When it comes to authentic medieval European cities to visit - Kotor in Montenegro is probably at the top of the list. Kotor is a fortified town with city walls and a maze of cobblestone alleys, streets and plazas full of historic buildings, cafes, restaurants and quirky shops. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor which has breathtaking scenery as you drive along the windy road toward the medieval city.

The old town of Kotor is a pedestrian only zone. The streets are narrow, cobblestone and wind their way around many plazas. You will find many interesting shops restaurants and bars throughout the old town. A couple of our favourites are the Square Pub and the Old Town Pub. Many restaurants and bars have alfresco seating. Cats are very popular around Kotor and there are shops dedicated to them full of quirky gifts.

We loved exploring the maze of alleyways with pretty buildings, flowers and decorations. Throughout the old town you will also find many palaces, museums, and churches like the Typhon Cathedral which houses some ancient artwork, but also a collection of body parts of saints, including Saint Typhon himself. Much of the World Heritage listed old town and the fortified walls above it were built by the venetians who ruled Kotor for nearly 400 years.

There are three gates to enter the city, the North (River) Gate, the Sea Gate and Gurdic Gate. The easiest entrance to access the city is the North Gate. It is so picturesque as you walk across the Scurda River through the archway of the Gate into the small plaza which houses a fountain and pretty garden. This is where you get the best views of the bastions along the city walls. The old town Sea Gate is only 200 metres from the port area.

One of the main attractions when visiting Kotor is the hike up to the Fortress of San Giovani which was built in 1382. It sits at 280m above the old town. You will have to walk up 1350 zig zagged steps to reach the top - but the spectacular views are worth the effort. You can see the whole Bay of Kotor, the mountains surrounding the bay and all the little islands, and villages around the edge of the Bay as well.

If you don’t want to climb all the way to the top, then you can stop about halfway at the tiny church of Our Lady of Remedy. The views from here are almost as good as from the top and it is a much easier walk to arrive at the church.

Another popular activity when visiting Kotor is doing a speed boat tour. The one we chose to do was incredible. (check the button below to see the one we recommend). We chose this tour as we wanted to see the island of Our Lady of the Rock, the infamous submarine tunnels and of course the incredible Blue Cave. The visit to the manmade island on Our Lady of the Rock was fascinating. To think the whole island was built by adding rock after rock until it came out of the sea. It is worth paying the 3 euro entry into the cathedral and small museum.

Next, we learnt about how and why the submarine tunnels were built back in World War II and how they were used to hide submarines up to the 1980’s. Our speed boat tour took us inside one of the tunnels. That was an incredible experience. Lastly, we visited the Blue Cave by going under a small natural arch in the cliff and arriving inside to a large cavern with the bluest water you have ever seen. After spending some time inside the cave, we were given the chance to jump into to inviting clear blue water for a swim. We thoroughly enjoyed the tour; it was definitely a highlight of our time in Kotor, and we certainly recommend doing the tour we did. (See button below)

We were lucky enough to be in Kotor when the music and culture festival was on. The city has many celebrations throughout the year - so make sure if you are planning a trip to Kotor, check the tourist information site for any festivals while you are visiting.

We were blown away by Kotor. We loved the city and the bay surrounding it. We recommend staying in Kotor for at least two nights - and three if you can. that way you can get an early start to climbing the steep stairs to San Giovani before the tourists and heat of the day arrives. You can also hop on the first speed boat tour of the day to avoid crowds at Our Lady of the Rock island, which does get quite crowded through the day. It is also good to be one of the first boats to arrive at the blue cave, especially if you fancy taking a dive into the Bay of Kotor. If you would like to hear our complete podcast episode and audio guide to visiting Kotor, along with some scary and funny stories - then click the play button on the podcast player at the top of the page.