Top 6 Places & Restaurants to Check Out in Kotor

Montenegro is about a 2-hour bus ride from Dubrovnik, including the border crossing. When you’re surrounded by mountains and bay, you’ve arrived in Old Town Kotor. We spent the majority of the time just eating, wine tasting, and shopping in Old Town. Here are my top things to do and places to eat:

6. BBQ Tanjga (Meat Lover)

If you’re a vegetarian, this restaurant isn’t for you. Tanjga is a butcher shop where you can pick what you want to barbecue. We chose a mixed meat plate to share. I think we only ate a little more than 50% of it because the portion size was huge. The chef asked us if we didn’t like it but this was too much food for two. Come here hungry and be prepared to eat!

Rating: 7.5/10.0

What Have I Learned: We heard this place gets crowded so we arrive a few minutes before it opens. We had to wait a bit for the grill to heat up but people starting strolling in right when we placed our order. There is seating outdoor in the back.

Cost: I think our meat plate costs around 15 to 20 Euros (18 to 24 Euros). We would never be able to get this much food in NYC for this price.

Hours: Mon to Sun:11 AM to 10 PM

5. Old Winery Wine Bar

We stopped here twice before dinner. They have different wine tasting options from different regions. It’s a great place to just grab a glass of wine with a meat/cheese platter. They do have food if you want to sit down for a meal.

Rating: 7.8/10.0

What Have I Learned: My husband loved one of the wines we had and we brought a full bottle home. If you love one of the wines you tried, you can buy a bottle from them.

Cost: I can’t remember how much the wine tasting was but I read online that it was about 16 Euros (19 Euros) back in 2017 so prices might have increased since then.

Hours: Mon to Sun: 8 AM to 1 AM

4. Perast/Our Lady of the Rocks

We decided to skip the speedboat and take a 15-minute taxi ride from Kotor to Perast. It’s a quick private boat ride from Perast to Our Lady of the Rocks. The island’s legend is that two fishermen came across an icon of the Virgin Mary and her child in the 1400s. The sailors would lay a rock every time they sailed past that same spot to create the island the church sits on now. We walked around Perast for 30 minutes taking in the view all around us.

Rating: 7.8/10.0

What Have I Learned: We didn’t see any taxi going back to Kotor. We ended up finding a bus that only cost 1 Euro (1.20 USD) and takes about 25 minutes to get back to Kotor.

Cost: 5 Euros (6 USD) if you take a boat from Perast to Our Lady of the Rocks. A 2-hour speedboat trip from Kotor cost 20 Euros (23.70 USD).

3. Cesarica (Squid/Seafood Lovers)

We chose this restaurant as our first meal in Kotor. The restaurant was empty when we arrived and I was worried that it wasn’t as good as the reviews I read on Tripadvisor. We ordered squid stuffed in the traditional way (more squid inside) and black risotto with cuttlefish. One word… WOW! The flavors on the squid were exceptional. Black risotto is a popular Croatian dish that is made using squid ink. Try both dishes if you’re a squid/cuttlefish fan.

Rating: 8.0/10.0

What Have I Learned: Come here for dinner when it’s not as busy. It almost felt like we had private chefs cooking for us and one other table.

Cost: 10 to 14 Euros per dish (12 USD to 16.50 USD)

Hour: Sun to Thurs: 9 AM to 11 PM, Fri to Sat: 9 AM to 1 AM

2. Konoba Scala Santa (More Seafood)

This restaurant is located in an open square with other restaurants nearby. If you’re looking a restaurant with a live musician, this restaurant is the place to be. There was a musician in the middle of the square playing for the restaurants around him. The black risotto at this restaurant was really good! Also, don’t skip out on the fish soup.

Rating: 8.2/10.0

What Have I Learned: It gets really busy during lunch but the wait wasn’t long at all. It’s worth the wait.

Cost: 10 to 16 Euros per dish (12 USD to 19 USD)

Hours: Mon to Sun: 9 AM to 11 PM

1. City Walls/Kotor Fortress

Be ready to climb 1,350 steps to the Kotor Fortress at the top of the city walls. As you start climbing, you’ll notice the breathtaking views of both the Old Town and the Bay of Kotor from a bird’s eye view. It’s about 90 minutes to 2 hours for the full climb up and down. However, it took us about 3 hours because I stopped a lot to take pictures.

Rating: 8.5/10.0

What Have I Learned: If you want to avoid paying the entrance fee, try to get there at 7-7:30 AM or before. We arrived right before 8 AM, and the man collecting the entrance fee was already there.

Cost: 8 Euros (9.50 USD) if you enter between 8 AM to 8 PM

Hours: Open 24 hours

Kotor’s Old Town is busy during the afternoon because of all the cruises and tours. It’s less busy during the early morning and late evening. This part of our honeymoon was the relaxing part of the trip. The food and the view were the highlight of Kotor.

FAQ

How many days do you need in Kotor? 2 Days

What is your main transportation in Kotor? Walking

How long did it take to get to Kotor? A 2-hour bus ride from Dubrovnik, including the border crossing

Where did you stay? We rented an Airbnb in Muo which is a 5-minutes taxi ride away from Old Town. The apartment was located in a new development area so there was some construction when we went. The Airbnb had a nice pool with views of the Bay of Kotor.

Is Kotor expensive? $$ I didn’t think it was expensive. We probably paid 30 Euros (36 USD for a seafood dinner for two).

When did you go to Kotor? October 2019. The weather was great during this time of the year. It was a bit cooler during the morning and night so I needed a cardigan.

If you want more information about Kotor, feel free to reach out to me. Here’s the Kotor Google Map I created. Let me know what your favorite things to do/eat in Kotor.