KOTOR, MONTENEGRO

Every once in a while we stumble upon a gem on our travels; I would describe Kotor as just that… An absolute corker.

The ship dropped anchor in what seemed very much like a wide fjord, with spectacular mountain scenery in all directions. Even from here, we sensed that today’s visit might be something special, but looking towards the town, where the Holland America ship Oosterdam was berthed, it was almost impossible to tell with any certainty. The mountains were a big clue, though… and I loved them!

We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and hung around the top decks taking in the scenery, as we waited for open tenders to be announced. As soon as it was announced, we heading ashore, and once in the old town were instantly transfixed by the place.

LIke Dubrovnik, old Kotor is a walled city. Once through its walls, into the inner sanctum, however, Kotor has a unique vibe all of its very own. It is much smaller in scale, but there is a much livelier feel to it, something akin to Havanna, with quite squat buildings and a clangy old bell tower.

As with Dubrovnik, Kotor is cram-packed with tourist shops, and an army of tourists to match. Wherever we were, though, the scene was dominated by the mountains that towered beyond the walls, and after sitting and eating some pastry snacks for lunch on one of the small squares, we went in search of the paths that wind their way up into the hills.

One such path is accessed from outside the walls and, as far as we could tell, is free. From Maps.Me, we could see that it appears to wind its way up one of the gullies, switching back upon itself often, and probably getting quite steep higher up. The other path, accessed from within the city walls, leads to an old fortress and temple, and requires a payment of €15 each. All being well, we will be returning to Kotor next year, so either of these hiking routes would provide us with an additional, high-level view of the city… so, watch this space…

Once we’d meandered through the old town, we bought an ice cream just outside the walls and, because we weren’t quite ready to head back to the tender boat, we took a walk to a busy nearby park, from where speed boat trips were being launched, and enjoyed the veiw back down the fjord for a while, until we were sufficiently satiated with the location.

Once everyone was aboard, it took two hours to leave the fjord, and the Captain allowed access to the Helicopter Deck at the front of the ship so that everyine could enjoy the scenic cruising… which was magnificent.