Private Boat Tour in Kotor Bay: Perast, Blue Cave, and Mamula
Planning a trip to Kotor, Montenegro, without a day by the sea is like going to New York and not wanting to go up the Empire State Building. You may not feel like doing it, but you will be missing out.
Whether staying in Kotor, Tivat, Perast, or any other city along the bay, you will find plenty of boat tour options available at the port. To help you navigate the available options, we have put together this short review of our experience doing a boat tour in Kotor Bay.
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Boat tour itinerary in Kotor Bay
This was the itinerary of our boat tour through Kotor Bay:
- Departure from Kotor
- Perast (20 min stop)
- Our Lady of the Rocks (20 min stop)
- Yugoslavian Submarine Cave
- Mamula Fort
- Blue Cave (stop for swimming)
- Return to Kotor
There are several itinerary options available for boat tours in Kotor Bay, the hard part is identifying which one suits you best. Our recommendation is to Google a bit and understand which point of interest you would really like to visit. For us, that was the Blue Cave.
Even though the Adriatic Sea has multiple Blue Cave tours in many beach locations (and we have been to several of them before), this one sparked our interest because it allowed you to swim inside the blue cave. This is not possible in most tours, since they are usually small caves, with many boats coming in and out.
Once you select the one attraction that matters most to you, you can plan a tour around it.
Kotor Boat Tour prices: 2024 summer season
After a lot of research, here is the average price breakdown we found for Kotor Bay boat tours in 2024:
| Type of tour | Price range | Itinerary |
|---|---|---|
| 3 hours group tour | 30 – 50€ per person | Kotor-Blue Cave-Mamula-Submarine caves-Lady of the Rock-Kotor |
| 3 h 30 private tour | 240 – 500 € per boat | Kotor-Perast-Lady of the Rock-Submarine caves-Mamula-Blue Cave-Kotor |
| 1h 30 group tour | 15 – 20 € per person | Kotor-Lady of the Rock-Perast-Kotor |
Price is always one of the most important factors when deciding which boat tour to do.
For us, it all came down to comfort. We were in a group of 4 people, so we decided to go for the private boat tour that cost 240 € for the boat (in our case, 60 € per person). Paying only 20 € extra per person in comparison to the price of the group tour was very well worth it to make sure we had comfortable space on the boat. We were also able to adapt the itinerary as we wished, so staying a bit longer somewhere wasn’t a problem.
Best time of the year for a boat tour in Kotor Bay
Like most beach destinations, the best time of the year to visit Kotor Bay and do a boat tour is during the summer, when the weather is at its best. However, this is also the busiest season, so we strongly advise you to book the trip in advance as last-minute bookings can come at a higher price.
These are the different tourist seasons in Kotor, Montenegro:
- High season – June, July, August
- Shoulder season – May, September, October
- Low season – December, January, February
Personally, we recommend traveling during the shoulder seasons. We organized our trip to Montenegro in early September to make sure we would have great summer weather, while also avoiding the chaos of the high season. Everything was perfect. The weather was incredible, we got beautiful sunny days with absolutely clear skies. The water was also at a great temperature for swimming.
Traveling in the low season may be less popular but it does have its charms, such as affordable prices and empty tourist sites. On another hand, if you want to do a boat tour in Kotor Bay, you will have fewer options available. Some of the companies close down during the winter and don’t offer their regular tours. You will still find some companies open and working, even though it would probably be too cold to swim.
Check availability for the tour here:
Starting point of the Kotor Bay boat tour
Every city along the bay offers options for boat tours with similar itineraries. Most people choose to do the tour starting in the city they are using for accommodation. For us, that was Kotor.
Main reasons for doing the boat tour starting at Kotor:
- You get to see Kotor from the sea, which is beautiful
- Kotor is located at the end of the bay, so the tour passes through all the other cities
- Kotor is one of the most popular destinations in the bay, so there are more options for tours and, therefore, more availability and price variety
- The port of Kotor is very easily accessible even if you won’t be staying in the city
Is there a difference between the tour starting in Kotor and somewhere else?
The main difference if you decide to go on a boat tour that starts in a town located closer to the end of the bay, such as Herceg Novi, is that the Blue Cave tour will be shorter. You will have fewer stops along the way and see only a small part of Kotor Bay unless you choose a tour that specifically takes you to the cities located deeper on the Bay.
One of the biggest highlights of our trip was the stop in Perast and Our Lady of the Rocks. So, even if you choose to do the Kotor Bay boat tour with another starting point, we strongly recommend you include these stops on your itinerary.
Read here our guide of what to see in Perast.
Our experience: Review of the Kotor Bay boat tour
Now that you already know all the basics for scheduling your own Kotor Bay boat tour, let us tell you a bit more about how our experience was.
We booked the tour with Kotor Boat Tours. We did it all online and it was very fast and easy. The payment was done on-site, but the reservation was seamless.
We decided to do a private boat tour for comfort, as we explained above, but also because it was a celebration of my parent’s 30th anniversary. We started the boat tour at 9 am at the Kotor marina. The first stop was Perast, followed by Our Lady of the Rocks.
We were very much looking forward to this day on the boat to experiment a bit with our new drone. Once we got to the Lady of the Rocks, our guide was very kind to get us permission to fly since it is otherwise forbidden. Since we were on a private boat, we could take our time exploring and flying the drone to capture all we wanted. If you also have a drone or are passionate about photography, this location is heaven!
The next stop was the Yugoslavian submarine caves. Our boat captain told us stories of how they were used for hiding submarines during WWII, it was fascinating! (ps: you can also enter the submarine caves with kayak tours from Herceg Novi for instance).
Once we got close to the open sea, we could start seeing Fort Mamula in the center, aligned with Fort Oštro and Fort Arza, one on each side of the entry for the Bay. Fort Oštro is located on the right edge of the bay, in Croatia. It was used in the past as a female prison. Fort Mamula (pictured below) was used initially as a male prison but was turned into a concentration camp during WWII during Italian domination. It blew our mind they are now building a hotel & casino there.
The Blue Cave
The last stop was the Blue Cave. It was much larger than we expected, after visiting the Blue Cave in Hvar, for instance. The blue color of the water is a result of the way the light reflects through it, and the intensity of the blue color changes every day. When we went, it, unfortunately, wasn’t very shiny. It wasn’t until we jumped in the water that we truly saw the mesmerizing blue color.
The boat stayed there for around 30 min so we could swim. Make sure you bring a snorkel and goggles or ask the boat company to provide some. After the captain stopped at another cave called Black Cave, which is even larger in size but completely dark due to the lack of light. You can only go in swimming – and of course, we did.
The way back to Kotor was a lovely boat drive. The weather was amazing, our captain put some nice music on and we were just having a good time by the sun, admiring the amazing view of the little villages along the way. We definitely recommend Kotor Boat Tours, everything was perfect!
PS: if you are staying outside of Kotor, you can ask the driver to drop you off closer to your accommodation.
Ready to book your boat tour? Check the options!
Other popular boat itineraries in Kotor Bay
Besides the Blue Cave tour, there are many other popular boat itineraries in this area, such as:
- Boat tour to Dubrovnik and back
- Boat tour through Kotor Bay and Budva
- Boat tour through Kotor Bay stopping at different beaches
- Short boat tour to Perast and Our Lady of the Rocks
Popular questions about the Kotor boat tour
Yes, absolutely! The Bay of Kotor is already stunning from the shore, but seeing it from the water is even more magical. Only with a boat tour do you get to see all the villages along the shore and have some of the best views of the bay.
We have to be honest: the availability of boat tours during the winter is very reduced, but you will still be able to find some options. Since the winter in this part of Montenegro is relatively mild, it is still possible to enjoy the time outdoors.
Tip: for the winter time, we recommend choosing a slow boat tour such as sailing so you can enjoy the time outside more. It will probably be too cold to swim (unless you are very brave).
Check with your tour provider about what is included in the tour. The half-day boat tours usually don’t include food or drinks (maybe just water). To be prepared, we recommend bringing a bottle of water with you, along with:
Towels
Sunglasses
Sunscreen
Snorkel and goggles
Drone & camera
We chose to do the tour during the morning because the boat goes on the open sea to visit the Blue Cave, so there were better chances of having good weather for that part. During the afternoon, some companies have told us that the wind sometimes gets very strong, and this part of the ride may get quite bumpy. Our experience was great so we can definitely recommend the morning tour.
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Organizing your trip
To help you plan your trip to Montenegro, we have put together our favorite planning resources:
- Flights: Get affordable flights to Montenegro on Skyscanner.com.
- Travel insurance: Make sure you are protected during your trip. We use SafetyWing whenever we are traveling abroad.
- Renting a car: We always use Discover Cars to get the best car deals.
- Accommodation: Find the best hotels and apartments on Booking.com.
- Activities: Get fun ideas of what to do and buy unique activities with Get Your Guide.
- SIM Card: Stay connected during your trip with Airalo.
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