A large overview of the country's main beach resort is, of course, the city of Budva.
Budva and the Budva Riviera: General Information
Without exaggeration, this is the main beach resort in the country. Every year, Montenegro is visited by about 3 million tourists, and according to some data, 1.5 million of them come to Budva. Some for the entire 2 weeks of vacation, and some just for 1 day, to see the sights.
It is interesting to know:
Although Budva is the main beach resort in Montenegro, it ranks only second in the list of the most visited cities. The leader in this rating is ancient Kotor.
Below is some general information about Budva:
The city was founded in the 5th century BC. It is one of the oldest cities in the entire region.
Budva is a relatively flat city. Even 1-2 km from the beach, you will walk on flat and straight roads. This is an important point, especially for vacationers with children.
It is useful to know:
On the coast of Montenegro, only Budva and Bar are relatively flat cities. At other resorts, hills, slides and climbs begin 100 meters from the beach, often very steep.
And the Budva Riviera is the name of the entire Adriatic coast, which belongs to the Budva municipality. A municipality in Montenegro, similar to our regions and districts. The length of the entire riviera is 35 km.
The Budva Riviera includes Budva itself, Becici, Rafailovići, Sveti Stefan and Petrovac. These are all resort towns and villages with beach holidays that are popular with tourists.
How to get to Budva, and how to drive along the Riviera coast
Here is a point. On the one hand, Budva has a gorgeous geographical location in the center of the Montenegrin coast. The city is located at the intersection of all the main roads. Judge for yourself, the distances from Budva to:
Tivat International Airport — 21 km
Podgorica International Airport — 60 km
Kotor — 22 km
Herceg Novi — 43 km
Sveti Stefan, the country's calling card, is 8 km
Montenegro's main port in Bar, from where you can take a ferry to Italy — 37 km
And from Budva in the summer of 2025, you can go by ferry to Dubrovnik, Croatia. All about it, prices and schedules at the link below.
But on the other hand, there are no direct buses to Budva from both airports. You need to go with at least one transfer. And you won't get to all the corners with cool locations and TOP attractions of Montenegro by bus.
It is important to understand:
There is public transport in Montenegro. In general, there are enough routes along the coast, but when it comes to traveling inland, things are not so rosy. If you want to travel even around Budva, you will have certain problems. And by car, your mobility increases a million times.
Public transport in Montenegro: where to look for schedules, prices, and how to buy a ticket
But not to scare you, there are buses from large cities, and getting to Budva is not a problem. Dozens of buses run throughout the day. For example, from Podgorica there are 34 buses per day on the schedule, and from Tivat - 29 buses. They leave every half hour.
Where to stay: hotels and apartments
This is a large city, and here you will find all sorts of accommodation options for every budget. Hotels, aparthotels, apartments. Yes, in season, prices are higher and there is less choice, but where is it not? Book everything in advance.
Advice:
If you are traveling by car, pay attention to the availability of free parking at your accommodation option. In Budva, especially in season, the problem with parking is colossal. Firstly, almost all parking in the city is paid, secondly, even in paid parking there are no spaces at all. Often there is simply nowhere to park a car.
Overview of Budva beaches: map, description, recommendations
Beaches are the city's strong point. Although in the tourist season there are a lot of people, only the top layer of people sunbathe on the main beach of Budva, but there are enough beaches in the vicinity of the city. And not all are overcrowded. If you have a car, or you are just an active tourist who can walk 2-3-4 km to the beach, then you will find your place in the sun by the sea.
TOP best beaches in Montenegro: this rating includes several beaches of the Budva Riviera
Useful to know:
The beaches of Budva are diverse and really cool. Unlike the rest of Montenegro, where there are mostly pebble beaches, and in the Bay of Kotor everyone sunbathes on concrete slabs, in Budva there are beaches for every taste. There are many sandy beaches.
Slovenska plaza (Slovenska plaza)
The main city beach, which runs along the entire length of Budva. From the old town and marina to the border with the village of Becici. The beach is pebble and sand, there are areas with only pebbles, and there are only sand.
Locals divide this beach into several more parts (Zuplica, Slavyansky, Greco), but in reality it is all one long beach.
This is the most infrastructural beach, it has everything: a promenade, hundreds of cafes and restaurants, sun loungers, rental of SUPs and kayaks, showers, toilets, and so on. This is a classic urbanized beach resort.
Beach coordinates: 42.28482, 18.84818
In season, 2 sun loungers and an umbrella cost 10-20 euros per day.
Beach length: a little less than 2 km. There is a promenade along the entire length.
Free
Pizana beach under the walls of the old city (Pizana beach)
Very small, literally 100 meters, hidden from the tourist esh crowds beach. The beach is located in the historical center, really under the walls of the old city. But its peculiarity is that the beach is hidden behind a small hill with steps, and it is not visible, even if you are standing 10 meters away. The beach appears in your field of view when you already put your foot on the sand :). If you do not know about it, it is easy to pass by.
Coordinates: 42.27873, 18.83959
Pebble and sand beach, there are no sun loungers, everyone sunbathes on their towels. But in the season they put changing cabins and showers.
Free
Mogren Beach and Mogren 2 Beaches (Mogren Beach)
And these are the two best beaches within walking distance of Budva. You cannot get to the beach by car, you can only walk along a terribly beautiful path under a cliff along the sea. The path starts at the very end of Richard's Head Beach, the length of the path is about 200 meters. On the way you will see the symbol of Budva - a ballerina, but we will talk about her in the section on attractions.
These are two sandy beaches. Each is about 300 meters long.
They are separated by a rock and a passage with a bridge inside this rock.
The beaches are wide, located in a bay and protected from the wind on all sides.
Although there are a lot of tourists here during the season, there are significantly fewer than on the main beach of the city.
Mogren coordinates: 42.27708490649319, 18.832537045258356
There are sun loungers, two cafes are open during the season. If you pay for sun loungers, there will even be wi-fi. The price for a pair of sun loungers is 20-30 euros per day.
The beach is free
Closed beach Dukley (Dukley Beach)
This is a small private beach at the hotel and residential complex Dukley. It is located at the very end of Slavyansky Beach, already on the border with the village of Becici. For guests of the complex, the entrance to the beach is free. For everyone else, the entrance is 50 euros per person. The price includes a sun lounger, one umbrella for two and wi-fi.
Coordinates: 42.28217, 18.85792
A very clean and elite beach with all that it implies. There will be no crowds of people here, and no one will lie next to you on a towel.
Paid
Becici Beach
Becici is a village on the outskirts of Budva, which today has actually merged with the city and is one whole. It has its own beach, which is called Becici. The beach is very similar to Slavyansky Beach in appearance and infrastructure. There is everything: sun loungers, an embankment, hundreds of cafes and thousands of tourists. Only here the water is cleaner than in Budva.
And it is also easy to get here on foot from Budva. It is only 2.5 km from the walls of the old town. And if you start from the end of Slavyanska Beach, then 800 meters. And there is a bonus for hikers: Budva and Becici are connected by a pedestrian tunnel in the rock.
Coordinates: 42.28120200740622, 18.872064318383316
During the season, 2 sun loungers and an umbrella cost 10-20 euros per day. After 5 pm - free.
The beach is a little less than 2 km long. There is a promenade along the entire length.
The beach is pebble and sand, but there are areas with only sand
Free
Hawaii Beach, or St. Nicholas Beach (Hawaii Beach)
The island of St. Nicholas is visible from anywhere in Budva. This large and green uninhabited island is located 700 meters from the old town and Slavyansky Beach. 90% of the island's coastline is rocks, but the remaining 10% is a pebble beach, and the pebbles are large.
The beach has two names. The official name is St. Nicholas Island. And the locals call it Hawaii to add an elite feel and attract more tourists.
Coordinates: 42.2707, 18.84608
Beach length: 500 meters
There are sun loungers, cafes, toilets, showers - all this works only in season, until mid-October.
It is easy to get to the beach, boats run from the shore from all beaches and even from Becici. The price of a place in a boat is 5-10 euros one way.
Alternatively, you can sail on a sapa or kayak, which tourists rent on Slavyansky Beach. But I will write about this below.
The beach itself is free for everyone. You can lie on the beach freely. But everything else is paid: sun loungers, a boat to the island and back, toilets, cafes with prices higher than on the mainland.
2 sun loungers and an umbrella 15 euros per day, and a free toilet and wi-fi are a bonus with sun loungers :).
And these are far from all the beaches of Budva and the surrounding area. In fact, only within a radius of 10 km from the city, according to official data, there are 28 beaches. It is not for nothing that this region is called the Riviera. Only those beaches that are easy to walk from the city center were higher in the rating. And if you have a car, then the entire Budva Riviera is immediately open to you.
