Tivat
In 1889 the Austro-Hungarian Empire chose the sheltered bay of Tivat to build its own naval arsenal, and from that moment the fate...
Updated 8 July 2026
Tivat
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The story
The story of Tivat
From Roman villas to the Austro-Hungarian arsenal
The earliest traces of settlement in the Bay of Tivat date back to Roman times: the remains of rustic villas and mosaic floors, uncovered on several occasions within the town area, show that the sheltered bay was already appreciated as a place of residence two thousand years ago. In the Middle Ages the territory followed the fortunes of the Bay of Kotor, coming under Venetian influence for centuries: it is to this period that the fortified houses and noble families, such as the Buća and the Verona, date back, families that would later shape the town's character through their estates. The turning point came at the end of the nineteenth century, when Austria-Hungary identified in the bay the ideal conditions — deep, sheltered waters — for installing an arsenal of its own war navy, giving Tivat a military vocation that would last more than a hundred years.
Porto Montenegro and the legacy of the military navy
For much of the twentieth century the arsenal area, inherited after the Second World War by the Yugoslav navy, remained a closed military zone, with piers, warehouses and submarines that very few civilians ever got to see up close. After the decommissioning of the shipyards, in the early 2000s, a group of international investors led by the Canadian entrepreneur Peter Munk took over the area and began its transformation into Porto Montenegro, a marina opened in 2009 and today among the largest in Europe for superyacht mooring capacity. The project preserved part of the old arsenal's industrial archaeology, such as the historic crane and some stone buildings, incorporating them into a waterfront of boutiques, restaurants, a naval museum and a residential district that has forever changed the town's skyline.
An airport in town: Tivat, gateway to the Bay of Kotor
Few tourist destinations have an international airport as close to the center as Tivat: the airport, born as a military airstrip in the 1960s and today Montenegro's second-busiest after Podgorica, lies about three kilometers from town and just minutes from Porto Montenegro. In the summer months it welcomes direct flights, often charter and seasonal, from numerous European cities, making Tivat the most convenient point of arrival not only for those staying here, but also for those heading to Kotor, Perast or Budva, all reachable in under an hour by car along the shores of the bay. This closeness between runway and sea is also the source of a certain aviation charm: planes land almost skimming the water, with the mountains of Lovćen in the background.
Luštica, the peninsula facing the open Adriatic
Across from Tivat, separated from the town by a stretch of sea crossed by ferry or boat, stretches the Luštica peninsula, a more rural and silent world of centuries-old olive groves, stone paths and villages such as Rose, once a fishing village and today a destination for those seeking secluded coves. At the tip of the peninsula, where the Bay of Kotor meets the open sea, stands the fortified island of Mamula, built by the Austro-Hungarians in the mid-nineteenth century to defend the entrance to the bay. In recent years part of the Luštica coast has been affected by the development of Luštica Bay, a new settlement with a marina and golf course, but the peninsula's interior still preserves the slow rhythm of Montenegro's coastal countryside.
The island of Sveti Marko, the bay's secluded pine grove
Off the coast of Tivat, covered by dense Mediterranean pine forest, the island of Sveti Marko is the wilder of the bay's two islands. Used in the past as an outpost by the Habsburg navy and later frequented during the Yugoslav era as a private retreat, the island has retained a secluded character that today makes it a sought-after destination for those arriving by boat from Porto Montenegro or the town's seafront. Its rocky coves and small beaches, reachable only from the sea, offer clear waters and a silence that deliberately contrasts with the bustle of the luxury marina nearby: an excursion of just a few hours that lets you see Tivat from another perspective, that of someone observing it from the water.
The Island of Flowers, the garden born from a monastery
Connected to the mainland by a short causeway near Seljanovo, the Island of Flowers stands beside the remains of the ancient Benedictine monastery of St. Michael, on the Prevlaka peninsula, once the episcopal seat of the Bay of Kotor. In the nineteenth century the noble Verona family, related to the Buća, transformed the islet into an English-style park, planting it with exotic and subtropical species brought from every corner of the Mediterranean and beyond, and using it as a family cemetery immersed in greenery. Today the small park, with its now centuries-old trees and graves scattered along the paths, is one of the most evocative and least known places in the area, a silent, botanical counterpoint to the fashionable life of the nearby marina.
Gradina, the nineteenth-century park among the old shipyards
In the heart of the town, right next to the area once occupied by the Arsenal shipyards, stretches Gradina park, a green lung also commissioned by the Buća and Verona families in the nineteenth century as a private botanical garden. Sequoias, cedars of Lebanon, camphor trees and palms, some planted more than a hundred and fifty years ago, live on today in a public park that flanks the old harbor and lets visitors stroll in the shade just steps from the yachts of Porto Montenegro. It is in this interweaving of monumental trees and the industrial archaeology of the old, repurposed shipyards that Tivat's double identity is best read: a military naval town turned garden and then luxury port, never entirely losing the traces of what came before.
The beaches of Tivat, from Pržno to Plavi Horizonti
The Bay of Tivat is not known for large stretches of sand, but it holds a few beaches worth a stop: Pržno, just minutes from the center, alternates sand and pebbles along a quiet stretch of coast, frequented more by local families than passing tourists. A little further away, toward the opening onto the sea south of town, lies Plavi Horizonti, the Blue Bay, one of the widest and most popular sandy beaches on the entire Montenegrin coast, with shallow waters suited to children. Those who prefer clear water and solitude can instead head for the small coves reachable by boat along the Luštica coast or around the island of Sveti Marko.
Between bay and hinterland: the landscape and the Solila reserve
The Bay of Tivat is the most open and least jagged of the Bay of Kotor's inlets, with a seabed that slopes gently and mountains that keep a greater distance from the sea than at Kotor or Perast, leaving room for a coastal plain planted with olive groves and vineyards. Right in this plain, near the airport, lies the Solila nature reserve, a brackish wetland, one of the few remaining on the Montenegrin coast, a refuge for herons, little egrets and, in certain seasons, passing flamingos. It is a landscape that surprises those who expect only yachts and marinas: just a few kilometers from Porto Montenegro, nature takes back the upper hand in a still little-trodden corner of the coast.
The flavors of the Bay of Kotor: fish, pršut and olive oil
Tivat's cuisine tells of the meeting between sea and mountain typical of the whole Bay of Kotor: fish and seafood, from mussels farmed in the bay itself to grilled sea bass, are often paired with dishes from the hinterland, such as smoked pršut and aged cheese produced in the nearby mountain villages. Olive oil, pressed from the centuries-old olive trees dotting the Luštica peninsula, is an almost daily ingredient, as is wine from the nearby hills, often made from the native vranac grape. In the restaurants of the old town or along the Gradina waterfront you can still find family-run trattorias alongside the more polished venues born with Porto Montenegro, two culinary registers that coexist without much friction.
When to go and how to experience Tivat
The best season to visit Tivat runs from May to June and from September to early October, when the Mediterranean climate guarantees warm days and already pleasant seas without the full crowds of July and August, months in which the town, and especially Porto Montenegro, fills up with visitors and events tied to the world of yachting. In winter the bay keeps a mild climate compared to the rest of Europe, and the center, with its cafés along the harbor, remains lively even off-season, albeit at a much slower pace. A good way to experience Tivat is to alternate hours at the marina's waterfront with boat trips to the islands or to Luštica, setting aside half a day for the old town of Kotor, reachable in just a few minutes by car along the coast.
- Strolling among the yachts and the old arsenal buildings at Porto Montenegro
- Taking a boat to the island of Sveti Marko and its secluded coves
- Visiting the park-cemetery of the Island of Flowers beside the monastery of St. Michael
- Crossing the bay by ferry to the Luštica peninsula and the village of Rose
- Swimming at the sandy beach of Plavi Horizonti
- Watching herons in the Solila nature reserve, just steps from the airport
- Dining on fish and pršut in a trattoria in the old town
FAQ
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Getting there
- Aeroporto di Tivat (TIV), circa 3 km dal centro città
- Aeroporto di Podgorica, circa 65 km
- Tivat è collegata da strada costiera alla baia di Cattaro: Kotor è a circa 30-40 minuti d'auto, Budva a circa 40 minuti; per Luštica si può anche imbarcare l'auto sul traghetto di Lepetane-Kamenari.
- Nei mesi estivi, quando arrivano più voli charter e la marina è piena, prenotare in anticipo il traghetto per Luštica o l'escursione in barca alle isole evita lunghe attese.
Perfect for
Porto Montenegro è tra le principali marine per superyacht d'Europa, con boutique, ristoranti e un museo navale nel cuore dell'ex arsenale.
L'isola di San Marco e l'isola dei Fiori offrono due esperienze opposte, pineta selvatica l'una, giardino botanico e memoria storica l'altra.
La riserva di Solila, poco fuori città, è un'oasi umida ideale per osservare aironi e uccelli migratori lontano dal fermento della marina.
Dall'arsenale austro-ungarico ai cantieri jugoslavi fino a Porto Montenegro, la città racconta un secolo di marina militare riconvertita.
Pesce della baia, pršut e formaggi di montagna, olio d'oliva di Luštica e vino vranac compongono una tavola che unisce costa ed entroterra.
To see
What to see in Tivat
Routes · Trovido Route
