Herceg Novi Beaches

The water in front of Herceg Novi is the innermost mouth of the Bay of Kotor. Europe's southernmost fjord, a 28-kilometre bay that winds inland between mountains. Because the opening is narrow and the basin deep, open-sea swells don't reach here. The result is swimming water that stays flat most days and warm for longer than almost anywhere else on the Adriatic coast. Locals swim from mid-May to mid-October, and the managed beach season stretches from June through September.

Inside town the beaches are small. Directly below the Old Town walls there are rocky swim platforms with ladders bolted into the stone; these are technically public and cost nothing. East of the centre, Topla has a sequence of short pebble coves separated by concrete piers, each with a café. West of town, Igalo opens out into a longer mixed sand-and-pebble strip along the two-kilometre promenade in front of the Institute Dr Simo Milošević. This is the town's main family beach, with sun-lounger rentals at €8 to €15 per set.

For the postcard beaches, most visitors take a boat across the bay to the Lustica peninsula. Žanjic (about 25 minutes from the Herceg Novi marina) is the standard stop. A long pebble beach with clear water and two seasonal restaurants. Mirište next door is smaller and quieter. Dobreč sits between them in a cove that can only be reached by boat. Further around the peninsula, the village of Rose has a handful of small swim spots and a cluster of konobas; the Blue Grotto (Plava Špilja) is a standard final stop on organised day trips.

One detail worth knowing: Mamula, the circular Austro-Hungarian island fortress visible from most of the bay, is now a luxury hotel and access is no longer free. Boat tours will pass it for a photo stop but no longer land. For proper swimming around the island, the closest public-access beaches are on the Lustica side.