The city of Cetinje is considered the cultural capital of Montenegro. But everything here is not so clear. I’ll tell you about the sights in Cetinje, restaurants, give tips and recommendations on visiting the city, how to get here.
Table of contents:
- Cetinje: general information about the city
- How to get there
- Accommodation and the best restaurants in Cetinje
- Attractions in Cetinje
- Travel Tips
It will be difficult for you to plan your dream trip to Montenegro without these websites
Cetinje: general information about the city
Some facts about this city:
- The city was founded only in 1441. It is a very young city by Montenegrin standards. Most cities in Montenegro appeared on the map one and a half thousand years earlier.
- Despite this, Cetinje managed to become for a while the first capital of Montenegro
- The city’s population today: about 14 thousand people
- Map coordinates: 42.38963025930205, 18.92406112987032. An attentive reader has noticed that the city is not located on the coast, but 30 km from it in the mountains.
Good to know:
In the Constitution of Montenegro, the city is assigned the status of “the historical capital of the state.” And Podgorica is the “acting capital of Montenegro”
For a detailed overview of Podgorica and whether tourists should go there, read the article at the link.
You also need to know that the city was not destroyed either during the First World War or during the Second World War. Its center, the historical part remained untouched. And today the streets of Cetinje look the same as in the 18th-19th century.
How to get to Cetinje
The city is located near the capital, the coast and the main tourist resorts of Montenegro. Literally 40 km from Cetinje or 40 minutes by car and you will be in Kotor, Budva, Podgorica, Becici and so on.
The vast majority of tourists who visit the city reach Cetinje by
- car, private or rental
- as a tour group. Excursion groups come to Cetinje on the way to other attractions in outskirts of town, and not purposefully.
- All excursions in the route which include a visit to Cetinje, see this link.
- And on the bus. Buses run frequently all day long:
- Podgorica – Cetinje. About 30 buses a day every 30 minutes. Travel time 45 minutes. Ticket price – 3 euros.
- Budva – Cetinje. About 30 buses a day every 30-35 minutes. Travel time 40 minutes. Ticket price – 3 euros.
- Kotor – Cetinje. About 20 buses a day every 40-50 minutes. Travel time 1.5 hours. Ticket price – 5-6.5 euros.
- Where to find the schedule and how to buy bus tickets in Montenegro, read the link.
Accommodation and the best restaurants in Cetinje
Of course, Cetinje is not a city that attracts thousands of tourists. There is nothing to do here for more than 2-3 hours. Tour guides who bring groups here also know this, and then they go further to interesting places. Therefore, few people stop here for the night. But if you decide to find accommodation here, then there will be no problems. The choice is large, and the prices are lower than in the resorts of the coast.
Rating of popular apartments and good hotels in Cetinje. You can click on any option from the list, view photos, read reviews and find out prices for your dates.
And at the end of the article there are links to resources where you will find the most complete database of accommodation options in Montenegro.
Now about food. The town is small, there are a lot of cafes, you won’t have any problems having a delicious dinner. Below are three cafes that I really like. There are big servings, there are all the traditional dishes of Montenegrin cuisine, and the prices are very low, well, or just low 🙂
So, the best restaurants of Cetinje and budget ones:
- Pecenjara Verige: 42.39786461742005, 18.921861298095436
- Restaurant Kole: 42.392065389906854, 18.92177336828624
- Konoba Korzo (Konoba is a Montenegrin tavern): 42.38791816403848, 18.925640559713482
Attractions in Cetinje
And this is the most important section of the entire article, why tourists come here. There is a lot of information on the Internet like the TOP 30 attractions of Cetinje, or what to visit in Cetinje in 2 days. Are you seriously? It’s hard to find sights here for two hours… In any tourist city, Kotor or Budva, you would not even pay attention to such locations that are put on the first lines of the “must see” list here
Below is a city map of all the main attractions of Cetinje.
The map shows 16 major attractions of Cetinje. I will list them below for convenience, and I will separately indicate what tourists can visit:
- National Museum of Montenegro
- King Nikola’s Museum
- Biljarda. I recommend to go here, this is the royal mini-museum of King Njegosh. His personal belongings are exhibited here, you can find out about his hobby (there is a billiard table, the first in Montenegro). In general, this one is interesting among all museums.
- Coordinates: 42.3876869326603, 18.923324896741352
- The ticket costs 3 euros.
- Check the official website for the latest information and hours of operation: https://narodnimuzej.me/posjeta-njegosev-muzej-biljarda/
- Ethnographical museum
- Relief map of Montenegro. Similar maps can be found in geography classrooms in schools. And here they take 1 euro for the entrance to a small room with such map.
- Monument
- Art gallery
- Money Museum. The name is interesting, but nothing special inside.
- Mausoleum of Njegus, but it is located not in the city but in Lovcen park. I will tell about it separately below.
- The Mausoleum of Bishop Danilo
- The house where the Njegos was born
- Cetinje Monastery. This is the main attraction of the city and tourists come here to visit it. And this monastery is one of the most important shrines in Montenegro, along with Ostrog.
- An overview of the monasteries of Montenegro for those who are interested in this topic.
- And then the Church
- Church
- More Church
- And another church
Important:
If you are not very interested in church and museum topics, then plan one hour to visit Cetinje. Walk along the main pedestrian street, have lunch at a local restaurant. There isn’t much else to do here.
Almost 90-95% of tourists visit the city by way. It is located on the way between important Montenegrin sights. Best itinerary for the day:
- Lovcen National Park with observation decks and the mausoleum of the ruler Njegosh on the top of the mountain. Detailed overview of the park at the link.
- From Mount Lovcen to the first capital of Montenegro – Cetinje – 20 km.
- And after lunch and a walk around the city, a trip to Lipa cave – the largest karst cave in Montenegro. An overview of our visit at the link. It is only 4 km from here to the Lipa Cave.
Travel Tips
Cetinje is a historic town and one of the religious centers of Montenegro. Important historical decisions for the country were made here. And the Montenegrins must save this place for their descendants. However, most tourists have nothing to do here, they will simply get bored.
It is important to understand:
- The history of this city began only in the 15th century. And it began to grow and develop actively in the 18th century. There is no medieval architecture, fortresses, castles like in Kotor or Budva.
- There is no sea and beaches here
- The main attractions of the city are the monastery and churches. The city is on the route of all Serbian-Montenegrin pilgrimage tours. I recommend coming here to those who like the religious-church type of recreation.
In conclusion: Cetinje is not a center of attraction for tourists. But this is a small, calm and cozy town. Where to go on the road between the sights. Have lunch in one of the national restaurants and take a walk along the main pedestrian street of the city. Come here with absolutely no expectations. And then this city will leave only pleasant memories in your memory.
Resources to help you plan your dream trip to Montenegro
- Flights at the best prices with discounts
- Car rental in Montenegro (cheaper – only by bus):
- Discovery Cars – a large international resource
- LocalRent – work with local rental companies. Leader in car rental in Montenegro.
- Hotels and apartments all over the country: Booking
- Tours, excursions and activities (including extreme ones):
- Comprehensive travel insurance: EKTA
- eSIM virtual card in Montenegro
- Taxi and transfers from Montenegro airports: Intui.Travel