A Short Guide to Perast

What If You’re Staying in Perast?

Unless staying at the Heritage Grand Hotel – which has its own small carpark – your only option is to pay for the 24-hour parking or park along the road like we did.

This means factoring in €15/day extra to your budget and/or accepting the slight inconvenience if choosing to base yourself in Perast.

For total clarity, you cannot drive in to Perast at all in order to unload your luggage and there’s parking barriers to block access.

The good news is that, if you’re staying in a hotel, most of them have their own golf cart for picking up guests; you just need to confirm your arrival time after booking. Those staying in an Airbnb however will have no choice but to make the walk into the village. The distance is pretty short and mostly flat, but if you’ve got a lot of luggage this could be easier said than done – if you’re far from travelling light or have limited mobility, it may be worth considering a hotel even if you’d normally prefer an apartment.

Bus to Perast

Those without a rental car can allow themselves a little chuckle now, as you’ve probably got the better situation for reaching Perast! Indeed, even those on a road trip who are only visiting on a day trip from Kotor may wish to consider leaving the car behind and taking the bus.

The local Blue Line bus shuttles along the bay between Novo Naselje Skaljari – Risan, and has a dedicated stop in Perast. This is also the service to take if you’re looking to do a day trip from Kotor to Perast by bus – this is the location of the bus stop in Kotor.

you can find the timetable here but do not expect the most punctual service.

The fare is about €1.50 one-way, cash to the driver with the correct change appreciated, and the run journey 25-35 minutes depending on traffic and where you hop off.

To catch the bus back, head to the official bus stop – located here on Google Maps -but it also picks up from here.

Boats & Tours From Kotor

One of the most popular activities in the Bay of Kotor is a boat trip along its glittering coastline, and these often include Perast within the itinerary.

These last anywhere from 90 minutes to a full day, but a standard group tour lasts around three hours and costs between €25 and €35 per person, depending on the route. These are easy to arrange in Kotor, where you’ll see signs and tourist offices everywhere in the old town, but if you’d prefer to get one locked in before you arrive, the following are highly rated:

· Blue Cave and Bay of Kotor Boat Tour | Super popular three-hour tour that includes Perast, Our Lady of the Rocks, the Old Submarine Tunnel, Blue Cave and Mamula Island.

· Boat Tour to Perast & Our Lady of the Rocks | This two-hour tour is a good option for those that are a little short on time or aren’t fussed about the other attractions listed in the tour above. It’s got similarly great reviews.

If your only goal is to visit Our Lady of the Rocks, it’s usually quicker and cheaper to reach Perast first and hop on one of the small boats that depart once they’re full. Boat tours from Perast include €40 per person for the Blue Cave (2.5 hours) or €90/hour for a private tour of Boka Bay.