BEST THINGS TO DO IN KOTOR MONTENEGRO WITH KIDS

A FAMILY GUIDE TO KOTOR, MONTENEGRO

We recently visited the beautiful country of Montenegro for the first time as a family. One of our first stops was in the beautiful old town of Kotor. There is so much culture and history here and a lovely place to visit. We had such a great time there so here is our guide on the best things to do in Kotor Montenegro with kids.

For reference, my boys were aged 4 and 14 months at the time of our visit which was in April 2024.

OR READ ABOUT OTHER PLACE IN MONTENEGRO WE VISITED:

TIVAT – BUDVA – LAKE SKADAR – NIKSIC – TARA CANYON – DURMITOR NATIONAL PARK – ZABLJAK

HOW LONG TO SPEND IN KOROR MONTENEGRO WITH KIDS

We stayed in Tivat and visited Kotor as a day trip. Kotor makes a Family day trip in Montenegro, as is a small town, one day is long enough to explore.

We chose to stay for 3 (although 4/5 would have been better) nights in Tivat as it was closer to the airport, cutting down travel time on our first day. Limiting travel time is a win when travelling with kids. Personally, I loved Tivat and am glad we stayed there. However, you could choose Kotor as your base and take day trips to other places.

TIPS FOR VISITING KOTOR

ARRIVE EARLY

As I mentioned, we stayed in Tivat and took a day trip to Kotor. Even though it’s only a short drive, traffic gets very busy. Also, in the afternoons cruise ships arrive bringing lots of crowds. One of the best tips for families in Kotor is to get out early. The streets were quiet and my son could run about freely!

If you’re staying in Kotor, I would still recommend getting out early!

PARKING

We parked in the car park called Paid Parking Kotor CQG9+MXG, E80, Kotor. It cost €0.80 per hour and was a great location. I believe the price goes up in peak season.

Tip: I’m a city mum and love to use public transport however, in Montenegro, this isn’t really an option. You will need to take taxis or ideally, hire a car. We use RentalCars.com to compare the best prices. In Montenegro, we ended up hiring through Enterprize and had no issues!

THE CITY WALLS

One of the most popular things to do in Kotor is walk the city walls however, there are about 1300 stairs involved so we decided against this. It was very warm and our baby is quite clingy to me so I didn’t fancy carrying him that far. We did a similar activity in Budva which was a bit easier for families with little kids.

If you plan to walk the city walls, go prepared with good shoes, water and plenty of snacks. Also, leave your pushchair in your car/ accommodation!

THE BEST THINGS TO DO IN KOTOR WITH KIDS

WANDER THE STREETS OF THE OLD TOWN

The old town of Kotor is beautiful. It isn’t a huge area so you can easily explore on foot. Get lost in the maze of cute little streets. As I mentioned, we arrived early, April also isn’t peak tourist season so it wasn’t too busy. There are no cars in the old town so our 4-year-old could run around freely which he loved.

STOP FOR BREAKFAST

At 9 am, a lot of places hadn’t opened yet so we didn’t have many options but we managed to find a good one. We grabbed a quick coffee and pastry at “Patisserie by Wine House” which happens to be one of the oldest buildings in the old town.

STROKE FERREL CATS

I’d seen this on other blog posts and personally, (unpopular opinion) I can’t think of much worse. My kids, on the other hand, loved them! Quite possibly, this is the best thing to do in Kotor’s old town with kids. The whole town is one big cat home and they wanted to find them wherever we went. Even I am going to admit, this little guy is very cute!

While the cats are wild, they do seem to be looked after by the locals. However, take hand sanitiser and be sure to wash your hands before eating!

PICK FRUIT AT THE FARMER’S MARKET

Located just outside the city walls is the farmer’s market. We picked out fruit for lunch, it wasn’t the cheapest, costing €5.50 for two plums and two nectarines but they were good and it’s nice to support local sellers. Kids will also enjoy picking out their own fruit.

PLAYGROUND FUN

We love to find a playground as it’s a great, free activity to let little kids burn some energy.

Park Slobode is located next to the car park I previously mentioned. It has a cute playground overlooking the bay. We ate an early picnic lunch here, letting the boys burn some energy before our afternoon boat trip at noon.

TAKE A BOAT TOUR

This boat tour was our favourite, family-friendly activity in Kotor. Going on a boat was my 4-year-old top priority. So we booked an afternoon boat tour from Kotor, which took you to see blue caves, an old submarine tunnel, and Our Lady of the Rock (a famous Church on a small island off Kotor mainland.)

LINK FOR THE EXACT TOUR WE TOOK HERE

We would recommend this as one of the best family experiences in Montenegro. This trip turned out to be so fun and surprisingly good for children. I’ve written a full review about it, which is linked below.

FULL REVIEW LINKED HERE.

EAT AND DRINK

We had a picnic lunch from the supermarket overlooking the picturesque bay.

After the boat tour, we needed a drink for the adults and an ice cream for the kids before heading back to Tivat for dinner. A restaurant called Scorpio was perfect as it had a cart with delicious gelato right outside. They have a nice menu if you’re hungry!

Thank you for reading or guide on the best things to do in Kotor Montenegro with kids. I hope we’ve helped you plan a trip you’ll enjoy as much as we did!