Marvellous Marina in Montenegro bends over backwards

We were exploring the Bay of Kotor and were tucked into the anchorage of Uvala Ljuta where we had discovered the small oyster shack and had enjoyed a fabulous but very basic seafood meal.

The following day we set off to take a look at the nearby village and quite by chance stumbled on another very special restaurant.

This was at the other end of the spectrum to the oyster shack and was more like the fabulous restaurant we had been to that reminded us of Monet’s garden, with its limpid water and charming Japanese-style bridges.

We were surprised to find another fabulous restaurant set in the grounds of an old mill and one which was almost as beautiful as Ćatovića Mlini (see https://saltytalesfrombalihai.com/2023/10/30/montenegros-answer-to-monets-garden/ )

Once again, there was a mill stream, complete with water wheel, plus this time there was a pool with many varieties of fish to gaze at.

The tables – dressed in white linen – nestled in the trees and amongst the lush gardens. We didn’t eat there but the food looked amazing!

We strolled through the gardens, peeping into the interior of the old mill where meals are served during the winter months.

Close by was a little village that sat prettily on the water’s edge.

Many of the old homes along the water front had been converted to small hotels or holiday apartments and we both agreed what a restful and lovely place it would be as a holiday destination.

We decided to pull up the anchor and motor round to the next bay where the small village of Risan was situated.

We had seen that there were some Roman mosaics there and decided we should go and take a look. Also, John on Catabella had been told by the local supermarket proprietor in Uvala Ljuta that that some local fishermen had been complaining about our boats being anchored just where they wanted to fish (see first photo). Time to move on!

We found some lovely little laneways in Risan that appeared to have remained unchanged over many hundreds of years.

There was an excellent pizza place there too where we celebrated Peter’s (from Entre Nous) birthday.

The Roman mosaics that were found at the museum site when a new road was being built turned out to be very interesting and we enjoyed reading some of the history and other information from the well laid out exhibits.

Soon it was time for our next boat guests – Tilly and Sam from Australia – to arrive. Unfortunately the weather was looking unsettled once again with high winds and some rain anticipated.

We were rather anxious about being in an anchorage with guests arriving as it is always unpleasant – and sometimes dangerous – getting onto a yacht with luggage and inexperienced sailors, especially if the weather turns bad. So on the off chance, we rang up Lazure Marina where we had booked to winter-over, to ask if we could book in for one night.

To our surprise and delight the marina office told us that as we were booked to enter for our winter booking a little over a week later, there would be no extra charge and we could stay as long as we wanted.

This was typical of Lazure Marina – so far the staff have bent over backwards to be welcoming, accommodating and helpful in every way!

In fact, the marina couldn’t be a better choice as it seems to have everything we could wish for including a beautiful hotel and spa in the same complex, a private beach and a lovely walk along the seafront to Herceg Novi.

We met up with Tilly and Sam without any dramas just after they had arrived in a car from Dubrovnik Airport and had a great (and safe) welcoming celebration tucked up safely in Lazure Marina.