Sutomore

By train

Sutomore station is on the Bar-Belgrade line, one stop before Bar. Trains from Podgorica take about 45 minutes and from Bar 14 minutes; several run each way every day, among them the international train to and from Belgrade. One-way fares from Podgorica are €2.60 in second class and €3.90 in first, from Bar €1.20 and €1.80. Podgorica Airport has its own halt, Aerodrom, on the same line, so the train is also the cheapest airport link. The timetable is at zpcg.me and changes once a year in mid-December; tickets are also sold online. Station telephone: +382 30 301 692. The Bar-Belgrade train guide covers the whole route.

By road, bus and parking

The road from Podgorica runs through the Sozina tunnel, opened on 13 July 2005 between the junctions for Virpazar and Sutomore. Cars pay a €2.50 toll, and vehicles over 4.7 m high may not use the tunnel; the old road over the Sutorman pass is the toll-free alternative. Times below are without traffic.

Street parking in the centre is zone I of Parking servis Bar: Sutomorska ulica and Save Kovačevića between Kapetana Ivana Zankovića and Vuka Karadžića. It costs €0.50 per started hour, with no time limit; a ticket issued by a controller costs €2.80 an hour, or €10 for the day, payable within 8 days.

There is no town bus and no published bus station. Buses to Bar, Budva and Podgorica are the intercity carriers' runs along the coast road, listed on busticket4.me; the buses guide explains how to find them.

Beaches

Sutomore beach is 1,200 m of sand along the whole town front, 56,000 m² in all, lined with restaurants, cafés and shops; its bathing area Centar has held the Blue Flag, and local tradition credits the sand with easing rheumatic complaints. The beach page covers the free half of every bathing area, lifeguards and the naturist coves on the Ratac cape. The bathing season runs from May to October.

• Maljevik, in a cove near Crni rt north of the town: 330 m, mostly pebble, partly shaded, with free entry and parking. The remains of a temple of the 2nd-4th century lie at about 2 m in its bay, visible from the surface in clear water (diving off Bar).
• Čanj and Kraljičina plaža, further north.
• Crvena plaža (Red Beach), 50 m of red sand in a cove towards Bar, and Žukotrlica, 1,000 m of pebble at Šušanj, the Bar suburb on the Sutomore side.
• Without pages of their own: Štrbine, 100 m of pebble with a stretch of mud described as therapeutic, and Zlatna obala, 170 m of sand reached from land through a hotel complex.

All the coast's beaches are on the beaches page.

Haj-Nehaj, Ratac and the old churches

The Haj-Nehaj fortress stands on a hill above the town at about 225 m. Venice built it to defend the coast, and it is first mentioned in 1542. Inside the walls are the ruins of St Demetrius, a small stone church of the late 13th or early 14th century, once painted inside and destroyed in the 1979 earthquake. The fortress is an open ruin with no ticket or opening hours, and parking at the foot is free; the marked walk from Sutomore is 2.7 km and graded easy. More forts are on the fortresses page.

On the Ratac cape, between Sutomore and Bar, are the ruins of the Benedictine abbey of the Virgin: three churches, buildings, walls and towers. Founded between the 9th and 11th centuries and first dedicated to St Michael, it is named in a royal charter of 1319, and an inscription of 1347 records one of its abbots. Venice held it from 1443, the Ottomans burned and demolished it in 1571, and Second World War gun positions and bunkers damaged it further. No official information on access to the ruins is published.

About 1 km from the sea, west of the town, the 14th-century church of St Thecla (Sveta Tekla) has two altars, an Orthodox one in the apse and a Catholic one along the south wall, used by priests of both rites, with a shared cemetery in front. St Rok in Spič, also 14th-century and now a ruin, had a single altar that served Orthodox and Catholic believers. Other churches of the region are on the churches and monasteries page.

Inland, on the road over Rumija, the Sutorman viewpoint looks over the lake and the mountains, and the Stories by the Water (Top Trail 5) cycling route crosses the Sutorman pass at 790 m.

History in brief

The older name of the area is Spič, recorded as early as 1303; the abbey on Ratac and the Venetian fort on Nehaj are its medieval landmarks. The Bar-Belgrade railway, which gives Sutomore its station, was built between 1966 and 1979, and the Sozina tunnel opened in 2005. The 2011 census counted 1,992 residents in 657 households, and 2,297 dwellings, a sign of how much of the town is holiday housing; in 2023 the count was 1,875, which makes Sutomore one of the largest settlements in Bar municipality outside the town of Bar.

Events

• May and September: Motorijada u Sutomoru, a gathering of motorcyclists from Montenegro and the former Yugoslav countries.
• August: Spičansko veče (Night of Spič), with folklore, stands of traditional dishes and a cultural and entertainment programme. Šušanj holds Veče Šušanja in the same month, and Čanj holds Noć Čanja (July-August).

None has a fixed date; see also Montenegro in August.

Practical information

• Tourist information: TIB Sutomore, open in season, Monday-Saturday 08:00-20:00, Sunday 08:00-16:00; +382 69 091 346, tib.sutomore1@bar.travel.
• Health: public health post (Ambulanta Sutomore), Vuka Karadžića bb, +382 30 373 482; A3 Medical, a private hospital at Haj-Nehaj bb, daily 07:00-22:00, +382 69 188 188. The general hospital is at Stari Bar, +382 30 342 333 (hospitals).
• Pharmacies: Montefarm Apoteka Sutomore, Obala Iva Novakovića, +382 67 148 444, and a BENU pharmacy on the same street (pharmacies).
• Post office: Vuka Karadžića bb, 85355, Monday-Saturday 08:00-14:30, +382 30 374 312.
• Green market: daily 07:00-15:00, also on Sundays and holidays, closed on 1 January (shopping).
• Cash: ATMs along Obala Iva Novakovića, the promenade and Sutomorska ulica.
• Where to stay: hotels, garni hotels, a pension, villas and private houses, listed by the Bar tourist organisation.

When to go

The bathing season runs from May to October, when the sea water is tested, and the tourist information bureau opens only in season. August is the busiest month across Montenegro and the month of the Night of Spič; the motorcyclists come in May and September. Out of season the train still runs, and the fortress and churches are open ruins at any time of year.

Nearby

• Bar, 13.5 km: the port, Topolica beach and the heritage museum in King Nikola's Palace; Stari Bar, the old town, is 11.9 km.
• Virpazar and Skadar Lake, 15.5 km through the tunnel or over Sutorman, with the national park's boats and visitor centre.
• Petrovac, 13.5 km, and Budva, 30.5 km, up the coast; Sutomore is a stop on the day trips from Budva.
• The Montenegrin coast page covers the whole shore.

Questions

How do I get from Podgorica to Sutomore by train?

Sutomore is the stop before Bar on the Bar-Belgrade line, about 45 minutes from Podgorica. A one-way ticket costs €2.60 in second class and €3.90 in first; the timetable is at zpcg.me.

How far is Sutomore from Budva, Ulcinj and Petrovac?

By road, without traffic: Petrovac 13.5 km (21 minutes), Budva 30.5 km (47 minutes) and Ulcinj 35 km (50 minutes); Bar is 13.5 km away (22 minutes).

Is there a bus from Sutomore to Budva or Bar?

No local line: the intercity carriers along the coast road stop in Sutomore, and their departures are listed on busticket4.me.

Where can I park in Sutomore and how much is it?

In zone I of Parking servis Bar, on Sutomorska ulica and the Save Kovačevića section: €0.50 per started hour, no time limit.

How do I get up to Haj-Nehaj?

On foot: the marked walk from Sutomore is 2.7 km and graded easy, with free parking at the foot of the hill. The fortress is an open ruin with no ticket.

Is Sutomore beach sandy?

Yes: 1,200 m of sand along the whole town, with details on the beach page.

How many people live in Sutomore?

1,875 at the 2023 census; the 2011 census counted 1,992.