Coastal Cruise from Bar and Budva: Beaches Without Roads

South of Budva the sheltered water ends and the open Adriatic begins. It is a different Montenegro from the Bay of Kotor: instead of an enclosed basin you get a straight horizon, a proper swell and enough wind to sail for real rather than for show. The shoreline is broken into coves, and a good half of them have no road or even a path down — the only way in is by water.

That is the whole point of this trip. Not to admire the coastline from a distance, but to reach the places the cliffs keep closed to anyone on land. You hire the whole boat with a skipper: from Budva, three hours start at €355; from Bar, a motorboat starts at €130 an hour and a sailing yacht at €390 for three hours.

A beach with no road: Kraljičina plaža

The main stop on the route out of Bar is Kraljičina plaža, Queen Milena’s beach — a strip of fine shingle under pine trees beyond Čanj, between Sutomore and Petrovac, with no road leading to it at all. There are cliffs on three sides and sea on the fourth.

The name is not a marketing invention. The beach is named after Queen Milena, wife of King Nikola I, who used to come here by boat from Bar to swim. Even today you can only get here from the water — it is about ten minutes by boat from Čanj — so there are fewer people than on the neighbouring beaches, and the water is clear because there are no hotels and no outflows nearby.

On the way there you pass Sutomore with its long sandy beach, the hamlet of Zagradje and Čanj, a village wedged between the sea and an almost vertical hillside.

Katič and Sveta Nedelja: the islets off Petrovac

The route from Budva heads the other way, south towards Petrovac bay. Two small uninhabited islets sit out in the sea opposite the promenade, 700–900 metres from the shore.

Katič is simply a rock with a lighthouse. Sveta Nedelja, though, has a tiny white church on it, and a local legend to go with it. One version says it was built by a sailor who survived a storm on this very rock. The other credits a Greek captain, to whom a saint appeared in a dream and showed the way through the fog. Nobody can prove either, but it is the sailor’s story you hear most often.

The boat anchors right next to the islet and you swim to the church — about fifty metres. That is the distance from the boat, not from the beach: the shore is the best part of a kilometre away. Then it is up the steps to the bell, which you are supposed to ring. It is not a ritual dreamed up for visitors; locals ring it too.

From there it is a short hop to Sveti Stefan, 9 kilometres from Budva. Everyone photographs it from the road, but from the water it looks different: you can see it is not a film set but a real fortified settlement from the 15th century, with narrow lanes and tiled roofs, turned in its entirety into a hotel. The hotel reopened on 1 July 2026. You cannot land from a boat — non-guests can only visit from the shore, on a guided tour booked in advance — but anchoring and swimming just opposite is allowed.

How much a boat along the coast costs

Prices are for the whole boat:

• from €355 — three hours from Budva, motorboat for up to 7 guests
• from €170 an hour — motorboat from Budva
• from €130 an hour — motorboat from Bar
• from €390 — sailing yacht for three hours from Bar

The skipper and fuel for the route are usually included; lunch ashore and harbour fees in other marinas are extra. People bring their own food and drink.

For four people, three hours from Budva at €355 works out at about €89 each; for six, about €60 each. For comparison, a seat on the group ship around the Bay of Kotor starts at €53. The exact figure comes from the company that owns the boat.

Open coast or the Bay of Kotor?

There are three differences, and each one matters when you choose.

The boat moves. Not dramatically, but the open sea is the open sea. If anyone in your group gets seasick, go into the bay instead — the water there is almost always flat.

You actually sail. Inside the bay the mountains break up the wind, so most of the distance is covered under engine. Along the coast the maestral, a steady daytime breeze off the sea, fills the sails properly, and the yacht heels and picks up speed the way it should.

There is more room. The islands off Perast are one of Montenegro’s best-known postcard views, and in summer a dozen boats circle them at any one time. At Katič and Kraljičina plaža you will see far fewer.

More places you can only reach by sea are listed in coves with no road.

Whether you finish in Bar or in Budva is agreed with the company when you book.

Practicalities

Boats leave from the port of Bar or from Budva marina. Departure time and stops are agreed with the company when you book; mornings are calmer, because the maestral picks up towards midday. Bring passports for everyone aboard — companies usually ask for them to register the trip. Wear pale-soled shoes and bring sunscreen, a hat and a windproof layer: under sail it is noticeably cooler than at anchor.

There are usually one or two swimming stops, and where and for how long is up to you and the skipper. Every boat has a ladder, and the water at Kraljičina plaža and around the Petrovac islets is clear to the bottom, so a mask is worth packing. The sea warms to 25–26 °C in July and August, 22–24 °C in June and 23–25 °C in September.

The season runs from May to October; in winter there are almost no trips. Boats, prices and free dates are on the yacht charter page.

Other trips nearby

If you want flat water and the classic views, head into the bay instead: the cruise from Tivat or from Kotor. For fishing on the same stretch of sea, see sea fishing. Every format is listed on the things to do page.

Bar and Budva are about 40 kilometres apart along the coast road, roughly an hour’s drive. If you are driving yourself, read up on driving rules and fines first: a new traffic law came into force on 7 August 2026, and fines have gone up two to three times.

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Prices are indicative starting prices for the whole boat, checked in September 2026. The exact figure for your date is set by the company that owns the boat; booking and payment are made directly with them.