Tivat is situated in the central area of the Boka Kotorska Bay and with its mild Mediterranean climate (more than 200 sunny days), cristal clear sea, always attracted people.
Tivat stretches 42 kms with a population of 15,000 and it is one of the youngest cities on the Montenegrin coast. The town is quite small and is based around the centre and waterfront. If you’re staying in town, you can easily get around on foot. It’s a colorful town that will attract you to visit again and enjoy the pleasant climate favorable to the tourism industry.
Every year thousands of tourist worldwide come across with Tivat to enjoy nature. Attractive both in winter and in summer, with a pleasant Mediterranean climate, rich vegetation of palms, agaves, pine trees, bay trees, rosemary and lavender and with its three islands overwhelming everybody with various pleasant smells.
The history can be divided into four main periods: Illyrian, Roman-Byzantine, Serbian and Austrian. On the coast of the Bay of Tivat there are archeological remains from all of these periods as well as existing monuments of ancient architecture and written historical documents.
As per the legend, origin of the name of Tivat is obtained from the name of the Illyrian queen Teuta whose royal capital was in Risan and she had a summer residence in the area of present Tivat. The name can also be obtained from the names of Christian saints such as Theodorus, Theodosius, Theodotus, Thaddeus, or medieval (the 12th century ) Theudo, Teodo. The archeological locations attest that the place was occupied in antiquity with the Roman and Greek settlements. From the Illyrian period that ended in 168-7 BC with the fall of Illyrian kingdom there are very few archeological remains while more remains are from Roman period.
The period of Serbian rule began in Kotor at the end of 1185.From that time until 1370 Kotor and its district was under the rule of Serbian medieval Nemanjic dynasty. In the 13th century St. Sava, the founder of Serbian Orthodox Church, made on the Prevlaka peninsula near Tivat the seat of the Bishop of Zeta. The remains of the Monastery of St. Archangel Michael are located on this peninsula.
This monastery marked one of the most important stages in the life of the area – a period between 9th – 14th century. It is likely that originally there was a Benedictine monastery. There are still remains of the monastery. On the east side of the peninsula, there is the St. Trinity church, built in the 19th century by the countess Ekatarina Vlastelinovic. This is one of the most important natural and cultural – historical entity.
In 1420 Venice conquered Kotor District as well as peninsula Lustica together with Prevlaka. Tivat was a summer resort rulers, nobles and poets.
From the 15th century to the 18th century there were constant fights between Venice and Turks. Very important date in the history of the Kotor Bay was the fall of Venice in 1797. For the next twenty years the Kotor Bay was under different rulers until 1814 when Austrians came and stayed until their fall in 1918.
Tivat as an urban settlement has began to develop since the end of the 19th century when a military port Arsenal was built in 1889 by Austrians, and was later used as a military base of Army of Yugoslavia.
Tivat became the arsenal, naval port and shipyard. An entire century in Tivat were trained craftsmen, machinists and shipbuilders.
Presently, Tivat is a fastest growing municipality in Montenegro utterly dedicated towards the development of tourism.
With its position in the Bay of Kotor, numerous coves, peninsula Prevlaka, island St Marco, the famous beach Przno, and the Porto Montenegro marina, Tivat is listed on the tourist maps as an exceptionally attractive touristic destination.
Tivat has a typically Mediterranean climate, with mild but rainy winters and sunny and warm summers. The average yearly temperature is 15°C. This is the sunniest town in the Bay of Kotor with 200 sunny days a year. Such climatic conditions have made Tivat suitable for both summer and winter tourism.
On the Tivat Riviera the sea is clean and the air refreshingly mild. Thanks to the favorable climate and good geographical position, Tivat is rich in horticultural potential.
The exceptional climatic conditions in Tivat, made possible the growth of various examples of exotic plants which were brought by seamen from all meridians of the world.
The Large Town Park in Tivat was established in 1892 by Admiral Maximilian Daublesky Von Sterneck, as testified by an inscription on the memorial plate at the park entrance, which reads, translated from German, as: «This park was set up in 1892 by former Navz Admiral Friherr Von Sterneck. The construction was managed by ship commanders Hnatek, Padevit, Zeigler, Denning, Heinrich and C. Lanjuz, and Nedwich as the site manager».
Admiral Von Sterneck ordered all ship captains, when coming to Tivat, to bring a young tree to be planted in the Park.
According to the data of the Austrian cadaster plan from 1838, the Park was developed on the grounds of former summerhouse of Radali family, surrounded by a garden and vineyards, which disappeared while military port Arsenal was being built.
The land was made available free of charge by the Municipality of Tivat, with the signature of the Mayor of Tivat, Captain Marko Krstovic. For a long while, the park was taken care of by the navy, very much present in Tivat at the time, what gave rise to the popular name for the park, the Navy Park.
In addition to various local Mediterranean plants, different species, such as magnolia, mimosa, camellia, oleander, agave, bougainvillea, eucalyptus, Chilean fir and other, have acclimatized here because of the favorable climate.
Kotor noble families owned the land from Donja Lastva to Gradiosnica at the time of Prevlaka monastery and later at the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century.
The number of the houses – summer residences was about 30 according to some sources. People used to settled mostly at the lower parts of the west slope of Vrmac for a long time. The urban core was situated in Kotor so there was no need or conditions for any other urban settlement in this area.
Summer residences were used occasionally and for gathering and processing crop. Those «village» houses at the beginning were points from where they controlled and defended the land as well as for continuation of feudal system. The oldest ones were built like medieval castles with towers, walls and bastions.
One of the most beautiful buildings is the Buca Mansion, which is located in the center of Tivat. This complex represents a harmonious renaissance unity with a few late Gothic details. It consists of five buildings: the residence unit, the economic building, the church with a chapel dedicated to St. Michael, and the multi – purpose porch with the vaulted gate/ entrance.
Today this revitalized monument has a contemporary purpose: the residence unit was converted into a gallery space, while the garden was turned into an open air theatre. Exhibitions, literary readings, concerts and other similar events can be organized here – all within the Cultural Center Tivat which houses the cinema hall, also used for theatre performances.
The favourable position of Tivat in the secluded part of the Bay of Kotor, together with the proximity of Tivat Airport, makes it favourable location for a marina.
The first luxury marina on the Adriatic, Porto Montenegro, was inscribed on the map favorite locations world yachting and cosmopolitan customers from all over. Once the old war harbour for boats called «Arsenal», it is today a luxury marina.
Shadows of the ships create a new story and a new life for this town. In just five years, from the model in order to present the project, has developed into a luxury brand and the most modern tourist product.
In addition to the marina, the resort Porto Montenegro, which is designed to fulfill all the expectations of the owners and crews of yachts and other clients, coverage and spacious apartments on the coast, unique restaurants, bars with good entertainment, and a wide range of sports, recreational and cultural activities and events.
Marina currently has 250 berths for yachts provided from 12 to 150 meters in length, and in the construction of the additional 185 berths, of which more than 50 will be designed for super yachts longer than 45 meters.
The naval heritage museum is hidden out of the main village in Porto Montenegro.
The museum now houses over 300 exhibits of the area’s naval history.
There’s even a restored Yugoslav submarine on site. The P-821 Hero was launched in 1967 and during its 23 year career sailed 46, 659 nautical miles, submersed 901 times and spent 726 days at sea.
A very nice place downtown is «Pine», the waterfront square with dozens of big palms and a series of pubs with open-air terraces. This is a perfect place to relax and watch the sunset!
Tivat’s trademark is the school ship «Jadran» (meaning Adriatic) and you can see it moored at the town’s pier. It was built in German shipyard «H. C. Stülcken Sohn» in Hamburg in 1930.
This ship has traveled more than 400,000 nautical miles, visited nearly every port in Europe, from the Baltic to the Black Sea. The most interesting and longest trip was on the route Dubrovnik-New York-Boston-Dubrovnik in the period 20 April 1938 to 21 June 1938.
The Consulate of the Socialistic Federative Republic of Yugoslavia, which is more of a museum memory of the past period (1945 – 1989), today is situated not far away from the promenade Pine in Tivat.
Lately, especially from May to October, the Consulate of SFRJ in Tivat, is interesting for tourists also. In the consulate you can see flags, uniforms of the former president of SFRJ, Josip Broz Tito, and in front of the Consulate there is one of the more prestigious vehicles in which Tito was driven.
The surroundings of Tivat are very attractive for nature lovers.
Lustica Bay – Spanning 690 acres on the peninsula Lustica, Lustica Bay is an award-winning coastal communities in construction.
As a joint project builder Orascom Development and the Government of Montenegro, this project focuses on the protection of the local environment and support the local community, as well as enabling paradise environment for future guests and residents.
This coastal city will soon be enriched with natural and hiking trails, promenade along the sea and bike routes, tennis courts and swimming pools, gyms and the first golf course with 18 holes in Montenegro).
Vrmac – Walking paradise, which offers beautiful walking trails through beautiful untouched nature, in which your steps leave traces smoothly and create music you can not resist.
This paradise proudly on his palm keeps two towns of Tivat and Kotor and opens a beautiful view of their souls, and they are Tivat and Kotor Bay.
Besides the preserved nature and many species Squirrel decorates the beauty of rural architecture that keeps the secret of the former inhabitants of Vrmac.
Solila – local attraction nearby Tivat, special botanical and animal reserve is an oasis of unspoiled nature which provides shelter for some rare species of birds – flamingos and cormorants.
They are also among the most endangered birds species in Europe. It is situated in the swamp area of the coastal part of the Bay of Tivat. The most interesting fact for tourists and birdwatchers is that this area is home to very rare bird species, such as flamingos or small cormorants. They all find their shelter here, in Solila.
This area of 150 ha is home to 111 bird species, 49 of which are related only to aquatic/water habitats. Some of the attractive bird species that can be seen here are: ibises, cranes, auks, large curlews, godwits, lapwings etc.
Solila is an attractive place to visit throughout the year. However, spring bird migration is recommended for passionate birdwatchers – a period from February to the end of April.
If you decide to spend some time by the sea, you will find Krasici, Radovici, Plavi Horizonti with its wonderful sandy beach in an even more beautiful bay all within easy reach of Kotor, or you can continue on from Krasici and Radovici through olive groves into the Lustica peninsula.
If you head more north, make sure you stop in Radovici village, where you will find an amazing beach called Plavi horizonti, or Blue horizons. Though it has been favourite local beach for decades, rumour has it that the development of the resorts may limit access to the beach for the wealthy only. But fortunately, this is not true (still) and you may freely enjoy this paradise on earth. The beach is surrounded by numerous parks and pine forest.
Near Tivat there are several beautiful islands Island of Flowers (Ostrvo cvijeca), St. Mark and Our Lady of Mercy established in the 15th century AD by Franciscans.
The Franciscans held the monastery until late 19th century, when the island became the residence of the Bishop of Kotor. Today the monastery is in possession of the Jesuit order.
St. Marco is a mysterious green island, once an exclusive facility leased by the French club «Mediterranee».
Island of Flowers (Ostrvo cvijeca), also known as Prevlaka is connected with the mainland by a narrow isthmus and it is inhabited by about a hundred people.
Tivat airport is located right next to the Tivat, 7km from the center of Kotor, and 22 km north-west of Budva, one of the most popular tourist destinations on the eastern Adriatic coast. The sole runway of the airport ends just 88m from the coastline of the Bay of Kotor.
Passengers are awarded spectacular views of the bay, the surrounding mountains and a low flyby over Porto Montenegro luxury yacht marina.
The breathtaking combination of fiord and mountains in conjunction with the open Adriatic Sea, protected area – a natural harbour, the cultural heritage from Venetian times with Kotor (UNESO World Heritage Site) and Perast, the Habsburg ring of fortresses round the bay – unique worldwide, the virtually untouched Mediterranean character of Lustica they made the Bay and its municipalities, facing even the open seas, into top tourist destinations in the Mediterranean.