Porto Montenegro is the marina in Tivat that we sail from. For a charter guest it means three practical things: covered parking at the entrance for about €5 a day, no port fees on departure, and a starting point in the middle of the Bay of Kotor, equally close to Kotor and to the western way out toward the Blue Cave. Here is how the morning runs, from the car to casting off.
Getting there and leaving the car
The marina has covered paid parking right at the entrance, roughly €5 per day. There is no need to hunt for it from the road: we send the exact location pin over WhatsApp the day before, along with the pontoon number.
From the parking to the berth is a few minutes along the waterfront. Arriving fifteen minutes before departure is enough to walk over without rushing and get aboard.
What time to leave
It depends on which way you are going, and it is the one decision in the day that cannot be postponed.
The western route, with the Blue Cave. Departure at 9:00. From Porto Montenegro to the cave is about two hours of steady cruising, which puts the boat at the mouth of the grotto by eleven — exactly when the light reaches inside and the water starts to glow. Later in the day there is no effect to see. The full breakdown is in our guide to the Blue Cave and its light window.
The eastern route, deeper into the bay. No hard timing here: Kotor, Perast and the islands work at any hour. The one consideration is the cruise ships that fill Kotor by midday, so the town gets visited earlier. The hour-by-hour version is in the Bay of Kotor route.
What is already aboard
The packing list is short because most of it is already laid out: towels, ice, water and fruit, two bathrooms with hot showers, fresh water topped up every morning. For the water itself, paddleboards, snorkelling masks, an underwater scooter and inflatable loungers. Music runs from your phone through the speakers on board.
Worth bringing yourself: sunscreen, a hat and swimwear. Everything else is waiting, and a day charter needs no luggage.
With children and with a dog
Children come aboard constantly: there are child-sized life jackets, inflatable loungers and toys, and a children's menu on request. The one thing we ask is the ages at booking, so the right jackets are ready rather than hunted for on the pontoon in the morning.
Small and medium dogs are welcome. There is a designated area on the sundeck and freshwater bowls aboard. A dog is also worth mentioning when the date is booked.
What surrounds the marina
Porto Montenegro is a superyacht marina, and a small quarter has grown around it: a waterfront of boutiques and restaurants, easy to walk before departure or after coming back. If you arrive early or are waiting for the rest of your group, that is solved on the spot, without a trip into town.
If the weather turns on the day
The captain decides, and the decision is made in the morning rather than out at sea. What else the job involves besides steering is covered in our piece on chartering with a skipper. If going out is unsafe, the charter moves to any free date at no cost and with no cancellation fee. We watch the forecast two days ahead and get in touch ourselves when a risk appears, so that you can rearrange the day instead of finding out in the car park.
More often it is not a cancellation but a substitution. The western day goes out to open sea; the eastern one stays inside the bay, where swell almost never reaches. In fresh wind we simply change direction.
No port fees on departure
Porto Montenegro is our home berth, so leaving from it adds nothing to the charter price. Fees appear only if you moor at the Kotor or Herceg Novi marinas along the way, and that gets discussed in advance.
If you are still choosing between a private charter, a group boat and a boat without crew, the difference is set out point by point here. Prices by duration, route stops and open dates are on our Tivat yacht rental page. Tell us what departure time suits you and we will say which route works at that hour.
Frequently asked questions
The marina has covered paid parking right at the entrance, roughly €5 per day. We send the exact location pin over WhatsApp the day before, so nobody hunts for the entrance from the road. Leaving the car for the day is normal practice for charter guests.
Fifteen minutes before departure is enough to walk from the parking to the pontoon and board without rushing. If it is a western day with the Blue Cave, departure is at nine in the morning, which means arriving by 8:45.
Towels, ice, water and fruit are aboard, along with two bathrooms with hot showers, paddleboards, masks and an underwater scooter. Worth bringing yourself: sunscreen, a hat and swimwear. Everything else is already laid out.
The captain decides. If going out is not safe, we move the charter to any free date at no cost and with no cancellation fee. We watch the forecast two days ahead and get in touch ourselves if a risk appears.
