The Bay of Kotor with a baby: Kotor Old Town, Dobrota and Montenegro’s mountain roads

Why we stayed in Dobrota, not Kotor

We booked an apartment in Dobrota, a small village on the bay just north of Kotor. It was cheaper than the old town, quiet in the evenings, and we had a small beach almost to ourselves. If you want nightlife, stay in Kotor; if you prefer evening walks along the water with only your family’s voices around you, choose somewhere like Dobrota.

Things to do in Kotor Old Town

Kotor’s walled old town is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 1 We simply chose whichever lane looked tempting and let the town guide us, but these were the highlights.

• The Sea Gate, the main entrance to the old town, with the tourist information office just outside.
• The Square of Arms, with the clock tower and old palaces, and tiny squares with names such as Milk Square and Salad Square.
• The churches: Catholic and Orthodox churches stand side by side, from St Tryphon’s Cathedral to the small, very old Church of St Luke and St Nicholas’s Church nearby.
• The fortress walls: a paid climb of many steps to a superb view over the town and the bay. Go early or late on hot days and take water.
• The green market outside the walls, where locals greeted Zofia with “mala beba” at every stall.

Driving in Montenegro: stay on the main roads

Montenegro’s main roads are mostly in good condition, but they are steep and full of tight curves. My own rule from that trip: if a road looks like a tangle on the GPS, it will be one in reality.

On the way from Dobrota to Ostrog our GPS sent us onto a “shortcut” from Risan. It became a narrow, barely surfaced mountain track with a rock wall on one side and a drop on the other, where we crept along at walking speed and sounded the horn at every bend. Never rely only on your GPS here; ask locals which road to take and keep to the main routes, especially with a child in the car.

Respect the speed limits, as police checks are common. Montenegro uses the euro but is not in the EU, so bring passports, your driving licence, vehicle documents and proof of insurance valid for Montenegro.

Ostrog, Durmitor and the Tara Bridge

Our drive north took us to Ostrog Monastery and then up into the mountains of Durmitor, a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site. 2 At the end of May there was still snow on the peaks around Žabljak, and the small resort felt like a quiet ghost town out of season.

Our host heated our room before we arrived because we had a baby, and nothing was ever a problem for him. The next day we drove to the Tara Bridge above the Tara River Canyon, one of the deepest canyons in Europe. My husband took the zip line across; Zofia and I watched from the bridge.

Budva, Sveti Stefan and a beach with no name

On the coast we used Petrovac as a base. It was not the family-friendly beach town our guidebook promised, but it worked for day trips. Budva has a lovely walled old town on a peninsula, with beaches just outside the walls. Sveti Stefan is the most photogenic village we have seen; the island itself is a private resort, so the best view is from the road above, ideally in the morning light.

Our favourite beach was one we found by taking a wrong turn: empty, quiet, with only the sound of waves and distant fishermen. You can still find places like that in Montenegro. For a later family trip to the same coast, read Budva with kids.