Lake Skadar, Podgorica, Ostrog Monastery & Dobra Voda (Montenegro)

Between the storm, the rain, and the travel restrictions, we haven’t visited almost anything since New Year. So when JB sees the sun peeking out, we quickly pack a small bag each and head off on a road trip.

Part 1: Travel Journal
Part 2: Practical Tips

Part 1: Travel Journal

Day 1

With travel restrictions between regions lifted as of January 12, we can now enjoy an extended weekend exploring Montenegro instead of going around in circles in Kotor like before. The strict restrictions were a way to contain the spread of the virus during Catholic Christmas, New Year, and then Orthodox Christmas. We can also enjoy hotel saunas and spas again.

Our first stop is at the only Thai restaurant in the country, in Budva (Taste of Asia). A few weeks ago, they were out of ingredients due to Brexit, but today, the tom yum soup is back, it burns your tongue more than necessary, but it feels good to eat something other than the simple dishes we’ve been cooking for weeks.

Second stop, but it’s already getting dark: Lake Skadar (or Skadarsko), located between Albania and Montenegro. The white line marks the border between the two countries. It seems to stretch as far as the eye can see, but it’s still small compared to the lake Titicaca we really loved. However, at 40 km long and 20 km wide, it’s the largest lake in the Balkans. The Montenegrin side seems more interesting because there’s not only the lake, but also meanders, rivers… (whereas on the Albanian side, there’s only the lake).

Unlike the Bay of Kotor, there’s no road along the water’s edge, so we don’t get to enjoy it much. We simply cross the bridge near Virpazar, but cars speed by at 80 km/h, so we can only pull over to the side, before and after the bridge to take a look. Just after the bridge, there’s a restaurant (currently closed) with a terrace overlooking the lake; it must be magnificent in summer. In the middle of the bridge, there’s an old fort (now inaccessible).

We look longingly at the snowy peaks in Albania. On the other side (in Albania), there seems to be a town facing the lake, at the foot of the mountains (likely Shkodër).

To get a great view of the lake, we’d need to go higher or take a boat. We’re a bit disappointed, but at the same time, having no buildings around the lake helps preserve the ecosystem better. And we’re in a National Park after all; it’s the perfect spot to observe several bird species.

On the other side of the road (sorry for the ugly photo, but we can’t risk our lives for a photo), a dream landscape unfolds before us, with an incredible mountain range in different shades of blue. It looks like the Blue Mountains in Australia, unknown version 😀 We’ll head there tomorrow.

Dobra Voda

Tonight, we’ve booked a night at the hotel Kalamper (Booking link), in Dobra Voda, a tiny town by the Adriatic Sea. This hotel has a highly rated restaurant and a full spa (sauna, hammam, jacuzzi, heated pool, Himalayan salt room…). While we enjoy the pool, jacuzzi, and sauna, we’re a bit wary of trying the hammam, which seems very Covid-friendly. No one wears masks, and no one cleans up after. The number of Covid cases remains low in Montenegro but is still high relative to the small population.

The restaurant is great, even though we’re surprised to see so many people. It’s been ages since we’ve seen this many people per square meter! Apparently, everyone is on full board except us. This isn’t the first hotel offering this system, which seems very popular with Russian clientele. The menu is so extensive that we’re thrilled to see not just one but three dishes that appeal to us. It’s a change from the restaurants in our little countryside 😀 We sadly realize that while our Airbnb is great, with an amazing view… it’s still in a tourist area with no tourists, which is dead. The few open restaurants remain expensive. While we were considering extending our stay, we’ll probably look for another place to satisfy our stomachs!

Here’s the view from our balcony

And the beach in Dobra Voda. As you can see, fine sand isn’t available here; whether in Croatia or Montenegro, all the beaches we’ve seen have some rocks/gravel. But the water is crystal clear everywhere!

Day 2

Viewpoints on the lake

The next day, we go higher up to better admire Lake Skadar. The sun is shining, and we’ll have beautiful photos to show you. Look at the map: yesterday we were on the bridge (yellow dot), and today we’ll explore the points with the little heart. It goes up each time, and barely comes down.

Here’s the first one viewpoint, reached without too much difficulty. Even though the road is full of hairpin turns, since we changed cars to a more powerful Skoda, everything has become easier. It’s still hard to avoid oncoming cars due to the narrow road, but the road isn’t very busy.

The trees all have their feet in the water, which is normal. Huge floodplains can be seen from the viewpoints; it’s an extraordinary landscape, even more beautiful under the sun.

Right now, these floodplains are a bit brown, but in summer, there’s a huge carpet of aquatic plants resembling water lilies; it must be even prettier.

We drive along an even narrower road to the next viewpoint. On the left, look at the photo below, despite the overhanging plants, it’s a sheer drop ! The trees are tall and overhang the road, but you mustn’t get confused and back up more than necessary. There are a few small bridges that are too narrow and too high for those who are afraid of heights, so look straight ahead!

Luckily, JB is now used to Montenegro’s mountain roads, and these are paved, so we reach this second viewpoint without any problem. We see a car drive by, and a few seconds later, we hear an animal approaching… Phew, it’s just a dog running behind the car. Poor thing, I don’t know how it’ll make it back up with that incline. From here, we can see the snowy peaks even better; it’s just so beautiful! It always reminds me of the snowy peaks seen from the Island of the Sun, Isla del Sol on Lake Titicaca.

We happen to pass by a tiny café, and seeing the clean tables lined up in front of a stunning view, we stop dead in our tracks and ask anxiously if our €50 bill will be accepted here. Luckily, the lady has change and serves us two fresh homemade pomegranate juices (there are plenty of pomegranate trees around; it must be local and organic) and pastries. All that for €6.

Note: credit cards are accepted everywhere, but still bring small bills. Withdrawing from an ATM is expensive (€3 to €5 in fees per withdrawal) even though they use the euro like us.

Let me show you a photo that sums up the good life we’re living. After seeing this photo, my friend Huong was particularly inspired and painted a watercolor. I love it so much! Her shades are incredible. The landscape looks like a painting, but the painting comes to life too.

Here’s the café menu. Here are the Google Maps coordinates. The owner doesn’t speak a word of English, but that’s no problem.

I don’t know if you can clearly see the two volcano-shaped peaks (like a smaller Ometepe), but there seems to be a path leading up to them; we can see a village at the foot of the “volcano.”

We pass by Rijeka Crnojevica, a small picturesque village with its old stone bridge. It’s absolute peace and quiet without the tourists. You should be able to find something to eat here too.

We climb higher, and as you can see, we appreciate that they’ve placed rocks at the edge of the cliff; at least we have a semblance of safety.

This view is quite similar to the one we saw in France. The meanders are certainly very similar, but this one, with the little peaks in the background, is particularly picturesque. I’ve seen even more beautiful photos online, taken in summer, with the carpet of aquatic plants (absent in winter).

I love it so much! <3 <3 <3

If you’re up for it, you can hike down to Karuc, a small village at the foot of the mountain, but we need to get to Podgorica for a little shopping spree.

I’ll never get tired of these snowy peaks <3

Podgorica

The capital isn’t anything special; we have a nice view of the snowy peaks, but everything is concrete, stress, and pollution. We feel like we’re coming out of our countryside and discovering the capital 😀 We’re no longer used to so much traffic or seeing so many people. But with the freezing cold arriving and my moisturizer about to give up the ghost in a few days, I need new creams, and that’s how we ended up at Delta City for a shopping trip. It’s so cheap that I bought more than necessary to try out. I told you about the cosmetics to buy in Montenegro here.

But I really want to show you an open cinema! A little tear of emotion, please. It feels like we’re back in the old world, where everything was open. The only difference is that people wear masks. They wear them poorly, shake hands, but they still wear them. There’s even a French film with Omar Sy showing.

We spend the night in Podgorica, in an apartment-hotel (€60, Booking link), so nice that we could have considered staying a month. There’s a bedroom, a living room, an office, breakfast served in the room, and a pool and sauna in the basement. They offer up to -50% off for long stays. The restaurant right next to the hotel (Pizza Bar) is so cheap (€3-€4 per dish) that we realize we’ve been paying exorbitant prices in our little touristy countryside, and for our next Airbnb, it’s better to have a less beautiful view but more access to restaurants because we’re tired of cooking.

Day 3

On my weather app, I get a wind alert (> 45km/h) and a snow risk (down to -7°C). Ugh, despite the nice sunshine, something has to ruin it. Do we take the risk? Last time we ignored an alert, we ended up with a half-broken window like in Wuthering Heights. Since we’re stubborn, and in the trunk we have snow chains, we decide to go on the adventure anyway, to visit Ostrog Monastery. A place warned about by tourists for its winding, narrow road up the mountain.

If I love road trips by car, it’s because they keep me awake and let me enjoy the view. If I had to take a bus, I’d have slept and missed everything.

Indeed, we go up and up, but there’s no viewpoint satisfying [view] to observe this huge valley. JB notices the dried-leaf plants seen around Orthodox Christmas time. Everyone was buying huge branches and putting a small branch in front of their car. So JB also wanted to follow the trend by putting a small branch in front of ours. Which blew away after 3 minutes ahahha. You have to be very careful because there are frequent rockfalls and they don’t put up protective nets. To be extra safe, drive right in the middle of the road.

Ostrog Monastery

This monastery is worth the effort, because after a long mountain road, you have to keep climbing a road full of hairpin bends, with just enough room for 2 cars and 20cm to spare. We’re surprised to see so many cars; it’s Saturday, must be a mass?

I’d already seen photos of this monastery, but it’s only when you get there that you realize how much it’s embedded in the mountain. If it weren’t for Covid, we’d have visited a similar place in China heheh. This monastery is, according to some, the most beautiful in the Balkans and also the most visited.

As usual, on Google Maps, jaded French tourists advise against “going out of your way for such a bland place”. Whaaaaaat????

There aren’t many tourists, but the parking lot at the top is almost full. I think in summer, it’s better to park at the bottom and walk, or choose the middle parking lot. Look closely at the main gate. People always back out instead of driving out normally.

The golden mosaics sparkle in the sun. We come across a few tourists (you can spot them quickly because they’re the only ones taking photos of themselves), and quite a few worshippers.

Cetinje

We hit the road again to head back home near the Bay of Kotor. We make a quick stop in Cetinje, which is the old capital of Montenegro. You still find beautiful houses, villas, palaces, and a huge monastery. We didn’t visit anything because everything was closed, but it could be a nice stop, after taking the serpentine road from Kotor (see our article), before heading to Podgorica.

Viewpoint over Budva

On the way back, we stop, speechless, at this stunning viewpoint over Budva. This must be the perfect spot to watch the sunset. If our next accommodation is near Budva, we’ll come here for sunset, even if it means driving back to Budva and taking the mountain road in the dark—but we’re no strangers to mountain roads now.

Budva’s old town is on the right, where there’s a piece of land jutting out.

Well, in the end, since we did a lot of mountain driving instead of staying by the sea, the weather didn’t bother us that much. It snowed a tiny bit when we were at the monastery, but it wasn’t a problem for driving. However, it was so cold that even just taking a photo, my hands were frozen right after. Checking the temperatures, we realized it was -2°C then -4°C. Brrrrhhh… At night, it drops to -7°C. Luckily our Airbnb is relatively new, not well insulated but there are shutters that partially protect us from the cold. JB, who feels the cold less than I do, had to bring out his fleece and hasn’t taken it off since. This is our first winter in Europe in 5 years! Previous years we were in Asia or South America.

The rest of our Montenegro adventure is here

Part 2: Practical Tips

Budget

• Hotel Kalamper (breakfast, spa access, sea view): 73€ for a double room, Booking link
• Perla Residence Hotel in Podgorica: 60€ for a double room, Booking link
• Café with a view: 6€ for two. Cash only
• Ostrog Monastery: free entry, free parking
• between Dobra Voda & Podgorica, you have to go through a toll tunnel: 2.5€/passage, credit card accepted

For more info on Montenegro, check out our other articles. All the places mentioned above have been added to our custom Google Maps here

Planning a trip to Montenegro? Our partner Get Your Guide offers entry tickets and guided tours with French-speaking guides at very reasonable rates. Click here to see what they offer and book online.