Montenegro Itinerary | 7 Perfect Days for Firsttimers

This Montenegro itinerary is one of the most spectacular round trips you can take on the Balkan peninsula. Although the small country on the Adriatic Sea is still relatively unknown to German tourists, it has been loved by Eastern European travelers for decades. Montenegro not only offers a long (and unfortunately very built-up) coastline with many great beaches, but also fantastic mountains, dense forests, cold mountain lakes and impressive gorges.

There are many good reasons to start a round trip through Montenegro, because the nature here is very pristine and the country is comparatively cheap to travel through. We will now show you how to summarize the best highlights of Montenegro in a 2 week itinerary. Finally, here are the most important travel tips for a vacation in Montenegro.

Montenegro Itinerary At A Glance

Our Montenegro round trip takes you once clockwise along the most beautiful highlights of Montenegro. You will experience the sea, but also the mountains and some of the country’s most beautiful national parks. We have left out the direct coastline, as it is unrestrainedly built up in Montenegro and in our opinion it is simply too crowded for a relaxing beach vacation.

The beaches of neighboring Croatia are better suited for this. However, if you still want to experience some beaches in Montenegro, then visit the towns of Bar and Budva, which are located directly on the Adriatic Sea.

How long do I need for a Montenegro Road Trip?

We recommend a trip duration of 14 days. Montenegro may not be the largest country in the Balkans, but it still offers so many highlights and a particularly authentic natural environment that you should plan enough time for. If you’re short on time, you can also complete our suggested itinerary in a week.

A | Kotor & Bay of Kotor

• Recommended length of stay: 1-3 days

Whether you come by car via Croatia or land in Tivat by plane. Your Montenegro road trip will probably start in the Bay of Kotor. The biggest highlight here is the town of Kotor.

The old town of Kotor is hidden in the bay of the same name and is a real tourist magnet. The town with only 24,000 inhabitants has existed since the Middle Ages, was occupied by the Venetians and Romans and has been a UNESO World Heritage Site since 1999.

With its narrow, cobblestone streets and historic buildings, the city’s architecture is very reminiscent of Croatian cities such as Split or Dubrovnik. The old town is surrounded by high city walls and offers wonderful architecture inside.

The strenuous hike up to San Giovanni Castle is well worth the effort. A steep path of 1300 steps, also known as the Ladder of Kotor, leads up to the medieval castle and reveals a breathtaking view of the old town and the Bay of Kotor.

If you want to go up without hiking, then take the steep Kotor serpentines. From the top, you have a wonderful view of the Bay of Kotor and the entire mountain backdrop.

But a tour around the bay also offers wonderful panoramic views and can be combined with a visit to other beautiful places such as Perast.

B C | Durmitor National Park Piva Reservoir

• Recommended length of stay: 2-4 days

On the way to the next Montenegro highlight, head north and take a short detour to the country’s most famous pilgrimage site. The Ostrog Monastery was carved into the almost vertical rock face of the Ostroška Greda massif and is reached via a steep winding road. The monastery can be visited free of charge, but make sure your shoulders and knees are covered.

Then continue in the direction of Durmitor National Park. There you should drive along the circular panoramic road through the park. First drive to the village of Žabljak, the gateway to the national park. Here you will find many hotels and restaurants and the town is a good starting point for exploring the national park.

The southern panoramic route then takes you to the Piva reservoir at the small village of Pluzine, where you can also go for a swim. There is also a zipline at the lake where you can whizz across the turquoise waters. In general, however, things are much more relaxed here than in the lively village of Žabljak on the other side of the national park.

Take the northern panoramic route back to Žabljak. There are numerous other sights nearby, such as the Black Lake or the Curevac viewpoint, from where you have a spectacular view of the nearby Tara Gorge. But be careful, although the hike only takes 30 minutes, it is very strenuous thanks to the very rocky terrain.

Durmitor National Park also offers a large number of wonderful hikes to peaks over 2000 meters high. One of the most popular hikes leads to the 2400m high mountain Prutaš.

E | Tara Gorge

• Recommended length of stay: 1-2 days

If you drive a little further north, you will come to the country’s most famous gorge, carved into the rock by the River Tara.

At 140 km, the Tara is the longest and probably the most impressive river in Montenegro. The most spectacular section of the Tara Gorge is located in the famous Durmitor National Park. The river Tara starts in the north of Montenegro and flows through an ever deeper canyon until it reaches the Bosnian border in the northeast.

The gorge, which the river has carved into the landscape over long stretches, is up to 1300 meters deep, making it the deepest gorge in Europe and one of the deepest in the world.

The best view of the gorge is from the most famous highlight on the river, the Đurđevića Tara Bridge. Completed in 1940, the bridge spans the Tara River at a height of 150 meters and is a visual highlight in the region. Several zipline providers offer their services here and, of course, you can also go on great whitewater rafting tours along the river.

If you head south along the river from the Tara Bridge, you will not only find yourself directly beneath the steep rock faces, but also have direct access to the wild river in several places.

The road along the gorge is currently (September 2025) closed due to a landslide. Unfortunately, you will have to take an hour-long detour, which will also take you past the Meandri Ćehotine viewpoint, which is well worth a visit.

If the landslide (Google Maps link) is eventually cleared, you can save yourself this detour and take the direct route on road P4 via the village of Mojkovac to the next destination of the Montenegro road trip.

F | Biogradska Gora National Park

• Recommended length of stay: 1-2 days

In eastern Montenegro lies the country’s smallest and oldest national park, Biogradska Gora National Park. The most visited and easiest to reach part of the park is Lake Biogradsko Jezero, where the park’s visitor center is located. An entrance fee of €4 per person is payable at the entrance to the national park. At the visitor center there is an adventurous parking lot in the middle of the forest and a small playground.

This is where the popular (and very easy) hiking trail around the lake starts, which leads through one of the last primeval forests in Europe. Here you walk partly on wooden planks through the original forest and have a fantastic view of beech, elm and fir trees, some of which are centuries old.

You can walk around the lake in just under 1-2 hours and then take a look at the fantastic scenery from the jetty.

If you want to go higher, numerous other hikes start at the visitor center, all of which are well signposted and will take you to the surrounding peaks in several hours. The hike to the Bendovac viewpoint is the most recommended for a great view of the lake. It will take you around 4-5 hours to climb the 700 meters in altitude and get back to the parking lot.

G | Mrtvica Canyon

• Recommended length of stay: 1 day

If you continue south towards the coast, you will inevitably pass through the very impressive Morača Canyon. Panoramic Route 1 leads through the canyon in sweeping curves along the river of the same name.

One of the most beautiful hikes in Montenegro is roughly halfway along the route. The complete hike through the Mrtvica Canyon takes just under 5 hours and 14 km.

You can also run a shorter version, which in our opinion covers the most beautiful part of the canyon and takes you to the Danilov Most bridge and back again. For the most part, you walk directly along the wild river and have spectacular views of the landscape almost all the time.

H | Lake Skadar

• Recommended length of stay: 1-3 days

The last highlight on your Montenegro road trip is Lake Skadar. The lake is the largest on the Balkan Peninsula and also the largest in southern Europe. Lake Skadar is 48 kilometers long and up to 14 kilometers wide and is located in similar parts in Montenegro and Albania.

The Montenegrin part of the lake belongs to the national park of the same name and is therefore under special protection. The lake is only 7 meters deep on average and is criss-crossed by karst springs, some of which are up to 40 meters deep, which channel ice-cold water into the river.

The north-eastern part of the lake in particular, with its floodplains, is extremely worth seeing and almost an insider tip on the huge lake. Here you will find the course of the Crnojević River, the water is covered with beautiful water lilies in many places and you will see large and small water birds everywhere.

The river landscape of the Crnojević merges almost seamlessly into the huge Lake Scutari and can be perfectly explored on a boat tour. The best way to do this is on a guided boat tour, which starts in the towns of Rijeka Crnojevića and Virpazar

Montenegro | The Best Travel Tips

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We hope you enjoyed our Montenegro road trip. If you have any questions or tips for Montenegro, please leave us a comment.