Visit Kotor, Montenegro before it’s too popular

Montenegro is an often overlooked country of the eight that comprise southeastern Europe’s Balkan Peninsula and, while I didn’t spent a lot of time there last July, I didn’t need to in order to appreciate its charms.

I crossed into Montenegro, a small country of less than a million people that gained its independence from Serbia in 2006, after spending a couple of nights in Trebinje, Bosnia and Herzegovina — about a 30-minute drive from the border. The country’s name translates into “Black Mountain” in English and, while the peaks surrounding us might not have been overly high, they were visually stunning. 

Our bus descended and offered beautiful views of the Bay of Kotor (known locally as Boka), which winds its way inland from the Adriatic Sea. The old town of Kotor is walled, not unlike nearby Dubrovnik, Croatia, but is even more compact. And even though two cruise ships were in the port, it hasn’t yet been overrun by tourists or experienced the price hikes of the gorgeous town that gained increased notoriety through its Game of Thrones association.

A local guide led a 45-minute group walking tour of the old town, talking about its history and showing us some of its more notable structures. To better get my bearings, I walked along the top of the 4.5 kilometres of walls wherever possible, which offered a better perspective and some prime views of the medieval era architecture that has contributed to Kotor being named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Even better vistas could have been had from hiking up a steep hill to the Church of Our Lady of Remedy or even higher to the Castle of St. John, but my time was limited and I had fallen in love with the bay and wanted to get out on the shimmering blue water.

I paid 15 Euros (approximately $22.50 Canadian) for a 90-minute round trip ride on a speed boat that included two disembarkations. The first was a 30-minute stop in the lovely village of Perast, which has 300 people, beautiful old buildings and overlooks the Verige Strait, the narrowest part of the Bay of Kotor. I snapped several photos in my quick walk along the shoreline before it was time to get back on the boat.

It took just a couple of minutes to reach the next destination, Our Lady of the Rocks, the only artificial island in the Adriatic that was created hundreds of years ago by sailors through building on top of rocks and sunken ships. A church of the same name, which was renovated in 1722, offered more photo opportunities — as did the nearby St. George, an even smaller island that’s home to a quaint church that can be seen in my current Facebook cover photo.

The ride back to the Kotor port was exhilarating, where the wind would have been whipping my hair if I had enough for that to happen, while taking in picturesque buildings at the foot of the mountains surrounding the bay.

With 75 minutes remaining until I had to board a bus to Budva, I walked around parts of the old town I hadn’t earlier and discovered a tiny bar called Hoste that brews its own beer. I wish I could say that the bottle of Smilin’ Goat IPA I had made me smile, but the brewmaster told me that it was made five days earlier and hadn’t yet attained its full character. I can attest.

Budva, a town of 20,000 people on the Adriatic, was a 45-minute drive away. After dropping my bags off at the three-star Hotel Park Budva, I walked a couple of hundred metres to the stony Slovenska Beach, and then passed numerous beach clubs full of partying young people in the 20 minutes it took me to reach the old walled part of the town. 

While I enjoyed my wander, the architecture wasn’t as interesting as in Kotor or Dubrovnik, and it didn’t take long to take in the sights of the town ruled by the Venetians from 1420 to 1797. But it was a hot early July day and I’d worked up a thirst. Luckily, I ran into my friend Ryan, who was equally parched.

We had a beer in the Old Town Pub and then went just beyond the old town walls to the Akademija Crafthouse brew pub, where we were given three different beers for the price of two on a sunny terrace. My favourite was definitely the Cista Desetka Hefeweizen.

After returning to the hotel and having another beer, I had dinner at the beachside and somewhat upscale Restaurant Pivnica, where a good but not great meal of veal soup, spaghetti with seafood and a pint of beer set me back 16.50 Euros (approximately $24.75 Canadian) as musicians walked by serenading my table.

While the beach was packed with people and sun beds during the day, as the “Budva Riviera” is the centre of Montenegrin tourism, many of the beach clubs were closed at night. But those that were open, as well as other nightclubs set a bit farther back from the water, were pumping out loud Eurodisco dance music that I wanted no part of.
 
I was able to find a relatively quiet bar on the beach where I could enjoy a nightcap and reflect on my day. It was number six of the 16 I’d spend in the Balkans and, since I’d visited Dubrovnik years earlier and eliminated this return trip from consideration, I quickly came to the conclusion that Kotor had become my favourite destination of the journey.

More people are starting to discover Montenegro, just as they already have Croatia, so I’d recommend getting there soon if any of what I’ve described appeals to you. 

If you’d like to get a taste of several countries in this part of the world, I’d recommend TravelTalk’s All About Balkans tour. The regular price is $2,570, but tours from March through November are now on sale for $1,414.

Cruising The Mediterranean Sea For 12 Days
One of the most enjoyable and cost-efficient ways of seeing many of the highlights of southern Europe is on Mediterranean cruises.
I used Rome as my pre- and post-cruise base not only because it's one of the most beautiful and historic cities in the world to explore for a few days, but because it's a relaxing 80-minute train ride to the port town of Civitavecchia, where many cruise ships dock.
The Carnival Freedom was my ship of choice, particularly for its itinerary, but also for its food and recreation options, choice of bars and other amenities.
The first stop was the Italian city of Naples, from which we took a 30-minute train ride to the ruins of Pompeii, which was home to 30,000 people before it was brought to a halt after the 79 AD eruption of the nearby Mount Vesuvius volcano. You can easily spend the whole day wandering around the 45 hectares that have been excavated since the site was discovered in 1748.
A day at sea was followed by a day in a city I'd never been to before but instantly became one of my favourites: Dubrovnik, Croatia. The best way to take it all in is by walking around the top of the 1,940 metres of walls — including bastions, casemates, towers and detached forts — that enclose the old part of the city. The walls were built from the ninth to 14th centuries, are up to 25 metres in height, and offer breathtaking views of both the old buildings in the interior (some of which have been rebuilt after a 1978 earthquake and shelling from the 1992 civil war that broke up the former Yugoslavia) and the sea.
Dubrovnik is across the Adriatic Sea from the world's most renowned city of canals: Venice, Italy. The Freedom docked there overnight, allowing two days to explore all of the nooks and crannies of the difficult-to-navigate (especially at night) but romantic city. I'd previously visited Venice in the summer, but preferred it this second time in mid-October. It's not as hot, there are fewer tourists to deal with and the canals don't smell as bad.
Another day at sea took us to the Italian island of Sicily, which is southwest of the boot-shaped country's toe. The ship docked in Messina, which I walked around for about an hour. But a scenic hour-long train ride took me to the picturesque hilltop town of Taormina, about 200 metres above sea level. I first visited the Greek Theatre, parts of which date as far back as the third century B.C. You can see Europe's highest active volcano, Mount Etna, from there on a clear day. The rest of my time was spent strolling around the quaint town, where parts of The Godfather was filmed.
It was time to hit the open sea for another day before we arrived in another one of my favourite cities: Barcelona, Spain. The incredible Antonio Gaudi architecture is enough of a draw, but the city's other subtle charms will draw you in and make you want to return. I've been there three times and would have no objections to a fourth visit.
The Freedom was supposed to dock in Monte Carlo, which I'd been to before, but rain and rough seas made that impossible. We went to the Italian city of Genoa instead. Aside from knowing that Christopher Columbus was from there, I had little knowledge of Genoa and no desire to go there. But it has three walking routes — Medieval, Renaissance and Marina — and we took them all. There's lots of history and beautiful architecture to take in, and I now have no problems recommending Genoa.
Our next port was the Italian coastal city of Livorno. There's little to see there, so we took a 20-minute train ride to Pisa. It was a 20-minute walk from the station to the city's most notable structure, the infamous leaning tower. The surrounding cathedrals at the site were also worthwhile, but the rest of the city lacks much character so we returned to the train station and continued our journey with an hour-long ride to Florence.
The Duomo is one of the most spectacular buildings I've ever seen, and it helped put Florence in perspective for me as a great city, even without seeing the art masterpieces in its numerous museums and galleries. There was lots of other stunning architecture to take in during the four hours we got to spend in Florence before returning on the train back to Livorno.
The 12-day cruise returned to where it started, Civitavecchia, and from there it was back to enjoy the wonders of Rome for two more days.