Nestled on the edge of the incredible Bay of Kotor, you’ll find the city of Kotor. Inside the city walls is the old venetian town which is a UNESCO world heritage site. The city is also surrounded by the Orjen and Lovćen cliffs, which makes for a truly stunning landscape. It’s a beautiful city to visit for a few days, but you can also see a lot of what’s on offer in a day or less. We visited on a day trip from Dubrovnik that we booked through Get Your Guide. It was a fantastic tour with a lot of great sites and information all around the Bay of Kotor. If you’re planning your own day, we’ve got all the info you need to know about seeing Kotor in a day.

Cost: $13 or free via a steeper path

The Kotor Fortress, also called St John’s Castle, St. John’s Fortress or the Castle of San Giovanni, stands on the cliff high above the city. It was built as a defence from the Ottoman attacks in the 16th century by the Republic of Venice. Visitors can climb the 1350 steps to the top of the hill which stands 280 meters above sea level. Once at the top the views over the city of Kotor and Kotor Bay are breath-taking. If you love a view it is absolutely worth the hike up!

The fortress hike costs €8 and is open 8am to 8pm every day between May and October. The easiest way is the Kotor Walls Route, which follows the the steps. There is another route which is free before 8am called the Ladder of Kotor. This route is quieter, however the hike is on gravel instead of paved steps, so is more challenging.

The start of the Kotor walls route begins in the Old Town, head here on Google Maps to find it. At the start, there will be a map showing you the different entrances and routes. It should take about 1.5 -2 hours return, but could take longer depending on your fitness level. It gets pretty busy in summer, so it’s best to go early. This will also help you avoid needing to climb up during the heat of the day!

We chose to visit Kotor on an organised trip with Get Your Guide which we have a post about here. We only had limited time in the city so chose not to do the hike but if you’re visiting for more than a couple of hours, it would be a great thing to do!

Cost: Free

Kotor Old Town is a great place to wander around with all it’s cute narrow streets and wonderful shops. There are two entrances to the walled city, one through the sea gate and one through the river gate. The city inside is relatively small, and often gets very crowded with cruise ship passengers and tour groups. Be prepared to have a slow walk around the city, and make sure you allocated plenty of time to get where you’re going.

There are a number of great shops and restaurants to look through in the Old Town. As well as a number of different squares to sit in, with the biggest one being the Square of Arms. This square is right at the entrance of the Sea Gate and also holds the Clock Tower of Kotor.

While walking around, keep an eye out for the Kotor Bazar which is a small shopping area. There you can find souvenirs, art and crafts.

You can also walk along sections of the old wall, but some parts have fallen away. You can find various entrances to the walls in the city but do be careful walking along them as they aren’t that well maintained.

If you love cats, Kotor has them roaming the streets absolutely everywhere. We found more cats in this one city than the Greek Islands, which is known for their stray cats. There’s even a cat museum that has antique books, coins, postcards, newspapers and other cat memorabilia. The museum is open from May 1st to October 31st and entrance is only €1.

Cost: Free (Unless you buy something of course!)

Once you enter the town through the Sea gate, turn left and walk 100m. There you will find the market which is open 7am to mid afternoon. It mostly sells fresh produce such as fruits, vegetables, cheeses and meats but also has liquors and handmade soap. You can also sometimes find gifts, souvenirs and flowers but it is mostly a fresh food market.

Cost: $6.50

While in the old town, one of the most popular attractions is St. Tryphon’s Cathedral. This Roman church was originally built in 1166, but was significantly damaged by earthquakes in 1667 and 1979. It was rebuilt in 2016 but was not fully finished until only a couple of years ago.

There is an entrance fee of €4 per person which must be paid in cash but this also includes entrance to the Sacral Art Museum. This museum has some beautiful 14th century frescoes, artwork and items made of silver and gold. There is also an incredible wooden crucifix from 1288 so well worth the small entrance fee.

There are other churches that are free to enter in the old town such as the church of St Nicholas which is an Orthodox church. Another Orthodox church found in the old town is the church of Sveti Luka which is tiny. There is also the church of Sveti Mihailo and the church of Sveta Marija Koledjate (The Lady of Health). Lots to keep your eye out for when you’re walking around!

Cost: Free

Kotor Beach is located five minutes walk outside the old city walls. It’s a harbour beach and while it does have a roped off section for swimming, being so close to where the cruise ships dock, the water doesn’t look the cleanest. It is also a pebble beach, which is always a bit disappointing for us Australian’s. It does have some paid sun lounges, as well as free portions of the beach so if you want to swim you can. And if you don’t swim you can at least admire the beautiful view of Kotor Bay and the hills surrounding it.

If you have access to a car, or are on a guided tour like we were, you’ll be able to see some other wonderful things near Kotor.

One of the highlights of Kotor is the stunning view of Kotor bay that surrounds it. Whether you’re on a day trip to Kotor or you’re staying a few days, you should make it a priority to get on the bay. The bay is 28 kilometres long and is surrounded by two huge mountain ranges. It has 6 towns on the edge of it including Kotor and Perast and is truly beautiful to see.

The easiest way is by booking a guided trip that includes water transfer through the bay. This tour on Get Your Guide leaves from Kotor and goes to Perast, a former submarine tunnel, Our Lady of the Rocks, and Mamula Island which are both islands in Kotor Bay. If you’re not interested in this tour, definitely see what other tours they’ve got that might fit what you’re after!

Our Lady of the Rocks is one of two small unmanned islands on the Bay of Kotor and is completely artificial. It was made to hold the Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rocks, which is the main reason to visit. This little church takes up most of the island and you can go inside for the small price of €2. Inside, you can see more than 70 paintings, silver tablets and a famous embroidered tapestry with the artists own hair sewn into it. There is also a small gift shop and a lighthouse on the island. The whole thing won’t take more than 30-45 minutes to look around.

One of the highlights of the Bay of Kotor is Perast, a cute little town with only 269 inhabitants. You can actually catch a 30 minute bus between the two towns, but it’s such a small town. It’s probably more worth your time to see the town as part of a bigger Bay of Kotor area tour.

There’s some lovely restaurants on the water and the views of the Bay of Kotor are simply amazing. You also have a great view of Our Lady of the Rocks and walking through the whole town shouldn’t take more than half an hour. Despite being so small, Perast incredibly has 19 palaces and 19 churches so keep an eye out while you walk along the water.

There is also a little museum with about 200 objects representing the history of Perast. The museum is open 10am-4pm from October 15th to April 15th and 8am to 8pm from April 15th to October 15th. It is open every month except January, every day except Monday and costs €5 per person. There are also some great places to get some higher views from, such as St. Cross Fortress and The Old Catholic Monastery. As you can see there are things to keep you busy whether you’re visiting for a night or two or just staying for a few hours.

Along with Kotor and Perast, there are 4 other towns along the Bay which are: Risan, Tivat, Prčanj and Herceg Novi. If you have access to a car, all of these towns can be driven to from Kotor in less than an hour. There are public buses to all of them too and are worth a visit if you’re able to get there.

As you can see there are lots of things to keep you entertained in Kotor whether you’re staying for one day or multiple. It is such a beautiful little town that is becoming more and more popular as the years go by so worth a visit soon! To see more of what we did on our day trip, our vlog has everything:

• How To Decide On The Better Day Trip From Dubrovnik
• How to See the Best of Mostar in One Day!
• How to See the Most of Split on a Budget!
• How to Have the Best Time in Naxos on a Budget