One week, four UNESCO sites: a Montenegrin route

Four World Heritage properties in seven days is tight but entirely doable in Montenegro, because the country is small and the sites are not scattered at random. Two of them sit on the bay, one fills the north-west highlands, and one is a scatter of medieval graveyards that you meet on the way between the two.

This route is written for someone arriving at Tivat or Podgorica with a week and a car, with notes on doing it by public transport at the end.

Why this sequence works

The logic is geographical rather than alphabetical. Start on the coast, where the bay, the walls and the Venetian fortifications are all within a short drive of each other. Then climb inland to the Durmitor massif, using the Piva canyon as the corridor. Finish with the stećci graveyards in the high country before dropping back to the coast.

Doing it the other way round works too, but starting at sea level gives you the easiest first day after a flight and puts the most physically demanding part of the trip in the middle, when you are still fresh.

Days one and two: Kotor and the bay

Base yourself in or beside Kotor. The first day is the old town and the fortifications: the lanes, the cathedral, the maritime museum, and the climb up the walls if the weather is kind. Do the climb early, because the stone is exposed and the steps are relentless.

The second day belongs to the water. Drive or take a boat along the shore to Perast, where the two small islands sit within reach of the waterfront, then continue to Risan at the head of the bay. The whole inner bay is inside the World Heritage property, which is a cultural landscape rather than a single monument, so the drive is part of the site rather than transport between sights.

• Book accommodation in Kotor or Dobrota well ahead for summer.
• Keep one evening free for the waterfront after the day visitors leave.
• Check boat schedules locally; they are seasonal and weather dependent.

Day three: the Venetian line, then inland

Before leaving the bay, look at the fortifications as a system rather than a backdrop. Kotor's walls are Montenegro's component of a serial property that also includes towns in Croatia and Italy, built to control sea routes and land approaches. The drive out of the bay follows the same logic: the mountains behind Kotor are the reason the defences were placed where they are.

Head inland via Nikšić and then north towards Plužine, following the Piva canyon. This is a long driving day with a lot of landscape in it, and the canyon road is the point rather than an inconvenience. Overnight near Žabljak, on the edge of the Durmitor plateau.

Days four and five: Durmitor

Two days on the massif is enough for one serious walk and one easier day. The first can be a circuit of the glacial lakes near Žabljak, which is the gentlest introduction to the plateau. The second can go higher, towards the peaks, depending on snow and weather.

Check trail conditions, snow line and entrance arrangements with the park before either day. The massif holds snow late, storms build in the afternoon, and the plateau is exposed. One of the peaks, Bobotov kuk, is the highest point in the park and should be treated as a proper mountain day rather than a walk.

Day six: stećci and the Piva

The medieval tombstones of the stećci listing are the quietest of the four properties. Montenegro's share lies in this north-western high country, in graveyards that stand in villages and on slopes, often with no visitor facilities at all. Go with the expectation of a field of carved stone and a view, not an interpretive centre.

Combine the graveyards with the Piva canyon and, if time allows, the monastery above the lake. The driving is short but slow, and the roads are mountain roads.

Day seven: back to the bay

Return south, either by the same corridor or via Podgorica if you are flying out from there. If you have a late flight, the Bay of Kotor offers a last hour: a swim, a coffee on the waterfront, and a look at the walls from below with the whole system in your head.

Getting around without a car

Public transport exists but does not follow this route neatly. Buses connect the coast with Nikšić and Podgorica, and separate services run north to Žabljak, so a car-free version means accepting changes and losing time. Kotor has no railway station; the line runs inland through Podgorica and Bar.

What to book, what to leave open

Book beds in Kotor and Žabljak first, since summer availability in both is limited and the plateau has fewer beds than the coast. Book any boat trip once you have checked that it is running. Leave the rest open: mountain weather decides which day is the big walking day, and a flexible plan is a safer one.

Fees, opening times and bus timetables change, so confirm them with the park authorities and operators close to your dates. The sites themselves have been there for centuries; the logistics are the part that needs checking.