Where to Stay in Kotor: Best Hotels & Neighborhoods

The Best Neighborhoods for Hotels in Kotor on a Map

When it comes to finding a hotel, you can divide Kotor into two areas: the Old Town within the city walls and the New Town outside the walls. In the Old Town, you’ll find a handful of cool apartments and boutique hotels. Outside the city walls, the selection of accommodations is significantly larger.

Beyond these two areas, we have an under-the-radar pick for where to stay in Kotor: Prčanj. Here you’ll experience authentic Montenegro, just five to ten minutes by car from Kotor’s Old Town.

The best neighborhoods to stay in, with our hotel recommendations at a glance:

• Old Town: charming and right next to the most beautiful sights — Museum Palazzo Suite
• Outside the city walls: larger selection of accommodations, especially vacation rentals — Viola Lux Apartments
• Prčanj: small, authentic suburb right on the bay — Hotel Galathea

So you can get a quick sense of where each neighborhood sits, we’ve put together a map for you.

Right in the Middle: Hotels in Kotor's Old Town

Staying in the Old Town is perfect if you want to be right next to the sights.

All of Kotor’s top attractions are located in the Old Town. If you want to be as close to them as possible, book your accommodation here.

The Old Town is also at its busiest between 10 AM and 7 PM. By staying inside the walls, you’ll get to experience it without the crowds — early mornings and evenings are genuinely magical.

The number of places to stay in the Old Town is limited. You’ll mainly find hostels, small boutique hotels, and apartments. Don’t bother looking for big chain hotels here. But honestly, that’s part of the charm.

Advantages of staying in Kotor’s Old Town

• As close as possible to the sights
• No street traffic
• Lots of restaurants and cafés

Disadvantages of staying in Kotor’s Old Town

• Smaller selection than outside the city walls
• Accommodations are more expensive
• No parking directly at your accommodation

Our Hotel Recommendations for Kotor's Old Town

The Boutique Hotel Hippocampus has a seriously artistic interior and a lovely rooftop terrace with views of the fortress. With a little luck, you might even score a room with a small balcony — that’s not something you come across often in the Old Town.

If you’re traveling with kids, the Museum Palazzo Suite is a great pick. The apartment has two double rooms and a large kitchen — plenty of space for families.

More to Choose From: Staying Outside the City Walls of Kotor

Staying outside the city walls is the right call if you want to be close to the sights but are looking for more affordable lodging.

Outside the walls, there’s a huge number of options. The selection is genuinely impressive. And another plus: prices are typically much lower than inside the Old Town.

Most places here have private parking, and there are also several large public parking lots nearby.

It makes virtually no difference whether you stay north or south of the Old Town — the two areas are pretty similar.

Advantages of staying outside the city walls

• Larger selection of accommodations than in the Old Town
• Many properties with parking and large public parking lots nearby
• Better base for day trips

Disadvantages of staying outside the city walls

• A short walk from the main sights
• Typical Montenegrin new town with little charm

Our Hotel Recommendations Outside Kotor's City Walls

The Viola Lux Apartments are bright and cozy. You can cook in the small kitchenette or kick back on the balcony with views of the Bay of Kotor — seriously hard to beat.

Hidden Gem: Accommodations in Prčanj

Prčanj is perfect if you want to experience authentic Montenegro away from the tourist crowds.

Prčanj sits a little to the west of Kotor — a small village that stretches along the Bay of Kotor. We stayed here and absolutely loved it. It’s honestly one of our favorite off-the-beaten-path spots in Montenegro.

Everything here is still completely unspoiled. The houses are small and made of stone, locals sit out in front of their homes, and there’s just one real road running through the village. It’s fairly narrow and in places runs right along the water — driving it and soaking in the views is a real treat. Every few hundred meters you’ll find a small spot to swim.

There’s also a bus to Kotor from Prčanj — the Blue Line. We saw it go by quite a few times. The catch: there’s no official schedule and the stops aren’t clearly marked. A few stops do show up in Google Maps, and the bus should stop there. Otherwise, you’ll want to have a car.

Advantages of staying in Prčanj

• Authentic charm
• Small swimming spots along the bay
• More affordable accommodations

Disadvantages of staying in Prčanj

• You’ll need a car
• Narrow roads

Our Hotel Recommendations for Prčanj

We really recommend the charming Hotel Galathea. The rooms have rustic stone walls, breakfast is served in a cozy courtyard, and there’s even a private swimming spot right on the bay.

Extra Tip: Staying in Budva

Budva is our extra tip — and the best base if you want to see as much of Montenegro as possible, Kotor included.

A hotel in Kotor is great for taking in the highlights of the city and the Bay of Kotor. But for the sights farther south, you’d need an additional place to stay.

With a hotel in Budva, you avoid that problem entirely. The city is an ideal base for your road trip through Montenegro. Budva sits centrally on the coast, and from here you can reach all the major highlights in western Montenegro — including Kotor, which is only 30 minutes by car.

Budva is a classic tourist destination: tons of hotels, long beaches, and plenty of restaurants. But it also has a genuinely beautiful (and less crowded) old town, and the central location is simply hard to argue with.

Advantages of staying in Budva

• Ideal location for sights along Montenegro’s coast
• Large selection of hotels
• Long beaches

Disadvantages of staying in Budva

• You’ll need a car to get to Kotor
• Gets very crowded, especially during peak season

Our Hotel Recommendations for Budva

The Hotel Villa Gracia is a modern hotel in the new part of Budva. The value for money is excellent, and you can hop in the car for day trips with ease.

What You Need to Know About Hotels in Kotor

Tourism in Montenegro only really took off a few years ago — and you can tell. In Kotor especially, there are a lot of vacation rentals. Hotels and hostels exist too, but nowhere near as many as in Italy or Spain.

You’ll also notice on your road trip through Montenegro that while some things are cheaper than in western Europe, the prices for accommodation in Montenegro can hold their own against other popular European destinations. For a full picture of what to budget, check out our Montenegro travel tips.

One more thing worth knowing about accommodation prices: at many places, you can currently only pay in cash on-site — even if you book through Booking.com. This applies especially to small hotels, hostels, and vacation rentals. Larger hotels usually accept cards.

You’ll see the accepted payment methods when you make your booking.

Keep that in mind and withdraw enough cash ahead of time. A no-fee travel credit card is the easiest way to do that.