MONTENEGRO Montenegro: a small place


Two and a half hours from the UK, across the Adriatic Sea from Italy, is a little country preparing to make a big noise, reports


with big plans M


ontenegro, once part of Yugoslavia and independent of Serbia since 2006, has grandiose plans to become the self-


proclaimed “Monaco of the Balkans”. T e sleek super-yachts are anchored in new marinas, international connections are growing and wealthy tourists are on their way. Montenegro, a country no


bigger than Northern Ireland with a population of 625,000, has a history of attracting glamour. In the 1960s and 70s Sophia Loren


and Elizabeth Taylor led a stellar selection of celebrities who holidayed at Sveti Stefan, a small private village of stone houses surrounded by water now recreated as a successful and pricey Aman Resort. T e attraction was the extraordinary


natural beauty of a country with a crystalline Adriatic coast, dazzling f ord-like lakes and dramatic, once impenetrable mountains. T e poet and high society bad boy


Below: Sveti Stefan island


Lord Byron, who knew a thing or two about aesthetics, was so blown away on his fi rst visit in 1809 that he described Montenegro’s coastline as “the most beautiful encounter between land and sea”. Two hundred years later it is


perhaps surprising just how little has changed. Montenegro’s narrow


coastline backed by those brooding mountains naturally limits large-scale development so while areas – Budva for example - look overwhelmed by new property, many parts remain remarkably untouched. At the same time, the smart


money is appearing. Five-star hotel chains planning to join Aman on Montenegro’s coast include One & Only and Banyan Tree while a new generation of beach clubs such as PuroBeach, normally more at home further west in glitzy Mediterranean resorts, have already added a new cool to the sublime coast.


Growing tourism T e future looks rosy for Montenegro. T e World Trade and Tourism Council predict tourist fi gures will grow by an annual 16 per cent from 2011 to 2012. T at’s more than double predictions for India and China making it one of the fastest growing tourist destinations in the world.


Improving fl ight access Last year Montenegro Airlines commenced twice-weekly services between Gatwick and Tivat at the heart of the coast but only on 100- seater aeroplanes and most airfares remain expensive. A common alternative route is through the Croatian city of Dubrovnik with BA and Easyjet fl ights from the UK


followed by a twenty-minute drive to the Montenegro border or else through the inland capital Podgorica. Against these, must be balanced


the evolving infrastructure. Roads can be rudimentary, especially away from the more international waterfront hotspots. Plus, a good proportion of new


development in Montenegro is aimed at Russians and the eastern block who tend to favour bling-tastic projects that could overwhelm the craggy coast.


“Bureaucracy aside, it’s an easy place to live” Roger and Liz Batho from Surrey discovered Montenegro while working for the British Embassy in Sarajevo. In 2006 they bought land there, taking what Roger describes as a ‘big risk’ in those days. T ey built a house where they now live full-time and also own an apartment in Kavac which they rent successfully for 16 – 20 weeks each year through ownersdirect.co.uk. “We had to trust a lot of people,”


says Roger. “Since then there has been a


cleansing process and now there is a proper notary system and the process is transparent. Montenegro can seem quite bureaucratic but with beautiful weather and friendly people it’s a very easy place to live. T ey use the Euro and are looking for accession to the EU in the future.”


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