A MONTENEGRO TRAVEL GUIDE
Tucked away in the North of Montenegro is the stunningly beautiful Durmitor National Park and Zabljak, the small town beside it. This area is still relatively unexplored from a family’s point of view but is rapidly becoming more popular. In this guide, we will tell you everything we know about visiting the Durmitor National Park, with tips to enjoy it with kids.
We visited here in April 2024, at this time our boys were 4 years old and 14 months old. On our first morning here, we woke up to snow! This made the experience even more magical.
This was the final stop in our Montenegro trip, we’ve posted guides on many locations in Montenegro.
READ ALL OUR TRAVEL GUIDES HERE
GETTING TO THE DURMITOR NATIONAL PARK AND ZABLJAK
We drove to Zabljak from Lake Skadar. This was a 3 drive which was quite winding in places. We stopped off at Nicsik to break up the journey as our kids don’t love being in the car.
While it is possible to visit this area on a day trip from Kotor, we hired a car while in Montenegro so we were able to explore properly. Usually, we would always opt for public transport but it is very limited in Montenegro so a car was the best option. For this trip we used Enterprise.
WHERE TO STAY
To explore the Durmitor National Park. It’s best to stay in Zabljak, it’s still a small place but the largest one close to the park. There is a large supermarket here as well as a few restaurant options here. There is also a cute playground kids will enjoy.
HOW LONG TO STAY FOR
We had 4 nights here. Realistically, you could do the main things here in 2 but if you like hiking (unlike me) you should allow extra time.
We planned extra time as getting here and back was our longest drive of the trip and we wanted to leave some time between those journeys. It was also so nice to have some relaxing time in the countryside before heading to our next city.
WHERE TO EAT
Zabljak has quite a few options, most places serve more traditional food (meat and two veg) but there are also pizza options.
A lot of other blog posts recommended the restaurant Or’o however, their menu was heavily meat-based and as I’m vegetarian We decided not to eat there. We walked slightly further down the road to Konoba Luna. This was a friendly, family-run restaurant and also a fraction of the price of Or’o! The food was great, but we massively over-ordered!
We also ate pizza at Zlatni Papagaj. This was also great!
THE WEATHER
We probably should of, but didn’t realize before visiting here that it is so high up in the mountains. The altitude is 1,456 meters and it is much colder than the rest of Montenegro. As I mentioned we had snow in April. Luckily I’d packed warm coats for the kids but personally, I was unprepared!
Generally, in Montenegro, the weather is unpredictable. You’ll likely experience a huge downpour then brilliant sunshine a couple of hours later.
WHAT TO DO IN THE DURMITOR NATIONAL PARK AND ZABLJAK
VISIT THE BLACK LAKE (CRNO JEZERO)
This is the main sight in the National Park. It is extremely beautiful and worth visiting. It is a less than 10-minute drive from Zabljak. You can park in the car park there. Entry is €5 each for adults and parking is €2, cash only!
The walk to the lake is easy and pushchair-friendly. There is even a playground en route. However, the hike around the lake is not so easy. I’ve written all about it in a separate post.
THE TARA RIVER AND CANYON
The Tara Canyon is another beautiful sight. We hoped it would also be sprinkled with snow but unfortunately, it was further down the mountain and there was only rain. Even in the rain, the view was beautiful, the river was so blue. It would be even more sparkling in the sunshine.
In warmer months, you can go rafting on the river and there is also a zipline across the canyon.
NOT SO KID-FRIENDLY THINGS TO DO
There are also lots of other things to do in this area. After our hike around the lake (which was our second hike) the kids and I were done with thinking. If you are a more outdoorsy family, you can also hike to the ice caves or Bobotov Kuk, the highest mountain peak in the area.
The Sedlo Path is also meant to be a beautiful drive. We decided against it as a long winding drive in the car with kids is not super fun!
Thank you so much for reading our guide to visiting the Durmitor National Park and Zabljak as a family. We hope you have a wonderful trip to Montenegro.
DON’T FORGET TO READ ALL OUR OTHER MONTENEGRO TRAVEL GUIDES HERE
Happy Exploring,
