Kotor is thirteen centuries old Mediterranean city. It houses numerous museums, historic palaces and churches. The most visited museums are the Lampidarium, the Maritime Museum, the Cat Museum and the beautiful Kotor Fort.
It takes about 3 hours of climbing in order to reach the fortress of Kotor. A large number of tourists climb to the top of the fort every day, which takes a long time, especially when tourists visit Kotor only for a few hours. When tourists come from cruisers, mostly in groups, they are accompanied by guides. The rush is inevitably created when three large cruise ships arrive in Kotor, while note that there is no crowd in the morning or afternoon. Fort San Giovanni stands 280 meters beyond the sea level, offering a beautiful view to the city.
The Maritime Museum is located on the square of the Boka Navy, in the old town. It is the palace of Gregory, dating from the 17th century, which houses the Maritime Museum of Montenegro. The museum's collection is very rich and anyone who wants to learn all about the fascinating maritime history of Boka Kotorska and Montenegro in general should not bypass this museum. The museum's permanent exhibit covers the period from the founding of the Montenegrin Navy, from the ninth century until the end of World War II.
The church of St. Michael, built in Roman Gothic style, is located on the square Kina, in the longest north street in Kotor. This church has been transformed into a small Lapidarium, with a rich collection of stone objects, which have been collected since 1906. The collection of the Lapidarium includes exhibits from the ancient period, early Christianity, Renaissance, Romanism and the Gothic period. Many unique Roman tombstones can be seen here, and the most significant is the head (portrait) of the Roman emperor Domitian from the first century BC.
The Cats Museum is the most interesting place in Kotor, especially the cat lovers. Opened in 2016, the museum is a place that prides on interesting photographs of Kotor’s most photogenic cats, but it is not rare to also see real cats that gladly walk through this museum. Cats have become a symbol of Kotor over the time and there is no square or street where this animal cannot be seen. Kotor cats climb to the top of walls, many of them live in souvenir shops, boutiques and the best-selling Kotor souvenir is a magnet with the image of a Kotor’s cat.
