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Best time to visit Montenegro

The best time to go to Montenegro is in June and July, when the mountainous regions and Lake Skadar are both crowd- and cloud-free, and perfect for a summer holiday. Temperatures remain pleasant into autumn, so the season for hiking, biking and kayaking extends right to November. Most people go to Montenegro in June and July; the coast can get very crowded in August too, so be warned.

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Best time to visit Montenegro

People think Montenegro is all Med and no mountains. In fact, it has both, giving it the perfect concoction of climates.

June and July is a great time to go to Montenegro to enjoy the mountainous national parks. Whilst Kotor on the coast can reach 30°C in summer, inland Cetinje averages a pleasant 22°C. Lake Skadar has its own microclimate as it is surrounded by mountains, so it’s not quite as baking in summer but it’s warm enough for swimming. Parts of the coastline, however, can feel very crowded in the summer months. Hikers ramble happily in Montenegro until November. Cyclists and kayakers will find the perfect weather for their pursuits in autumn, too.

Call us for the best time to go on a Montenegro Holiday

When to visit Montenegro, month by month

January in Montenegro

Snow in the mountains

Christmas celebrations

Cold on the coast

It’s freezing in Montenegro in January. Kotor’s average low is -1°C but inland, up in the snow-clad mountains, the average low is closer to -10°C and can get down to -20°C. It’s a peak time for winter sports, and people head to the resorts of Savin Kuk in Durmitor National Park or Kolasin. Also: Merry Christmas! The Orthodox Christian calendar celebrates on 7 January.

February in Montenegro

Winter sports

Cold coast and colder mountains

Carnivals & festivals

It may be winter, with average highs in Kotor of just 8°C, but the mimosa is blooming – or at least it is at the Mimosa Festival in Herceg Novi. Elsewhere in Montenegro in February, there are plenty of carnivals adding a splash of pre-spring colour. In the mountains, the continental climate brings the cold. You could come for a winter half-term holiday to ski, snowshoe and even walk across a frozen lake.

February is great for our family skiing holiday in Montenegro

March in Montenegro

Spring flowers

Winter sports

Quiet month

Montenegro in March is in quiet transition before tourists and cruise ships begin to arrive. The weather can be mixed, but in lowland areas you’ll experience spring – camellias bloom and there’s even a festival celebrating them. The mountains are covered in snow still and you can enjoy a snowy winter holiday well into the month.

April in Montenegro

Tourist season begins

Multi activity trips

Guided cycling

The main tourist season is just beginning. Our cycling, multi activity and Lake Skadar canoeing holidays start in Montenegro in April. It’s a nice month for birdwatching – it’s breeding season for Dalmatian pelicans – and the first orchids start to appear in the south. The Bay of Kotor sees an average high of 16°C; it’s not beach weather yet and the sea is still cold.

May in Montenegro

Sea kayaking

Small ship cruising

Special interest holidays

Come to Montenegro in May for the start of the season on the water: sea kayaking and small ship cruises run from now, as well as white-water rafting excursions, which take advantage of rivers swollen by the snow melt. This is a good time of year for painting holidays, yoga holidays and for enjoying the coast; the sea temperature gets to a lovely 25°C by the end of the month.

May is a good time for our Balkans by rail holiday

June in Montenegro

Beach trips

Waterlilies on Lake Skadar

Mountain walking

Hit the beach in Montenegro in June before it gets too crowded next month. Snow finally goes in the mountains, opening up more hiking trails. Our more mountain-based trips run from now and river rafting becomes less extreme, with lower water levels. Alternatively, kayak among beautiful open waterlilies on Lake Skadar.

June and September are the best months to avoid the crowds yet still enjoy wonderful weather.

– Emma Heywood co-founder of our partner Undiscovered Montenegro

July in Montenegro

Family adventure holidays

Quiet mountains

Busy summer holidays

Temperatures can get to average highs of 28°C in Montenegro in July, and it’s the driest, sunniest month in Kotor. On the Adriatic coast, beach bars heave and the sea reaches a high of 25°C. July and August are very hot for coastal hiking and the plain around Podgorica is baking in summer. The inland mountains offer welcome relief, keeping in the low 20°Cs. They are also nice and peaceful.

July is a great time for our activity holiday in Montenegro

August in Montenegro

Harvest and wine festivals

Street parties

Busy summer holidays

High summer has a festival atmosphere. It is extremely busy on the Adriatic coast; accommodation is expensive and books up very fast. It’s still very hot in Montenegro in August, but the mountains remain peaceful and cooler, great for hiking and activity holidays. Our walking trips run, but with fewer departures in lowland areas because of the heat.

August is a good time for our Montenegro high-adrenaline adventure

September in Montenegro

Sunny and relaxed

Harvest and wine festivals

Last chance for a cruise

Shepherds move their herds down the mountains, and grape pickers shift the grapes off the vines. South and central Montenegro ripen and ready for harvest: pomegranates, persimmons, quinces and cherries – all good inspiration for a painting holiday. Our cycling holidays pick up again in Montenegro in September, but this is the last month for small ship cruising.

September is a good time for our painting holiday in Montenegro

October in Montenegro

Last month for cycling trips

Mountain hiking

Cooler temperatures

The sea is warmer than the land in Montenegro in October. This is the last month for a comfortable sea swim (the water temperature is around 21°C), whilst the average air temperature in Kotor is 18°C. This is the last proper month of the tourist season. Many mountain hiking and guided cycling tours stop this month.

November in Montenegro

Coastal walking holidays

Very quiet

Some rain about

Walkers can ramble happily in Montenegro in November, but expect to see a few more rain showers around this month. With many small group trips ended, this is a quiet month: many tourists have left, cruise ships stop calling, restaurants and hotels close, and local people can enjoy their cities in peace.

December in Montenegro

Winter sports

Snowy mountains

Cold on the coast

A second, smaller tourist season starts for winter sports. Snow is likely to fall in Montenegro in December, especially in the north. You’ll find winter snowshoeing in Biogradska Gora and Durmitor national parks is otherworldly, and ski resorts open. Meanwhile, people gather in the capital city of Podgorica to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

Kotor Weather Chart

MIN °C

MAX °C

RAIN (mm)

JAN

-1

157

FEB

139

MAR

128

APR

119

MAY

JUN

JUL

AUG

SEP

100

OCT

139

NOV

190

DEC

175

Contact Us

Call us for a chat about our holidays. We are happy to discuss your holiday and help in any way we can. No bots, queues or awful hold music.

01273 823 700 01273 823 700

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rosy@responsibletravel.com

Festivals & events

Mimosa Festival (February)

The flower parade of Praznik Mimoze – the Mimosa Festival – brings a carnival atmosphere to the coastal city of Herceg Novi in winter and reminds the town that spring is just around the corner. Schoolchildren dressed as hydrangeas and daffodils parade through the streets. There are masked balls, concerts, a traditional fish dinner and a carting race, plus lots of yellow streamers and décor to celebrate the mimosa – the flower that blooms through winter. Elsewhere in Montenegro, February brings pre-Lent carnival celebrations.

Fasinada (22 July)

Out in the bay off the shore of Perast is Our Lady of the Rocks, a man-made islet formed from sunken ships and rocks. A church is built here on the spot where legend tells that an icon of the Virgin and Christ was found. Every year, it’s tradition for men to deck small boats in greenery and take them out into the bay. The priest and mayor in the first boat throw handfuls of stones, and then everyone joins in, throwing more rocks into the water around the island to fortify its shores, whilst old songs are sung.

Kotor Summer Carnival (July & August)

Newer than its pre-Easter counterpart, summer carnival entertains Kotor’s many seasonal tourists with parades, music and festivities. Carnival groups from around the world visit to perform, but there’s also a distinctly Montenegrin flavour. Traditional Dalmatian songs are sung and – this being the coast – there’s plenty of seafood.

Boka Night (late August)

Taking place on the third Saturday in August every year, think fjord, flotillas and fireworks. The Bay of Kotor becomes a floating carnival on Boka Night, or Bokeska noc, with hundreds of decorated and illuminated boats parading in front of Kotor’s old town, Stari Grad. The party only begins when the last firework dims.

Wine & Fish Festival (December)

Ukljeva is a small species of bleak, a fish endemic to Lake Skadar that’s traditionally served smoked and dried as an appetiser with bread – and you could chase it up with a glass of Vranac, a local wine variety. For this lakeside festival in the village of Virpazar, people flock to try local wine varieties, local produce and celebrate the beauty – and riches – of the lake and the surrounding area.

Our travellers also ask…

What is the warmest month in Montenegro?

Not just warm – and downright hot in lowland areas – July and August are the warmest months in Montenegro. There’s an average high of 27°C in Budva, 28°C in Kotor, and an even warmer 31°C in Podgorica, central Montenegro. Heatwaves can bring summer temperatures to over 40°C.

What is the driest month in Montenegro?

July is the driest month in Montenegro, when some areas get only around 5cm of rain. There’s perhaps double that in Durmitor National Park, but it’s still the driest month. Montenegro's mountainous regions receive the highest amounts of rainfall in Europe. There can be rain all year round, so always have a raincoat packed.

Does it rain a lot in Montenegro?

Yes, it rains a lot in Montenegro – but that doesn’t mean it rains all the time. Rain tends to fall heavily, and not for too long, rather than pervasively all through the year. Cetinje is one of the rainiest cities in Europe, Podgorica one of the rainiest capitals, and the mountains see heavy snow in winter. Most of the precipitation falls outside May to September, when most visitors come.

Does it snow in Montenegro?

Yes, Montenegro is snowy from December to March. The mountains receive snow in winter and it can sometimes get several metres thick. However, climate change is making snowfall more unreliable and ski resorts have seen years with very little natural snowfall. Our winter holidays include activities that are not so reliant on the white stuff, like mountain biking, horse riding and winter walking.