Boat tours in Montenegro

Where the boats go

From Kotor the speed-boat tours call at the Blue Cave, Mamula, the submarine tunnels, Our Lady of the Rocks and Perast. Slower boats keep to the bay's speed limits, and they are the ones on which dolphins are sometimes seen feeding. From Bar, boats cruise the municipality's 46 km of coast, and taxi boats run to beaches reached only by sea, such as Kraljičina plaža and the beach behind Volujica. Budva has daily boat trips in summer run by many agencies, and a tourist boat sails the coast between Bar and Budva. Wherever they start, the trips show the same things: caves, beaches, islands and fortresses, with a stop to swim.

The Bay of Kotor loop

The Kotor area has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1979 as the Natural and Culturo-Historical Region of Kotor. The bay is a submerged river canyon, often mistaken for a fjord. The stops on the speed-boat loop:

Several families of bottlenose dolphins feed in the bay. Educational boat tours with a hydrophone go out to listen for them, and the guidance for any boat is to slow to about 4 knots near dolphins and keep at least 100 m away. A film footnote: scenes of Papillon were shot on the bay's islands.

The Blue Cave

The Blue Cave (Plava špilja) is a sea cave on the outer side of the Luštica peninsula, in Herceg Novi municipality, reached only from the sea. Since 21 May 2026 a rulebook on navigation safety allows only craft without a motor into the cave: kayaks, sandolinas and SUP boards go in, and motor boats, tour boats included, stay more than 20 m from the entrance. The rule governs craft, not swimmers; whether a swim from the boat outside that line is part of your tour depends on the operator and the sea, so ask when booking. The cave is also a stand-up paddleboard day-tour destination, and paddle craft are the one kind still allowed inside. It covers about 300 m² and has two openings, and the blue light is strongest around noon, which is when the tours time their stop. The cave is in the Register of Speleological Objects; after formations were damaged in summer 2025, the municipality asked for a protection study in November 2025. Do not touch the formations. The Blue Cave page has the full rule and the kayak and SUP options.

Skadar Lake

Licensed operators sail from Vranjina, Virpazar, Rijeka Crnojevića and Plavnica. The cruises take in islands, marshy shores and historic sites, with a swim at a hidden beach; from Virpazar some are guided and some use the traditional wooden boats, the čunovi. The national park day ticket, EUR 5 per person, applies on the lake and includes the visitor centres at Vranjina and Virpazar; the boat is paid to the operator, not with the ticket. The lake has three equipped beaches with restaurants: Pješačac, Pelinovo and Murići.

Typical stops: the village of Karuč, with the winter house of Petar I Petrović Njegoš; Rijeka Crnojevića and the Žabljak Crnojevića fortress; a swim near the islands of Lesendro or Dodoši; the Kom monastery; and the beach at Murići, with swimming among the water lilies.

For birds, the park runs its own birdwatching tours with a day's notice, from a boat or from the Stanaj tower, into the Pančevo oko ornithological reserve, with transport and a guide on the park's price list. The lake has been a national park since 1983 and a Ramsar site since 1995, and it is an Important Bird Area with about 280 species, the Dalmatian pelican among them. Most species are seen from April to June, the big flocks in winter. Kayaking on Skadar Lake has its own page.

Piva lake

Nature Park Piva runs a cruise on Pivsko jezero, the reservoir behind the Piva dam, between steep cliffs over emerald water; a golden eagle's nest or chamois may be seen from the boat, and the water is pleasant for swimming in summer. The Piva river page has the canyon and the dam.

Islands you can reach by boat

• Our Lady of the Rocks, off Perast: an artificial islet built by sinking stones and old ships around a reef. The church holds a museum of Perast ships and objects, among them an embroidery worked partly with the embroiderer's own hair. The islet has been put forward for UNESCO inscription in its own right, for its authenticity, rarity and preservation. Every 22 July the Fašinada, a boat procession from Perast, carries stones out to it. Small boats shuttle from the Perast waterfront whenever there are passengers.
• St George (Sveti Đorđe), next to it: a natural island with a 12th-century church and the old Perast graveyard; legend links it to Böcklin's painting Island of the Dead. Expect to see it from the water.
• Mamula: the Austro-Hungarian island fort at the mouth of the bay, seen from the boat on the Kotor tours; landing is covered on the Mamula page.
• Sveti Nikola, off Budva: a seasonal pier at its western end with an 80 m landing quay.
• Skadar Lake islands with monasteries and the Lesendro fortress are part of the park-licensed cruises.

The Kamenari-Lepetane ferry

Not a tour but a scheduled car ferry across the Verige strait, the narrowest point of the bay. In the summer timetable it runs every 15 to 20 minutes day and night, and foot passengers and bicycles cross free. The ferry page has the timetable in force and the price per vehicle.

Season and rules

The season is spring and summer; the swimming stops make summer the main one, and Budva's daily trips run in summer. On the bay, keep to the speed limits and give dolphins 4 knots and 100 m. In the Blue Cave only craft without a motor may enter. On Skadar Lake the EUR 5 park ticket is due on top of the boat. Prices and durations are set by each operator, so ask for both and for what the swim stop and transfers include.