Popular Areas To have Holidays in Montenegro

If we are talking about summer, sun, beaches, fun and the great Adriatic sea, then the most popular places in Montenegro are Becici, Budva, Petrovac, Rafailovici, Bar, Herzog Novi and Tivat. The beach of Becici has gained popularity due to its sandy beaches (most beaches in Montenegro are pebble). In 1938, Becici beach was voted the best beach in Europe. Currently, the beach in Becici is awarded with high water quality standards and a blue flag. 

Budva is the most popular city in Montenegro. There are many different entertainment venues as well as shops with loud discos, bars and restaurants, but the prices are much higher than in other cities. If you are interested in where it is better to live in Budva, choose a place to stay according to your budget: there are many four and five star hotels in the city, but if you rent an apartment, the accommodation options vary and probably you may get a place to stay cheaper. 

Petrovac is a small resort located 10.6 miles from Budva. It is surrounded by coniferous forests and olive groves, so the air here is considered medicinal. Petrovac is considered one of the best holiday destinations in Montenegro, designed for family or romantic holidays.

Rafailovici is a small fishing village in Montenegro, near Becici. Since it is very close, guests of the town have the opportunity to visit both the famous Becici beach. Also holiday-makers in Rafailovici spend time on Kamenevo beach and renting an apartment around will not be difficult.

Bar is the largest port city in the country. It is also the business center of Montenegro due to the trade at the container port. Prices here are much lower than in other cities that are popular with tourists – for example, in Bar you can buy very cheap Italian clothes, shoes, jewelry and cosmetics. The local beaches are very nice and clean, also the old town attract the attention of travelers.

Herceg Novi is considered Montenegro’s greenest city. There are many beaches, restaurants, shops and all kinds of entertainment. The beaches here are mostly concrete based, and their size is much smaller.

Tivat is not famous only for its airport. It is also a holiday destination that is especially popular with locals. Tivat’s concrete beaches are not very attractive to travelers, but Montenegrins like to relax here. However if you move a bit outside the city you can find sandy beaches. A very famous port with fantastic atmosphere, called Porto Montenegro, is also at Tivat.

Internet and Mobile Communication Quality in Montenegro

Internet services in Montenegro are provided by limited providers if you need to have a wired connection (ADSL). Unfortunately, there is no fiber infrastructure in Montenegro, which decreases the internet speed compared to many places in the world. For an ADSL connection you need to have a residence permit (boravak). To register a phone number, you must provide the same documents as the ADSL record. 

In Montenegro, mobile communications are also available for foreigners, the services of which are provided by three operators: MTel, Telekom and One (former Telenor). The quality of communication and the internet speed(4G) is fairly good. It is actually the easiest way to have internet in Montenegro as a foreigner. Service providers also have some tourist packages with internet, with low price. You might prefer 4G modems to use WiFi at home or office.

Tax System in Montenegro

Montenegro’s tax system is very liberal and even has benefits in some cases. For example, if law firms are open in areas of the country that need economic recovery, they are not taxed in the first three years after establishment. In other cases, the income tax rate is between 9%-11%. Value added tax is 21% and VAT on food is 7%. If individuals’ monthly income does not exceed 766 euros, the income tax rate is increased to 9% and if the income is higher, the rate is increased to 11%. The amount of property tax varies between 0.1% and 1%, and depends on the purpose of the residence and its proximity to the coastline.

Is Montenegro Safe?

According to 2021 data, Montenegro has a safety index of 58.82, which makes it the 57th safest country in the world, which is safer than UK (65th), Italy (68th) and United States (80th). Crime rates tend to decline in Montenegro. If we don’t take into account corruption and nepotism, the crime rate in the country is quite low. The number of organized crime groups, mostly involved in the distribution of drugs to domestic and foreign markets, is decreasing every year. The police have succeeded in solving crimes, but investigations into high-level corruption and embezzlement of loans are ongoing. Montenegro’s judicial system is represented by the main courts, the Supreme and Commercial Courts, the Court of Appeal, the Administrative Court and the Montenegrin Supreme Court. At the same time, Montenegro’s main court can be found in almost every major city in the country. 

Social Welfare in Montenegro

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security implements various social programmes in Montenegro in co-operation with the EU. Thus, with the financial support of the European Union, the government is gradually implementing social assistance programmes for pensioners. In some cities, private homes are being built to provide care for the elderly.

Pension Reforming Montenegro

The Montenegrin government is currently implementing a pension reform aimed at gradually raising the retirement age in the country. In 2017, the retirement age in Montenegro increased to 65 years and 8 months for men and 61 years for women. In 2022, the retirement age will be 66 years and 2 months for men and 61 years and 9 months for women. The basic condition for retirement is the availability of at least 15 years of service. If the service period is 40 years, you can retire earlier. The transition period for raising the retirement age will last until 2040. Minimum wage is also increased to 450 Euros, and the taxes on the wages are decreased thanks to the program called ‘Europe Now’ implemented by the government in 2022 with the support of EU.

Medical System in Montenegro

Maybe the most underdeveloped area in Montenegro is the health sector, with an index of 41.88, which makes the worst in Europe after Belarus and Malta. Montenegrin medicinal services is for free in governmental hospitals. Medical services are paid at all private clinics in Montenegro. Free medical care should be required from state hospitals, but only if you have Montenegrin citizenship or temporary residence permit (boravak). Also, after obtaining a residence permit, you can buy medicines at great discounts in pharmacies, some of them are even for free.

Diversity of Nationalities in Montenegro

The question of who lives in Montenegro often arises because Montenegrins are often confused with people from other nationalities, including Serbs. Moreover, even historians do not have a single opinion of these two nations: some consider Serbs and Montenegrins to be a single ethnic group, while others see them as two completely different nation. If you are interested in the question of which nations live in Montenegro, it makes sense to assume that the majority of the country’s population is Montenegrin. Montenegrins, however, make up only 47% of the country’s population (total population of Montenegro is 620,000). Second is Serbs in Montenegro – 30%. In addition, 9% of Montenegro’s population is Bosniak. The rest consists of Albanians (5%), Muslims (3,5%), Gypsies and Croats (1%). Montenegro has some minorities: Arabs (Egyptians), Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Macedonians, Slovenians, Hungarians, Italians, Turks and Germans – less than 1%.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Living in Montenegro

Living in Montenegro, of course, has its pros and cons. In particular, the benefits include:

steady growth of wages and the economy;

low crime rate;

low prices for buying and renting food, services, real estate;

good ecology;

many resorts and clean beaches;

quality food;

for many foreign nationals, marriage registration is legally valid in Montenegro and is recognized in their home country.

But despite its advantages, there are some drawbacks to living in Montenegro:

lack of central heating in homes (lack of natural gas supply);

Montenegro is not a member of the European Union (yet), 

Montenegro is not a member of Schengen countries;

Public institutions not offering digital services, which makes official things slower than ever;

low construction quality;

high levels of corruption in government bodies at various levels;

difficulties in reaching to high speed internet for foreigners;

Lack of intercity public transport in many cities;

Low quality health services