Five Parks: The Montenegro National Parks Journey

After arrival at Tivat Airport, a private transfer brings you to Kotor, at the inner end of the bay. In the late afternoon, your guide walks you through the UNESCO-listed Old Town, past the Sea Gate and St. Tryphon’s Cathedral, and hands you your Park Passport for the week ahead. Welcome dinner at restaurant in the heart of Old town, with the illuminated walls of the Old Town.

Overnight: 4★ hotel, Kotor

You start early, while the stone path is still in shade. The Ladder of Kotor, a 19th-century caravan route, zigzags up the mountainside in 72 switchbacks, with every turn revealing more of the bay. At the top, you continue to Njeguši, the village of Montenegro’s royal dynasty, for a lunch of smoked prosciutto, cheese and homemade bread.

In the afternoon, you drive up to Jezerski Vrh and climb the 461 steps to the Njegoš Mausoleum, where the view stretches from the Adriatic to Lake Skadar. Your first stamp goes in the Park Passport before the transfer down to Lake Skadar.

Overnight: Lakeside hotel, Virpazar

The largest lake in the Balkans is a wetland of international importance and home to the Dalmatian pelican. A private boat takes you through channels of water lilies to the small fishing villages, with time to watch herons, cormorants and pelicans along the way. Lunch is fresh lake fish at a lakeside restaurant.

In the afternoon, you walk up to the Besac Fortress above Virpazar and continue on a trail through the stone villages and vineyards of Crmnica, finishing with a tasting of Vranac at a family winery.

Overnight: Lakeside hotel, Virpazar

A long, scenic transfer takes you north through the city of Kolasin with walking tour in the city and the Lim valley to Plav and Gusinje, at the foot of the Prokletije. After check-in, an easy afternoon walk takes you to the Ali Pasha Springs, where icy water rises from the rock, and along the shore of Lake Plav.

Overnight: Family-run mountain hotel, Gusinje

Today is the wildest of the trip. You walk into the Grebaja valley, ringed by granite walls more than 2,000 m high, then climb through beech forest to the Volušnica viewpoint, facing the jagged Karanfili peaks. Lunch is a picnic of local cheese, bread and cured meat on the meadow. Your third stamp is earned here.

Overnight: Family-run mountain hotel, Gusinje

A forest trail leads up to Hridsko Lake, a glacial lake hidden among pines and rock at about 1,970 m. Swim if you dare, then walk back down for lunch. In the afternoon, you transfer to Kolašin, a mountain town at the foot of Bjelasica, and dinner at a traditional restaurant: kačamak, cicvara, roasted lamb and homemade pies by the fire.

Overnight: 4★ hotel, Kolašin

Biogradska Gora protects one of the last primeval forests in Europe. You row across Biogradsko Lake in a traditional wooden boat, then walk the lakeshore trail beneath trees that are centuries old. A jeep then takes you up to the Bendovac viewpoint for the view over the whole forest. Fourth stamp.

After lunch by the lake, you drive north to Žabljak, stopping at the Đurđevića Tara Bridge above the deepest canyon in Europe. Those who want an extra thrill can take the Zipline across.

Overnight: 4★ hotel, Žabljak

From the Sedlo Pass, you climb through a lunar landscape of limestone to Bobotov Kuk (2,523 m), with the whole Durmitor massif spread around you. Prefer something gentler? Your guide leads a lake loop from Black Lake to Zminje Lake instead. In the evening, the farewell dinner ends with your fifth stamp and a toast to all five parks.

Overnight: 4★ hotel, Žabljak

After breakfast, your private transfer takes you to Podgorica Airport, about 2.5 hours away.