Three nights in a room overlooking the jetty in Perast

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Twenty minutes from Kotor’s crowds lies Perast, the quietest town on the bay. We woke up on the top floor of an old stone palazzo and drank our morning coffee on the balcony while boats headed out to the island. After three nights, here’s our verdict: if you’re going to the Bay of Kotor, make Perast the place you wake up.

Why Perast rather than Kotor?

Staying in Kotor is easy, but it’s noisy: cruise ships by day, bars by night. Perast, on the other hand, is almost all yours after six in the evening. One waterfront road, a handful of restaurants and two little islands across the water.

Kotor is twenty minutes away by bus, fifteen by car. We spent our days in Kotor and came back to Perast in the evenings, so we got the best hours of both.

Where did we stay?

A small three-room guesthouse facing the jetty. Our room had stone walls and a wooden ceiling, and the window looked straight out at Our Lady of the Rocks. Breakfast was on the terrace, with the owner’s own homemade jams.

• Room: sea-view double, extra bed possible
• Breakfast: included, served on the terrace
• Parking: paid car park at the edge of town, a 5-minute walk to the guesthouse
• For families with kids: the steps are steep, so a pushchair is hard work

What did we do?

We took the first boat of the morning over to Our Lady of the Rocks; before nine, the island was nearly empty. In the afternoon we went down to Kotor’s old town, then came back to Perast for fish dinner on the jetty.

One day we drove south as far as Sveti Stefan. You can’t go onto the island itself, but the view from the lookout on the hill opposite is pure postcard.

Good to know

• July and August are very crowded; September is the best time to go.
• Restaurants start closing after nine in the evening.
• Carry cash; most of the small boat operators don’t take cards.