A day around Kotor Bay

As part of our journey around the country of Montenegro, me and my friend decided to stop by the famous Bay of Kotor (Boka Kotorska) and more specifically the city of Kotor. We decided to stay there for a day and walk around the old city of Kotor that was a bit smaller compared to Dubrovnik but was just as charming and magnificent.

The city of Kotor was established on the hill of the Lovćen mountain around a hundred years before the birth of Christ by the Romans and was then ruled by different tribes that were passing by. Eventually, the city of Kotor and its strategic position in the Bay of Kotor fell under the rule of the Venetians and later the Ottoman Empire. However, the city of Kotor was still considered to be one of those cities that are very hard to besiege and was even an inspiration for some scenes of Game of Thrones. This is no surprise, as its fortress is quite unique and quite unbelievable, especially if you look at it from down below.

The Old town of Kotor

We started our day trip in Kotor by entering the city from its north side or more specifically from the Kampana Tower. The Kampana tower was a round fortress built around the thirteenth century and exactly next to the river Scurda that was flowing through there. Its sole purpose was to defend the city’s fleet and its notorious walls. From there we could witness the majestic City Walls of Kotor, which were spread all over the Lovćen mountain’s hills. Since it was early in the morning, there was a dark shadow over the city and it was quite chilly, which made the city look even more mystical.

Then, we passed through Napoleon’s theatre, which was close to the entrance of the city and ended up in the city’s main square. The main square was called Trg od Oružja and was also the place where all of the traders were gathering to discuss the important matters related to the trade or simply to sell or buy commodities. It was also a gathering point for all the citizens of the city and its magistrates, that were discussing important matters for the development of the city.

Exactly at the main square Trg od Oružja is the famous old Clock Tower of Kotor, which catches everybody’s attention. The Clock Tower was built around the seventeenth century and survived a couple of earthquakes of which one almost destroyed it. However, it was steady and remained in its place until this very day. The Clock Tower is the symbol of Kotor and is truly worth a stop by.

Eventually, we got lost in the old city’s streets that were the most charming and magical streets I have even crossed. It was a very interesting experience since every little narrow street brought to us a different point of view to the city or even showed us a secret hidden place in this small old city of Kotor.

A very interesting part of the cities are their feline inhabitants that are everywhere. The locals even built houses, shops, and restaurants for the cats walking around and that creates a very sweet vibe. Maybe this is the reason why Kotor is also famous for its cats that can be seen almost everywhere within the city. Honestly, I consider the streets of the old city of Kotor to be one of the most interesting landmarks in the city.

While wandering around we found the tiny church of Saint Luka, which is one of the smallest churches I have ever seen. It was close to the north walls of Kotor and was not opened at the time, but its exterior was quite fascinating, so we admired it for a bit.

Then, we found the Cathedral of Kotor at the Saint Tryphon square, which was dating back to the ninth century and had a very interesting interior, with columns built from little red bricks that created a very unique architectural style. The Cathedral of Kotor did not have frescoes on its walls, but it was well-lit and bright on the inside, which made it be a very welcoming place. On the outside of the cathedral was covered with white rocks and had two big bells on each side and a clock on one of the sides, which made it appear quite humongous.

The City Walls of Kotor

After exploring the old city of Kotor we headed up to the notable city walls of Kotor. Along the way, we had to climb a hilly street in the old town next to the cathedral of Kotor, which was full of cats everywhere and after that, we saw the cobbled path going up the hill. It was leading us right to the cashier from whom we bought our tickets for four euros and continued straight up the path.

The higher we were going the better the view over the city of Kotor was getting. After walking for a while we ended up at the first designated viewpoints in Kotor from which we could see almost everything in this small medieval city. Along with that, we could enjoy the mesmerizing beauty of the Bay of Kotor, which was absolutely unbelievable.

Going up a bit higher we found the famous church of Our Lady of Remedy, which was built on one of the tops right on the steep cliffs. The church was built around the fifteenth century and is considered to be one of the oldest and most important churches in the country of Montenegro. The reason for building the church at this high was to keep it safe when there are any invaders coming to the city and wanting to take over it. The church of Our Lady of Remedy is quite small and is very old, so it does not have a lot of frescoes inside or golden altars, but it is quite fascinating.

Then, we walked up the steep path for almost an hour and enjoyed the amazing vistas that were revealed in front of us with every step we took. Eventually, we reached the famous Castle of San Giovanni which was sitting almost at the end of the walls of Kotor. The castle of San Giovanni is also known as the fortress of Kotor, which was built on that strategic slope around the sixth century. However, today there is almost nothing left from its past greatness, but only a few huge rooms with windows overlooking the Bay of Kotor.

Anyway, the view from the Castle of San Giovanni is absolutely breathtaking and I was more than happy that I pushed myself up to it, so I can enjoy it. Up there we could hear the chirping of the birds, feel the warm nice breeze and enjoy the quietness of this great place. That is why we stayed there for some time, so we could rest after climbing for almost two hours up to it. In addition to that, we got to see the magnificent Lovćen mountains where the Kotor Walls were built on, which was quite fascinating.

However, bear in mind, that climbing up the City Walls of Kotor is quite hard and might take a lot of time to hike up to the top. In addition to that, I would advise you to wear comfortable shoes and clothes, so that you can climb up easily because the stone-paved path up to the top is quite slippery sometimes and might be quite dangerous.

Cruising the Bay of Kotor and the Our Lady of the Rocks island

After hiking to the top of the city walls of Kotor we went down to the old city of Kotor and went out of it through the Sea Gate of the city. It took us exactly outside at the little boat port of Kotor where most of the boat cruises were departing. At the little port, there were many boats that offered cruises around the Kotor Bay, but we went with the one that also offered a stop to the island of Saint George. Eventually, we managed to negotiate a ticket price of fifteen euros and in no time we were already travelling through Kotor Bay.

Honestly, this was one of the most beautiful bays I have ever seen. The sea was surrounded by the high Orjen and Lovćen mountains that were covered in green lush vegetation and were as steep and sharp as a knife. Many people suggest that these mountains formations resulted from long-gone glaciers, but the truth as per our captain was that they formed due to the rising sea levels, which connected with the nearby river.

While cruising along the Kotor Bay he was nice enough and showed us all the cities along the way. The first one and closest to Kotor was Dobrota, which had a very interesting name, which could be translated as Goodness. Actually, the city of Dobrota was considered to be part of Kotor, as most of its neighbourhoods were added to Kotor’s.

Then, the next city was the city of Perast, which he told us was quite famous for having seventeen churches and being one of the smallest cities in Montenegro. Perast was a quite rich city back in the days and it looked like a little Venice from afar.

Eventually, we docked on the island of Our Lady of the Rocks, which was an artificial island near the city of Perast. As per the legend, sailors found an icon of the Madonna on the rock and after every successful journey, they threw rocks into the water on that place. After many years the island grew and the church was built. Nowadays, the church is quite huge and is built in the middle of the island, on the inside it has a small altar and is quite dark, but the frescoes can be easily seen. An interesting part of the church are its corridors leading to a small terrace from which we could oversee the island of Saint George.

The island of Saint George is quite small and houses a monastery from the twelfth century. It is also known as the island of the dead, as there are many people from the surrounding cities buried there. However, the small island is a truly beautiful gem in the middle of the Bay of Kotor and is worth to be witnessed.

After our cruise to the island of Our Lady of the Rocks, we went back on the boat and got ready to go home. It was quite a memorable journey that left us speechless. The Bay of Kotor is truly mesmerizing and has a lot to offer, so I would suggest you visit it!

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