Perast, Montenegro

Photo’s are here or you can just click on the photograph above.

Perast – one of the celebrated “Pearls of the Adriatic” and certainly the “Pearl of Kotor Bay”! We fell in love as soon as we arrived 💕

There is something about Kotor Bay which brings to mind the famous northern Italian lake, Lake Como. Kotor Bay is frequently described as “Europe’s southernmost fjord” because of its dramatic, steep mountains plunging into the sea although strictly speaking it is not a fiord, but a submerged valley in the Adriatic Sea.

We were staying for 3 nights in the tiny town of Perast which is surrounded by dramatic, rugged mountains with immaculately preserved Baroque architecture reflecting the grandeur and wealth of the 15th century Venetian “Golden Age”.

There are no fewer than 16 historic Venetian palaces lining the seafront in between villas draped in perfumed jasmine and pink oleanders. Perast is a small town which clings to a steep mountain backdrop and nestles in the most beautiful cove in the Bay of Kotor which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Venetians ruled Perast from 1420 to 1797, transforming the small fishing village into a prosperous trading port and maritime hub. The 17th century Catholic Church of St Nicholas’s is the centerpiece of the town with a 55 metre Baroque bell tower (built in 1691 by the Venetian architect Giuseppe Beati). It rises above the terracotta rooftops and, visible from way across the bay, it is the most iconic landmark in Perast – if not the whole of Kotor Bay itself.

Perast flourished greatly under the Venetian Republic. The town was presided over by 12 clans (Kazada) of fishermen, mariners and traders whose wealth was reflected in their grand white limestone Baroque or Renaissance architecture residences along the harbour.

As you meander along the waterfront you can spot beautiful round and oblong portal windows, ornate decorative stonework, carved faces above the doorways and coats-of-arms.

Since Perast did not have a city wall, it defended itself with towers erected next to the largest homes. There are several historic buildings of note:

a. the Bujovic Palace built in 1694 (now the Perast Museum) with Latin inscriptions and the Bujović family coat-of-arms on the exterior walls;

b. the Lučić-Kolović-Matikola Palace, dating from 1779, is a less ornate stone palace – now Palace Jelena Hotel – with a beautiful coat-of-arms featuring a wolf rising towards the sun;

c. the immaculate, gleaming white Smekja Palace dates from 1764 and is the largest and most breathtaking in Perast. Its three storeys ooze grandeur and it dominates the waterfront. It is now home to the 5* Heritage Grand Hotel which is spectacular, and was our home for 3 nights. The 18th century Baroque St. Mark’s Church is at the rear of the gleaming white courtyard of the hotel and adds even more grandeur to the entrance of the hotel.

d. the Brajković-Martinović Palace was built in 1623 and is now the Leon Coronato Hotel which houses the only salon completely restored in the original style of Napoleon III.

It is only a leisurely one mile stroll from end to end along the waterfront in Perast. You will pass small gift shops, ice cream stores, courtyard gardens cafes with climbing roses and sweet-smelling jasmine, and upmarket restaurants with tables laid with white linen and vases of flowers on piers where the waters of the bay lap mere inches from diners.

There are few towns we would describe as sublime but this is definitely one of them. If you’re tempted to visit here for a long weekend, as we did, you really should treat yourself with a room at the 5* Heritage Grand Perast Hotel for a quintessential luxury Adriatic experience. The rooms are stunning – decorated in whites, creams, neutrals and soft blues and the ambience is understated luxury. The breakfast buffet and a la carte menu is at the top end with high quality food and excellent service. We had a corner room in the historic section of the hotel (1107) with a partial sea view which was bright, peaceful and relaxing.

There is an outdoor pool with sun loungers overlooking the Bay of Kotor. You can swim in the bay or sip cocktails in the sunshine watching the boats ferrying visitors back and forth across the bay as the sunlight glistens on the clear ultramarine waters. If that’s all too stressful, there is also a beautiful spa with tiled steam room, indoor pool and sauna.

We ate dinner on our first evening at the hotel’s romantic Riva restaurant at a waterfront table with what must be one of the most stunning views in Europe. As the sun was setting behind the rugged mountains which surround the town and wrap around the Bay of Kotor, it cast its light upon the tiny islands in the bay and bathed the palaces and villas of Perast in a warm, golden light. Absolutely breathtakingly beautiful. My gnocchi with pesto and sun-dried tomatoes was divine as was Geoff’s tagliatelle with shrimp. We ate breakfast at Riva with the same stunning view but in the early morning before the boats disturb the bay, clouds were reflected in the mirror-like waters. There is no better view to dine along the waterfront than at elegant Riva at Heritage Grand Perast.

We also dined at Restaurant Conte, one of Perast’s most established waterfront restaurants and sat at one of the front row tables on the stone terrace overlooking the bay. I had grilled monkfish in truffle sauce with mushrooms which was excellent and Geoff tried their fish of the day with Dalmatian swiss chard and potatoes. All excellent but Riva was still better, in our opinion …

EHO Restaurant was our most surprising meal and certainly the best in a town which is already known as a foodie destination. Only recently opened last summer (in June 2025) by a chef from a famous Michelin star restaurant in Belgrade, it is Perast’s newest restaurant and has a distinctly more contemporary feel than the grander hotel waterfront restaurants. The focus is locally caught seafood with farm to table vegetable dishes. The tables are set in a pretty courtyard garden or laid out under a pergola covered in jasmine. We had shrimp stuffed gnocchi in a nettle butter sauce, beetroot in nettle sauce and fish of the day with tomato, artichoke and tomatoes. Unbelievably good! As with all of the restaurants here, the aesthetic is understated and tasteful, decorated with whites, creams and blues to blend with the natural environment. If we’d stayed an extra night we would have returned here.

Moritz Eis is THE place for ice-cream here. The brand is Austrian and the quality is top notch – especially the lemon mint and ginger and blood orange sorbets.

Since the sun was shining on our first morning we took advantage and got an early morning boat from the small dock to Our Lady of the Rocks. It costs 10 EUR per person for a 2 minute boat ride but you can’t really come here and not visit Our Lady of the Rocks since it is iconic and anywhere you sit along the waterfront you will see its blue cupola glinting in the sunshine. It is a 15th century church with a museum and is one of two tiny islets in the bay – the neighboring island is not accessible to the public since it houses the the 12th century Saint George Benedictine Monastery. We didn’t spend much time here as it’s very small and we wanted to visit Kotor Old Town, 20 minutes or so across the bay. Back at the harbour we found a boat captain who would take us to Kotor for 60 EUR each way on a private boat. The scenery from the water alone was worth the trip. We exchanged phone numbers so we could arrange our return trip and walked towards the Old Town. There were three cruise ships in the bay ferrying people back and forth to the harbour and one gigantic beast which dwarfed the entire town. That is really a ridiculous number of people all cramming into one small walled town. We left the horrors of the crowded plazas and cafes until later and instead kept walking to the bus station, about 15 minutes from the harbour. We caught the shuttle bus which runs every 30 minutes to the base of the cable car and, since it was pretty quiet, we walked straight onto a cable car and were whisked high over the surrounding hills. Halfway up there is a particularly spectacular view over the Old Town, the rugged mountains and the ultramarine waters of the bay. It was worth the 32 EUR per person for the bus and cable car fee – far better value than the 90 EUR cab fee plus the entrance fee we were offered from the harbor.

Heading back into the Old Town, we climbed the walls for views over the plazas below. It is nice enough but not really nice enough to do battle with the tour crowds. We couldn’t wait to get back to the relative paradise of Perast!

We loved the peace and quiet and serenity of Perast (especially after the day trippers had moved on!) and particularly the beautiful Heritage Grand Hotel. We’re already talking about how to squeeze another 4 or 5 nights into the summer schedule next year! 😊