has a long lasting tradition in building, repairing and servicing of vessels and floating crafts of all types and sizes.

 

SAVINA

The Savina Monastery - the Cathedral of Assumption
The Savina Monastery - the Cathedral of Assumption

 

From the port of Herceg Novi this small, green community is only a 20-minute walk away.

 

The Savina Monastery consist of three churches (the churches of Assumption and Saint Sava, and the larger cathedral of Assumption) and was built slightly above the waterfront promenade.

 

In its treasuries there are wonderful houses placed in attractive corners of the coast.