Sveti Stefan Island

The history of Sveti Stefan Island has seen both remarkable rises and dramatic declines. From being one of the world’s finest resorts to falling into neglect, its story is full of twists and turns. In this article, you’ll discover everything you need to know about Sveti Stefan in Montenegro and what it looks like today. I’ll share all the essential details that will be interesting for tourists.

Table of contents:

• Sveti Stefan Island: Overview & How to Get There
• The History of Sveti Stefan Before the 20th Century
• The Golden Age of Sveti Stefan Under Tito’s Yugoslavia
• Sveti Stefan Today
• Hotels, Prices, Beaches, Tours & Restaurants

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Sveti Stefan Island: Overview

Sveti Stefan, or Saint Stephen, is a true rocky islet, measuring approximately 200 by 100 meters.

Interesting to know:

Technically, Sveti Stefan isn’t an island. It is connected to the mainland by a natural sandbar, making it a peninsula. However, despite this, all official names and references call it an island—one of many unique exceptions made for this extraordinary place.

Sveti Stefan is the postcard image of Montenegro, appearing on nearly every promotional material, souvenir, and travel brochure featuring the country.

Getting here is easy. The island is located in the heart of the Budva Riviera.

• It’s just 7 km from Budva, Montenegro’s largest resort town. You can take any bus heading toward Petrovac, Bar, or Ulcinj—they run every 30 minutes and pass by Sveti Stefan. Alternatively, you can arrive by boat, which costs around €30 for a two-hour trip.
• For an even quicker route, travel from Bečići, a suburb of Budva. The distance is just 5 km, and some active travelers even walk the scenic route in about an hour.

• 👉 Comprehensive Budva Guide: Top Attractions, Best Restaurants, Beaches & More
  👉 Bečići Travel Guide: Restaurants, Beaches & Landmarks

Did you know?

Sveti Stefan isn’t just an island—it’s also a small village on the mainland. Officially, the village has around 300 residents, though in its heyday, the population reached 450.

📍 Coordinates of Sveti Stefan Island: 42.25590408325916, 18.89137791872732

The History of Sveti Stefan Before the 20th Century

A detailed history of the island spans 58 pages on Wikipedia, but here are the key highlights that explain how Sveti Stefan became world-famous and later lost its status.

• The first recorded mention of Sveti Stefan dates back to 1441.
• At that time, the local Paštrovići clan successfully ambushed a group of Turkish soldiers returning from a raid on Kotor.
• As a reward for their victory, they kept the loot from Kotor and decided to build a fortress and a church on an uninhabited rocky reef, which later became known as Sveti Stefan.
• Over time, houses were built around the church, and the settlement grew into an important trading and transport hub.
• By the early 19th century, the island had around 100 houses and 400 residents.
• However, by the mid-19th century, Sveti Stefan started to decline. Many locals migrated to larger cities or even emigrated to Europe and America.
• The Balkan Wars and the two World Wars devastated the island. By the mid-20th century, it was nearly abandoned, with fewer than 20 residents remaining.

The Golden Age of Sveti Stefan Under Tito’s Yugoslavia

In the 1950s, a high-ranking Yugoslav official visited the island. He was given a choice: to transform the ruins into either a museum or an art gallery to attract tourists.

At the time, tourism in Yugoslavia barely existed, but he had a much more ambitious idea—turning Sveti Stefan into a world-renowned luxury island-hotel.

The project quickly gained momentum:

• 1955 – The hotel project was officially approved.
• That same year, all remaining residents were relocated to newly built housing on the mainland—whether they liked it or not.
• The entire island was restored and rebuilt according to 15th-century architectural plans, preserving its original medieval style. The only new additions were three swimming pools, which, of course, didn’t exist in the 15th century.

In 1960, the Sveti Stefan island-hotel opened its doors to its first guests. It was a 5-star resort, immediately setting a new standard for luxury.

It’s important to know:

Sveti Stefan was a private, closed-off hotel where outsiders couldn’t enter. Even for its time, the prices were exceptionally high. Guests had to prepay nearly a year in advance, an unheard-of concept back then. The rooms were small and compact, as the island’s historic architecture didn’t allow for large, luxurious suites.

However, this exclusivity appealed to the rich and famous.

Here are just a few A-list guests who stayed at Sveti Stefan in its first 30 years:

• Yuri Gagarin
• Sophia Loren
• Vladimir Vysotsky
• Princess Margaret of the UK
• Sylvester Stallone
• Kirk Douglas
• King Umberto II of Italy
• An Italian President
• Claudia Schiffer
• Bobby Fischer
• And many more… Some say the waiting list for a stay was 7–8 months long.

By 1964—just four years after opening—Sveti Stefan was ranked among the top 10 most exclusive hotels in the world.

In 1972, it won the “Golden Apple” award, the Oscars of the tourism industry.

These were truly golden years for the hotel.

To give you an idea of its significance: in those years, tourism in Yugoslavia was virtually non-existent. Most of the world knew little about this socialist country, and for many, Yugoslavia was associated with just three things:

1. Tito
2. Dubrovnik (now part of Croatia)
3. Sveti Stefan Hotel

Sveti Stefan Island Today

Starting around 1997, the hotel began to decline. There were many reasons, but the main one, as always, was war.

The Fall of Sveti Stefan:

• The Dissolution of Yugoslavia
• The Yugoslav Crisis
• NATO Bombing of Yugoslav Cities

All of this completely destroyed tourism in the country for ten years, and the hotel was abandoned. The government lacked the funds to restart the project.

Thus, they found a wealthy international investor, the Swiss company Aman Resorts, which manages luxury hotels worldwide. In 2009, Aman Resorts leased the island and its surrounding beaches for 30 years.

Interesting to know:

This was yet another exception made for Sveti Stefan. All beaches in Montenegro are public, but for Aman Resorts, they were made private, which greatly angered local residents. They fought for their right to access the beach in court.

In 2009, the luxurious and exclusive Aman Sveti Stefan Island Hotel reopened, completely closed off to the general public.

• 2010 – A concert by Andrea Bocelli was held on Sveti Stefan.
• 2014 – Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic held his wedding here.
• 2015 – The hotel started offering limited private tours of the island for non-guests by reservation.

Everything was going well until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. In mid-2020, the hotel was closed due to border restrictions and the lack of tourists. In 2021, Adriatic Properties took over the lease.

In 2024, a conflict escalated between the locals and Adriatic Properties over access to Queen’s Beach. The court ruled in favor of the Montenegrins, ordering Adriatic Properties to reopen the beach to the public. In response, the company halted the entire project, citing a breach of their investment agreement with the Montenegrin government, which originally stated that all beaches should be private.

As a result, as of the 2025 summer season, the hotel remains closed, and its future remains uncertain.

More rumors::

There are reports that descendants of the island’s last private owners (before it was nationalized by Yugoslavia) are trying to reclaim ownership of Sveti Stefan through the courts. They argue that the 1950s nationalization was illegal. We’ll see how that unfolds.

Hotels, Prices, Beaches, Tours & Restaurants

Here’s what the situation looked like just a few years ago and what’s happening with the beaches now.

Hotel Aman Sveti Stefan: Prices & Amenities (before 2020)

• The cheapest room cost €700 per night.
• The Presidential Suite was so in-demand that it was booked via auction. By 2020, its price exceeded €60,000 per night.
• The hotel had three pools: two for all guests and one private pool exclusively for the Presidential Suite.

How to Visit Sveti Stefan Before 2020:

1. Stay at the hotel: Rooms started at €700 per night.
2. Book a tour: Demand was enormous, groups were small, and there were strict time limits. Tours cost €25 per person.
3. Reserve a table at the restaurant: Although I never dined there, the menu suggested that a dinner for two could easily cost €500, and you might still leave feeling hungry.

Current Status (as of early 2025):

• The island does not accept guests.
• Rooms cannot be booked.
• Tours are no longer available.

Beaches of Sveti Stefan

The island itself has no beaches—it’s a rocky reef. However, three nearby beaches were included in the lease:

• Main Beaches: To the left and right of the sandbar leading to the island.
  • When the hotel was operational, anyone could access these beaches by renting a sunbed next to a celebrity.
  • Entry fee: €200 per day (hotel guests had free access).
  • Today: Both beaches are open to the public, but there are no sunbeds, umbrellas, or maintenance.
• Miločer Beach: Located 300 meters from the sandbar, it was previously part of Villa Miločer, managed by Adriatic Properties. This beach is now open.
  • Parking near Miločer Beach: €2 per hour.
• Queen’s Beach: This pink sand beach used to charge €200 for a sunbed rental in 2020. It is now free and open to all.

Important:

• All beaches are currently free.
• Future developments are uncertain. Local entrepreneurs might set up sunbeds and start charging for them.

For a list of Montenegro’s best hotels and what to expect, check out my guide here.

Final Thoughts

Sveti Stefan is highly overrated. Yes, it’s beautiful and looks great on Instagram. However, Montenegro has many similar places that are just as stunning.

Reality check: Today, you can’t enter the island—the hotel is closed.

A visit here will look like this:

1. Arrive by car.
2. Step out, admire the view.
3. Maybe swim at the nearby beach.
4. Leave.

Is it worth a special trip? Definitely not. Is it worth stopping by if you’re passing through? Absolutely yes.

For self-guided road trip routes across Montenegro, check out my travel guide.

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