Ulcinj
A sandy town beach with a shallow bottom, handy for small children. The Long Beach starts further south.
Montenegro is small, so mountains, rivers and the sea fit into one family holiday. In summer the Tara is calmer and many operators take children, a path of about 3.5 kilometres circles the Black Lake, and Kolašin and Lovćen have adventure parks with courses for different ages. In the south, the Small Beach and the Long Beach in Ulcinj have fine sand and shallow water, and in winter children learn to ski on the beginner slopes of Kolašin and Vučje.
What to do in Montenegro with children: summer rafting on the Tara, the Black Lake, adventure parks in Kolašin and on Lovćen, shallow sea in Ulcinj and first steps on skis.
The north in summer: Tara and Durmitor
Rafting on the Tara runs from April to October, but July and August suit families best, when the river is calmer and there are stops for swimming. The usual trip is the one-day run from Brštanovica to Šćepan Polje. The minimum age depends on the operator and the water level, so check it when you book. The water stays below 15 °C even in summer, and a helmet, life jacket and wetsuit are compulsory for everyone.
Three kilometres from Žabljak lies the Black Lake (Crno jezero), in fact two lakes, Veliko and Malo, joined by a narrow strait. The path around it is about 3.5 kilometres long and mostly level, but has roots and stones in places, so a baby carrier works better than a pushchair.
Treetop courses and cable cars
In Kolašin, in the grounds of the Bianca hotel, an adventure park has three high-rope courses: yellow for children aged 4 to 8, blue for ages up to 14, and red, ten metres up, for older visitors. On Lovćen, at Ivanova korita, an adventure park offers zip-line challenges for visitors aged 5 to 70.
Older teenagers can try the zip lines from the Đurđevića Tara bridge, 1,050 and 824 metres long and more than 150 metres above the canyon. A gentler outing is the Kotor - Lovćen cable car: the ride takes 11 minutes, and at the top, at 1,350 metres, there is a free children's playground and marked trails.
Did you know?
At the adventure park in Kolašin the yellow course is meant for children aged 4 to 8, the blue for those up to 14, and the red, ten metres up, for older visitors.
Sea for the little ones
For small children the easiest sea is in Ulcinj. At the Small Beach (Mala plaža), below the Old Town, the sand is the finest on the coast and the bottom stays shallow far out. Further south is the Long Beach (Velika plaža), 13 kilometres of sand to the Bojana river, with room to spare even in August.
Winter with children
Kolašin 1600 has a beginners' conveyor, a children's ski lift and a ski school, and a bus runs daily from town to the ski centres. The small ski centre of Vučje, 20 kilometres from Nikšić towards Žabljak, has gentle slopes for beginners and families.
