Hiking the Vrmac Ridge Trail from Kotor to Tivat

The Vrmac Massif resembles a giant, green-sprinkled Toblerone bar emerging from the sea, separating Kotor and Tivat with its rugged hillsides.

You can explore this Montenegro natural beauty in different ways as there are several trailheads and interconnected trails with different levels of difficulty. You’ll enjoy scenic views of the bay and the surrounding mountains and walk around an abandoned fort and historic villages.

I started this hike at the trailhead in Muo (the town across Kotor) and ended up in Donja Lastva, Tivat.

This is a day hike, point-to-point (it starts and ends at different points). But you can do shorter hikes to several points of interest and access them in different ways. I divided the route in sections and included a map and tips for alternatives.

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This is how to hike the Vrmac Ridge Trail in Montenegro

Table of Contents

Total Hike Summary

Length: 15+Kms (9.3+ miles)

Duration: 7-8 hours

Level of Difficulty: Moderate

The Vrmac Trailhead near Kotor

The closest Vrmac trailhead to Kotor is only a 15-minute walk south from Old Town, right when you reach the town of Muo. Along the main road that embraces the coastline you’ll find the sign (Pješačka staza Vrmac) marking the access point, which will take you up through a residential neighbourhood.

A street sign indicating the trailhead for the Vrmac Ridge trail — If you’re walking from Kotor, turn left when you see this sign

A quiet narrow paved street going uphill with cars parked on the right — You’ll walk uphill through the town of Muo

Follow the trail markers – red circles with a white centre or a white line between two red lines and sometimes just red or white arrows- as you meander a couple of alleys and go up several flights of stairs.

A man going up concrete stair on the streets with a red and white trail marker drawn on a stone wall on the left — Red and white trail markers like this one will help you with navigation

A set of stairs leading to an alley with houses on the right — You’ll go through alleyways and more stairs

At the end of the uneven stairs pictured below you’ll see on your left Road P22 making a sharp curve, on your right a private driveway, and ahead of you a short rocky path with a bunch of pomegranate trees.

Uneven stairs going up the side of a hill — The uneven stairs along the hillside that will drop you at the switchbacks

Stairs ending at sharp curve on a mountain road — The uneven stairs end here, with road P22 on your left…

A dirt patch and trees across a driveway — …and the access to the switchbacks on the rocky path, on the other side of the driveway

Near the trees, to the right, you’ll see some big rocks marked with white paint. Climb over the rocks to step on the switchbacks that will take you to the ridge where you can visit the fort.

Mayra's finger pointing to a location on a group of trees — That’s where you want to go

Big rocks with painted signs and trees on the other side — Go up to the big rocks with paint and step into the other side

A path with flat rocks on a trail with big trees — You’re now at the bottom of the Vrmac switchbacks (Franz Joseph Stairs)

See the map below for the start and end point of the section I just described and the entire route divided in sections:

The Vrmac Switchback Trail to the Fort (Franz Joseph Stairs)

A man standing on a rocky trail in the mountains with pine trees and a view of surrounding mountains — The scenery along the Vrmac switchbacks (Franz Joseph Stairs)

You’ll now ascend along the hillside on a series of rocky and sometimes narrow switchbacks that run through a beautiful pine forest that grows thicker the higher you go.

A trail with flat rocks along a hill with pine trees — The trail can be narrow at times with overgrown vegetation

Mayra on a mountain trail with big trees — The path on the upper section is smoother

This is a nice section of the hike, with great views of Kotor Old Town, Dobrota, and the mountainous background.

High View of a coastal town in the mountain from a trail — View of Kotor Old Town and Muo from the Vrmac switchbacks

Distant view of a town at the foot of a mountain on a bay — View of Dobrota across the Bay of Kotor

If you turn left after you complete the last -and long- leg you’ll walk past a farm and head towards Fort Vrmac. You’ll probably run into some pigs and goats roaming around some abandoned buildings on site.

A man standing next to a pig on a field — You may run into farm animals on your way to the fort

An abandoned single story building in a field — You’ll walk past some abandoned buildings with lots of trash inside

A few more steps will take you to the fortress.

Hike Summary:
Length: 3.3 Kms (2 miles)
Duration: 2.25 hours
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Note: these switchbacks are not the same as the ones of the Ladder of Kotor. That’s a different trail that starts north of Old Town Kotor. Check out my post about hiking the Ladder of Kotor.

Fort Vrmac (Tvđrava Vrmac)

A man standing next to an abandoned 2-storey fort with many windows — Fort Vrmac

Fort Vrmac was built in 1860 by the Austro-Hungarian Empire when it took over Kotor. The concrete and stone building was then repaired after being bombed in WWI.

Taking into consideration that it has been abandoned since the end of the Yugoslavia era, it’s not in such bad shape. At least on the outside.

We ventured a few feet into the dark, smelly compound and turned around after seeing crumbling floors open to voids. Kind of creepy. Nope! Back to the hike.

A wide arched entrance to a fort with a metal bar door — Planning to go in? Bring a flashlight

Walk towards the road to the right of the fort to enjoy a view of Tivat and the airport runway, the Luštica Peninsula, and Herceg Novi.

View of a bay with mountains in the distance and a coastal town in the foreground — Enjoy this view of Tivat from the viewpoint near Fort Vrmac

Note: if you want to start the Vrmac Ridge hike from Fort Vrmac you can reach the fort by car from a road off P22.

Hike from Fort Vrmac to Sveti Ilija

View of a ridge with green vegetation and mountains in the distance — The Vrmac Ridge

Retrace your steps, go past the farm, and walk straight along Trail #749 heading north. You’ll soon find a fork on the route. We followed the path on the right as we wanted to be closer to the Kotor side.

You can also take the one on the left, which will eventually connect to the one on the right if you keep right at every fork (you can also complete it as a loop if you don’t want to hike all the way to Gornja Lastva).

This is the easiest section of the trail as you’ll be walking along the Vrmac ridge. The path is made of small rocks, with a gentle slope, and with clear patches here and there that let you catch great views of both the Kotor and the Tivat sides.

A man walking on a flat rocky path among tall trees — The first section of the Vrmac ridge leading to Sveti Iljia

View of a mountain across a bay with coastal towns — View of the inner side of the bay of Kotor from Vrmac

High view of a bay beyond a mountain ridge — You can also catch a view of the Tivat side

A man walking on a rocky trail with medium size trees on both sides — The wide trail towards the summit

Around 4 Kms (2.5 miles) and about 2 hours later, you’ll reach Sveti Ilija: the highest elevation in Vrmac with an altitude of 785 metres (2,575 ft.). There’s a big concrete platform on site surrounded by jagged rocks. At some point there were plans to build another fort here but it never happened.

This was a great place to take a break and delight in the scenery of the bay of Kotor in several directions and the small towns dotting its foothills.

Mayra standing on a concrete platform at the top of a mountain with a mountain system across a bay in the background — When you reach this concrete platform you’ve made it to Sveti Ilija

View of a mountain ridge with a bay in the distance — View of the Kotor bay towards the north

High View of a karst mountain surrounding a bay — The iconic view of the bay of Kotor from Sveti Ilija

You’ll also have a good view of inland Tivat and the ridge you just walked on. You can see the trail here and there.

Distant view of a town nestled in a mountain valley — A distant view of inland Tivat

A mountain ridge with more mountains seen in the background — I loved this view of the Vrmac ridge

Note: you can also reach Sveti Ilija by mountain bike.

Hike Summary:
Length: 4.2 Kms (2.6 miles)
Duration: 2 hours
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Want more amazing hikes in Montenegro? Durmitor National Park is a great destination for hikers.
Book this hiking day trip, with a 5/5 rating based on more than 60 reviews.

Hike from Sveti Ilija to Gornja Lastva

After you leave Sveti Ilija the rocky path gets rougher and soon after you’ll be going downhill, walking on loose big rocks that make the descent a little bit tricky. Hiking shoes (or boots if you want extra balance) and hiking sticks will make your life easier.

Along the way we stopped to admire some shiny, beautiful, greenish blue iridescent dung beetles.

A man walking on a wide hiking trail in a mountain forest — The rocks get bigger on your way from Sveti Ilija to Gornja Lastva

A blue beetle on the ground over a rock — One of the beautiful spring dor beetles (spring dumbledor) we saw

We followed the trail markers and signs for trail #749b/749mb towards the historic village of Gornja Lastva, where the first settlement occured many centuries ago.

With its stone alleyways you’ll feel like the place is stuck in time and that’s totally intentional as the locals want to preserve their architectural heritage. Most buildings are from the 19th century. Some have been restored, some still need reconstruction.

Some are older, such as the Church of male Gospe built in 1410.

A man walking down a narrow alley with stones on the ground and half walls, in a forest setting — The charming alleyways of Gornja Lastva in Vrmac

A path covered in grass with a half wall in stone to the left and trees on both sides — Trees everywhere

The façade of a small ancient church with the dates 1410 and 2010 in the entrance — The Church of male Gospe, dating back to the early 15th century

The place is surrounded by abundant fields of pomegranate and olive trees, a sign of an important pillar of the local economy: artisanal olive oil production.

From Gornja Lastva you’ll start seeing views of Tivat’s marina.

A forest of olive trees on a hill — Olive trees cover the surrounding hills

High view of a marina from a mountain saddle with a hill in the background — Enjoy the views of Tivat’s marina from Gornja Lastva

Note: if you have time to spare you can take a spur trail (before arriving to Gornja Lastva) that will take you to the Church of Sveti Vid, another ancient church with great views. You can also take another route and descend via Gornji Stoliv and wander around the abandoned stone village founded centuries ago.

Hike Summary:
Length: 5.2 Kms (3.2 miles)
Duration: 2.5 hours
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Don’t have time to complete the hike? You can go up Vrmac along off roads on a 4×4 vehicle for a walking tour of the historic town of Gornji Stoliv, a taste of local juices, cheese, and prosciutto, and scenic views of the bay.
Explore Vrmac with this tour, with a rating of 4.9/5 based on more than 30 reviews.

Hike from Gornja Lastva to Donja Lastva (Tivat)

A signpost with a trail marker saying "-Vrmac- Gornja Lastva" and plaques indicating routes, distances, and level of difficulty — These signs along the trail make navigation easier

This is the last section of the hike (trail 749mb), or the first if you start from this side. It’s a paved, downhill road with closer views of Tivat’s marina, so it’s easy peasy.

A downhill paved road in a mountain covered with trees — A paved road connects Gornja Lastva with Donja Lastva

View of a town with buildings and a marina — You’ll enjoy closer views of Tivat and the marina

Note: If you’re hiking from Tivat you have the option of driving up to Gornja Lastva and start from there.

When you arrive at Donja Lastva, you can walk south on the main road (Jadranska magistrala) and in less than two minutes you’ll find a bus stop where you can hop on a bus (Blue Line) that will take you back to Kotor. Or hail a taxi.

Hike Summary:
Length: 3.3 Kms (2 miles)
Duration: 1 hour
Level of Difficulty: Easy

An Alternative: Hike to/from Lepetane

View of a hill and a coastal town across a bay from another hill with trees and houses in the foreground — View of Kamenari from Lepetane

One of the several trailheads to go up the Vrmac ridge is located in the small town of Lepetane. You could do a longer hike from Kotor and end here instead of Donja Lastva, or go up Lepetane as a separate hike to enjoy different views of the Kotor bay (which is what we did on a separate day).

We went up at Lepetane, but we didn’t connect to Gornja Lastva as the trail going that way was quite overgrown and to make matters worse the signage wasn’t the best. If you plan to tackle that route, download the regional map on maps.me so you can have offline access. It saved our behinds when we got lost.

To find the trailhead you’ll go up the narrow street that starts at the corner where the main coastal road meets the ferry harbour. You’ll see the small Church of Sv Ane at the bottom of the street, on the left side (see the map included for reference).

Walk along the uphill street (you’ll see trail markers along the way) to find the sign for trail #757. You’ll go up rough stone steps and soon enter an enchanting path in the forest with plenty of shade until you’re out in the open.

A man stepping on a hiking trail with a signpost in the foreground and the number 757 on it — The trailhead to Vrmac in Lepetane

Mayra standing on a trail with steps formed by big rocks and shaded by a forest — I loved this section where the forest creates a tunnel

We ended up right above the ferry harbour, from where we enjoyed great views of Kamenari across the water, of the outer part of the bay of Kotor bordering the Luštica Peninsula, and the inner part towards Risan.

High view of a mountain and a ferry crossing a hoarbour — We ended up right above the ferry harbour, facing Kamenari

Mayra at a viewpoint up in the mountain overlooking a bay and mountains with coastal towns — Enjoying the view of the outer part of the bay of Kotor

View of mountain hillsides crisscrossing a bay and a mountain system in the background — View towards Risan, in the inner part of the bay of Kotor

From Lepetane you can connect to the network of trails across Vrmac and end up in Tivat or Kotor, or just take it easy and enjoy the views from here.

Where to Stay near Vrmac

You can stay in Kotor or in the small towns at the foothills of Vrmac. Here are some highly-rated options:

Kotor Nest (Old Town Kotor): guesthouse with shared kitchen, dining table and lounge room. Comfortable rooms with AC, some with ensuite bathroom, some with private external bathroom, and some shared. Some rooms have a private kitchen and terrace. No elevator.
Stay at Kotor Nest, with a rating of 9.1/10 based on more than 1,090 reviews.

Muo Apartments (Muo): sea view units with a well-equipped kitchen, dining area, washing machine, flat-screen T.V., and AC. Free parking and outdoor pool on site.
Check prices and availability; rating of 9.3/10 based on more than 175 reviews.

Hyatt Regency Kotor Bay (Donji Stoliv): stay here for a luxury resort experience. The modern rooms (with sea, pool, or mountain views) have a desk, sitting area, minibar, flat-screen T.V., and AC. Free parking and breakfast included.
Stay at the Hyatt, with a rating of 9.1/10 based on more than 1,990 reviews.

The mountainous geography of Montenegro is ground for many scenic hiking trails like the Vrmac ridge. Do you have time to include another trail with great views in your Kotor itinerary? Check out the Kotor Fortress trail.

YOU MAY ALSO WANT TO READ

How to Plan Your Visit to Stunning Durmitor National Park

5 Beautiful Hiking Trails to See the Best of Durmitor National Park

Durmitor Ring: the Most Scenic Drive in Montenegro

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