Getting to Know the Bride of the Adriatic

After landing at the Tivat airport, our first stop was the Palma hotel, where we were accommodated the first night and which is located right on the seashore. The hotel has its own beach, the rooms are spacious and comfortable, and a large part of them overlook the sea.

We took a van to the Una Montenegro nautical center, which also offers quad rides to tourists. Since we visited Boka in mid-September, the weather was sunny and perfect for driving. We enjoyed the nice weather on the Luštica peninsula. We had lunch at the Pony Art rural household in the village of Tići, whose owners are academic musicians from Belgrade, Žizela and Nenad. In one place, we experienced incredible delicacies from their kitchen, but also received a lot of positive energy emitted by the mentioned couple. I really don't want to write much about Pony Art, because so much beauty cannot be captured in words. It must be visited

Filled with good food, but also positive energy, we arrive at the Luštica Bay apartment complex and The Chedi hotel. Everything exudes luxury and simply gives another dimension to the Montenegrin coast. We had dinner at The Spot restaurant. Located on the marina promenade with a view of the horizon, it is an all-day brasserie-style restaurant serving fresh and healthy dishes. The next day, after a walk along the Tivat riviera, we rode a catamaran through the Tivat Bay and arrived at the Nikki Beach Hotel & Beach Club. Located right next to the water area of the Tivat Bay with a perfect view of the islands of Sveti Marko and Our Lady of Mercy, this facility consists of a restaurant and a beach club, whose offer is focused on the identity of that brand. The resort with a beautiful view of the sea and mountains also includes a boutique resort with 45 rooms, a gym, and a luxury spa center.

We return to Tivat by catamaran and sail into the Porto Montenegro nautical settlement. One of the pioneers of luxury tourism in Boka is now widely known. If you thought (like me) that the project was finished, you were wrong. Namely, it is only at 45% of its realization, so more new and beautiful facilities are expected. We also visited the Regent Hotel and had lunch with hotel representatives. Opened in 2014, Regent has reached the lists of the most prestigious hotels, top destinations over the past year and a half, and was declared the "New Hotel of Europe" by the World Luxury Hotel Awards, an award known as the "Oscar" in the world of luxury hospitality.

We leave the Tivat municipality and arrive at the brilliant Blue Kotor Bay. The resort, located in a UNESCO-protected area, presents innovative room types, so alongside standard and superior categories, it also offers unforgettable deluxe spa rooms with a private hydro-massage jacuzzi or deluxe swim-up rooms with a private pool, available only for guests who have booked that room type. We were accommodated in it, and our excellent hosts prepared an incredibly delicious dinner for us. If you didn't know, there is an aquarium in Kotor that opened its doors to visitors in June 2021. Our group also visited the aquarium and we were thrilled with the underwater world. In the first three months, the aquarium was visited by more than 8,000 visitors.

In the Kotor municipality, we visit the beautiful Perast and the island of Our Lady of the Rocks. When you drive through the Bay of Kotor, you will notice a lot of mussel farms, and we had a tasting at one of them. On the third day of our stay in Boka, we visited the Old Town of Kotor accompanied by a guide, and then had a workshop with tourism providers from Boka that we did not manage to visit during our stay. The mentioned workshop, as well as lunch, were held at the Cattaro hotel located right in the Old Town. After a great lunch, we visited Risan and the Roman mosaics. This famous landmark, which is now the oldest architectural monument in Montenegro, is about two thousand years old. Currently, the museum presents the foundation of the ancient Roman villa Urbana with different mosaic patterns on the floors in each room and an atrium in the middle.

We leave the Kotor municipality and settle into the beautiful Lazure Hotel & Marina. The hotel was opened in 2018, and it is a complex with a marina and a beautifully restored hotel within the 18th-century Lazaret building, a landmark of the Bay of Kotor and the former Republic of Venice. The Lazure hotel is a boutique hotel with a total of 24 decorated rooms and suites. The building in which the hotel is located is a unique combination of history and modernly equipped parts in Mediterranean colors. This summer, the hotel enriched its offer by opening a new residential building containing another 104 hotel rooms overlooking the marina, garden, and mountains. That afternoon, we enjoyed the beautifully arranged hotel beach. Dinner was reserved for the crown of luxury tourism in Montenegro and a visit to the resort that bears the name of the world-famous brand One&Only. Our hosts prepared an unforgettable dinner for us.

Our last day in Boka started with a tour of Tito's villa, Galeb in Igalo. Surrounded by a rich pine forest, it is positioned to provide a beautiful view of the entrance to the Bay of Kotor. The villa was built in 1976 and the entire process lasted only six months. We continue with a tour of Herceg Novi accompanied by a guide, in order to visit the house of the Nobel laureate Ivo Andrić. The road further leads us to the Orjen mountain where we tested our mountaineering skills in the Vrbanj adventure park. Our hosts organized a tasting of homemade products for us in the Domestik tavern. This family project of the Palikuća family has grown into an indispensable destination that every tourist in Herceg Novi must visit.

We continue to the Savina monastery. There is a belief that before his last journey, King Alexander Karađorđević hinted at his end. Unknowingly, the king accidentally grabbed the rope of the so-called "death" bell, which is used only to announce someone's death. A worse sign before going on a trip could not be imagined. Just a few hundred meters uphill is the Savina Winery. Wonderful wines, a great snack, and a million-dollar view of the gates of Boka make this winery special. Our last stop was the Hotel Palmon Bay. We were also accommodated in it, and after an exhausting day, it was a real pleasure to relax in the spa center and enjoy great cuisine.

I would like to thank the representatives of travel agencies Kon Tiki Travel, Odeon World Travel, Barcino Tours, Ponte Travel, Olympic Travel, Jumbo Travel, Big Blue, Travel Partner, and NIS a.d. for their demonstrated professionalism and great atmosphere during the trip. In my opinion, the Bay of Kotor is made up of three hearts and one soul. All three hearts have something special and something for everyone. Excellent hotels, interesting accompanying facilities, a good price-quality ratio, and what is very important, warm and hospitable people. Boka is not only interesting in summer. It is timeless, it is the "Bride of the Adriatic".

We thank Danica Banjević on behalf of TO Tivat, Jovan Ristić from TO Kotor, and Dalibor Vuković from TO Herceg Novi, as well as their colleagues, for excellent organization, but also cordial hospitality. Also, we thank Dragana Frantov Nikolić and Ksenija Vujošević from Air Montenegro for their support.