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. This fortress is often visited by fans of the Game of Thrones series, as it is reminiscent of Dubrovnik, where the last season of the series was filmed.
The walls surround the entire old town, 5 kilometers in length, with exactly 1,350 steps leading to the top of the fort. It takes about an hour and a half of climbing, depending on individual fitness condition and also the amount of crowd, as visitors tend to stop and take photos many times.
From the very top of the fort, Kotor is seen in the form of a perfect triangle
Where there is no written information, legends tend to come up. Kotor is a city of numerous legends, and one of them is related to the very origin of the city and the construction of the walls of Kotor.
Above Kotor, high in the rocks is a cave called Vilinica, and that part of the mountain is called Pestingrad. According to legend, a fairy Alkima lives in that cave. When the first inhabitants of Kotor came to the area of today's city, they wanted to form the city high in the rocks above the water. One night, wise Alkima appeared and advised them not to build a city far from the sea, where there was neither water nor salt, but to build it by the sea, as the sea represents life. People listened to the wise fairy and built the city by the sea, starting from its walls.
Today, above Kotor, near the Vilinica cave, you can see an unusual creation of stone, resembling a large door, called the Fairy’s door. According to legend, every day at dawn, a fairy can be seen right next to this door, sitting there waiting for a golden ship to sail.
The entrance to the fort is located at the end of the longest north street, behind the church of Saint Ozana.
Ticket price for the Fortress of Kotor
Regular ticket price is € 8.00
Admission for "local" tourists as well as for residents of Kotor is free of charge.
(!) Cold water and juices are sold at 3 stops on the way to the top, and comfortable footwear and caution are certainly recommended as the fort, although well preserved, is rather dilapidated.
Author of the text:
Marijana Niković licensed tourist guide for Montenegro.
If you are interested in guided tours in English, please contact me at:
(Viber) 00382 68 230 241
Photo credit: Balša Dabetić - instagram profil
