Montenegro in 7 Days on a Budget (Costs)
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7 Days Covers the Whole Country, Including a Real Durmitor Overnight
The old version of this page never left the Bay of Kotor for six of its seven days, invented a “Blue Cave” kayaking tour, and called Ostrog Monastery a bucket-list “must-see,” which isn’t how a working pilgrimage site should be framed. This rewrite covers the full country: Kotor’s bay, a Njeguši/Lovćen/Cetinje mountain day, Budva’s coast, a Lake Skadar wine day, a respectful Ostrog day, and a genuine two-day Durmitor overnight for Black Lake and the Tara Canyon. Shorter trip? The 5-day itinerary covers everything except Durmitor.
Book these before you go
- A Bay of Kotor boat trip for Day 1
- A rental car kept for all seven days; Ostrog and Durmitor both need one
- A room in Žabljak booked ahead for Days 6-7: check rates on Booking.com
Day 1: Kotor and Perast
Climb Kotor’s walls to San Giovanni/St John’s Fortress early; €15 (verify) for around 1,350 steps. The Bay of Kotor is a UNESCO World Heritage Site , and a Blue Line bus to Perast (around €1.50) sets up a boat to Our Lady of the Rocks.
| Day 1 cost (EUR, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Bed (Kotor Old Town) | 10 | 44 |
| Kotor wall climb (verify) | 15 | 15 |
| Perast bus + boat (verify) | 6.50 | 13 |
| Lunch + dinner | 18 | 35 |
| Day 1 total | 49.50 | 107 |
Day 2: The Njeguši Road, Lovćen, and Cetinje
Pick up the rental car for the Njeguši serpentine into Lovćen National Park . Njeguši’s smokehouse pršut and cheese cost a few euros. Continue to the Njegoš Mausoleum (fee unconfirmed, verify) and Cetinje for a cheap museum afternoon.
| Day 2 cost (EUR, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Rental car, per day (verify) | 11 | 41 |
| Fuel share | 5 | 10 |
| Njeguši tasting + Cetinje museums (verify) | 3 | 14 |
| Lunch + dinner | 18 | 35 |
| Day 2 total | 37 | 100 |
Day 3: Budva and a Sveti Stefan Viewpoint
Budva’s Old Town, rebuilt after the 1979 earthquake, is free to walk, and Mogren I beach beside it costs nothing. View Sveti Stefan from Queen’s Beach; the causeway itself is guests and diners only.
| Day 3 cost (EUR, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Museum of Budva (optional) | 0 | 3 |
| Free beach (Mogren I) | 0 | 0 |
| Lunch (ćevapi/burek) | 2 | 6 |
| Dinner | 12 | 25 |
| Day 3 total | 14 | 34 |
Day 4: Lake Skadar and Plantaže Wine
Base around Virpazar for a boat among the reed islands looking for Dalmatian pelicans, cheap when split across a group (verify locally). Stop at Plantaže, one of Europe’s largest single-piece vineyards, for Vranac and Krstač tastings.
| Day 4 cost (EUR, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Skadar boat trip, shared (verify) | 10 | 20 |
| Wine tasting at Plantaže (verify) | 5 | 12 |
| Lunch + dinner | 23 | 48 |
| Day 4 total | 38 | 80 |
Day 5: Ostrog Monastery, Respectfully
Ostrog is roughly 1h45-1h55 from the coast, and it’s a working Orthodox pilgrimage site, not a sightseeing stop. Cover shoulders and knees, women bring a headscarf, skip shorts, and stay quiet, especially past the pilgrims walking the final stretch barefoot. Entry is free; bring cash for the customary donations of money or practical goods, since there’s no card infrastructure. Food on-site is very limited, so pack water and a snack. Read up on the monastery’s history before you go; if you’d rather not self-drive, a low-key transport option to Ostrog gets you there without turning the visit into a hard sell.
| Day 5 cost (EUR, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel share for the drive (verify) | 8 | 15 |
| Entry | 0 | 0 |
| Donation (customary, cash only) | 2 | 10 |
| Snacks/water to bring in | 3 | 6 |
| Dinner back on the coast | 12 | 25 |
| Day 5 total | 25 | 56 |
Day 6: Into Durmitor
Drive to Žabljak, the highest town in the Balkans at 1,456 m and base for Durmitor National Park , roughly 2h50 from Kotor. Spend the afternoon on the easy ~1.5 hour circuit around Black Lake, then settle into a budget hotel or sobe for the night; mains around town run €2-15.
| Day 6 cost (EUR, per person, lodging separate) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Rental car day + fuel | 16 | 51 |
| Bed in Žabljak (sobe/hotel, verify) | 15 | 40 |
| Black Lake circuit | 0 | 0 |
| Lunch on the road | 6 | 15 |
| Dinner in Žabljak | 6 | 15 |
| Day 6 total | 43 | 121 |
Day 7: Tara Canyon and Departure
The Tara River Canyon, a separate UNESCO designation from Kotor’s, reaches roughly 1,333 m deep, often cited as the deepest in continental Europe (world rankings are disputed). The Đurđevića Tara Bridge, about 172 m above the river, is a free viewpoint; rafting the Tara, roughly €40-50 for a half-day (verify), is the signature activity if you have time before driving to the coast or Podgorica for departure. Budget the same 2h50-plus for the drive back that you spent coming in.
| Day 7 cost (EUR, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Rental car final day + fuel | 16 | 51 |
| Tara Bridge viewpoint | 0 | 0 |
| Rafting (optional, verify) | 0 | 50 |
| Lunch | 8 | 18 |
| Day 7 total | 24 | 119 |
Getting Around on This 7-Day Plan
Keep the rental car for all seven days; Ostrog and Durmitor both lack a direct bus route from the coast that works on this schedule. Everything else here is doable by bus alone if you swap the car for a shorter trip.
If you only remember one thing: don’t rush Ostrog and Durmitor into the same one or two days. Ostrog pairs with the coast, Durmitor needs its own overnight, and mixing them turns both into a bad day.