Hotels Restaurants Cafés Nightlife Sightseeing Events Maps “In Your Pocket: A cheeky, well- PODGORICA written series of guidebooks.” The New York Times November 2010 - April 2011 Monument madness Tour Podgorica’s top statues Daytrip to Budva Montenegro’s prime coastal resort N°2 - €2 www.inyourpocket.com CONTENTS 3 ESSENTIAL CITY GUIDES Contents Arriving in Podgorica 5 Happy landings Basics 6 Electricity, Driving, Money etc. History 9 From Slavic immigration to independence Language 10 Getting to grips with the lingo Culture & Events 11 Just the ticket Where to stay 12 Presidential suites to bunk beds Statue at the Modern Art Gallery Sco Dining & Nightlife Where to eat 16 Sightseeing 26 Traditional food and all the rest Essential things to see and do Cafés 22 Kotor 29 Where to find the best espresso Montenegro’s magnificent fortified town Nightlife 23 Budva 32 The best bars and clubs Capital of the coast Getting around 36 When legs just aren’t enough Mail & Phones 40 Keeping in touch Shopping 41 The best bargains Directory 44 All the other things you need to know Maps & Index Country map 46 City map 47 City centre map 48 Index 50 Street register 50 Dazzling ceiling frescoes in the new Cathedral JvM www.podgorica.inyourpocket.com November 2010 - April 2011 4 FOREWORD ARRIVING IN PODGORICA 5 When we launched Podgorica In Your Pocket last spring, Podgorica and Montenegro in general remain expensive little did we know how enthusiastically people would react Europe In Your Pocket destinations to fly to. If you’re counting pennies, do what Street smarts to the Montenegrin capital’s first English language city smart people do and fly into Dubrovnik just over the guide. The guides were gratefully used by both locals and border in Croatia. Buses filter in from everywhere, and the Below is a list of Montenegrin street and place names. travellers, the Podgorica In Your Pocket website counter train journey from Belgrade through the mountains is a In this guide we’ve left the word ulica (street) out of delightful introduction to the country. addresses, as is common practice locally. is steadily heading for 60,000 page views this year, and You’ll often see bb written in addresses, this means bez nearly 4,000 copies of the free PDF version have been broja, ‘no number’, and it’s probably an obvious building downloaded from www.podgorica.inyourpocket.com. By plane along the street. The enthusiastic reception and the increased support of Podgorica’s small but modern airport (aerodrom) is 8km local businesses has allowed us to expand the content for southwest of the city along the road to Bar. There is no Autoput Highway this second edition. Podgorica In Your Pocket now has many public transport to town, but Montenegro Airlines runs a Bulevar Boulevard bus service to Trg Republike, the main square, departing a Most Bridge more reviews and a brand new section about the beautiful Put Road coastal town of Budva. Our research elves have been digging short while after each of their flight arrivals. Tickets cost €3 and can be bought on the bus. Taking a taxi from outside Trg Square up fascinating facts about Podgorica’s many statues and the terminal to the city centre will cost around €20, but just Ulica Street monuments, and you’ll find the results on page 26. We’ll keep €5-10 if you call one of the local companies. If you’re arriving adding to this in future editions, as what Podgorica lacks in at Tivat airport, a taxi to Podgorica will take about 80 minutes looks, it makes up for in the statue department. and costs €40-50, depending on your bargaining skills. You After you sample the city, let us know at podgorica@ can also wait along the road for buses going south (to your inyourpocket.com what your favourite places are, as from right) to Budva and on to Podgorica, though you may need spring we’ll start counting votes in In Your Pocket’s ‘Best to wait a while. of Podgorica’ poll; see page 8 for more. Finally, if you’re a mobile person like most locals, keep an By train eye out for the Podgorica In Your Pocket iPhone app, which Train travellers from Belgrade or Bar disembark at Podgor- will be released this autumn and offers all reviews in this ica’s train station, on the eastern edge of the city. The sta- guide and more as a simple download – and linked to live tion building only holds ticket offices and a restaurant, so or offline GPS mapping. for ATMs, kiosks and other services walk across the street Whatever you do this winter, enjoy Podgorica. In Your Pocket is once again breaking new ground. to the bus station. To get to the city centre, hail a taxi for about €2 or hop on bus N°6 which trundles to the Crna Gora Fresh from bringing you the most up-to-date city guides hotel. Alternatively, it’s a 15-minute walk along Oktobarske Cover story around, we have recently gone Swiss with a move into Revolucije, then right down Bratstva-Jedinstva. Buses N°7 Switzerland. The first issue of Zurich In Your Pocket and 4 run to the Novi Grad district. The ‘After Rain’ cover photo was is now out, providing visitors to the Swiss commercial taken by young Podgorica pho- capital with all the usual essential information an In tographer Miroslav Jovović, and Your Pocket guide provides. We also recently took By bus shows the Morača river as seen the wraps off Prizren In Your Pocket, a guide to the Located right in front of the train station, Podgorica’s bus from the Vezirov Most bridge, station is a marvellous arrival point. Equipped with ATMs, a second largest city in Kosovo, produced in cooperation minimarket, a superb little buffet restaurant, a post office just north of the city centre. The with Cultural Heritage Without Borders. You can photo has been enhanced using and a garderoba for leaving luggage (open 05:00-22:00, pseudo-HDR technique, creating download a free PDF copy of all our guides at our €2 per item), it has all you need to get ready for your as- Podgorica’s train station JvM a high dynamic range image from website, inyourpocket.com. To keep up with all In sault on the city. See Arriving by train for directions to one raw file. For more details, con- Your Pocket news and events, like In Your Pocket the city centre. tact Miroslav at miroslav.jovovic@ on Facebook (facebook.com/inyourpocket) or follow Districts hotmail.com. us on Twitter (twitter.com/inyourpocket). Tourist information Although small, Podgorica has several distinct districts. Nova Varoš (New Town) is the modern city centre, a The national tourism infor- regular grid of streets set between the Morača and Editorial Copyright notice mation number, tel. 1300, Ribnica rivers. This area has the densest concentra- Editorial management Text and photos copyright Podgorica In is a handy one to save on tion of shops, restaurants and nightlife options, and ESSENTIAL CITY GUIDES Rentapocket.com: Jeroen van Marle, Sco Your Pocket 2010/2011. Maps copyright your mobile. They can answer various streets and squares have been pedestrianised cartographer. All rights reserved. No part or otherwise upgraded in recent years. Stara Varoš Contributor Marina Roganović of this publication may be reproduced in questions on all aspects of Podgorica In Your Pocket Research Dragan Lakočević any form, except brief extracts for travel and tourism for all of (Old Town), south of the two rivers’ confluence, is the © Albania Experience Sh.P.K Layout & Design Vaida Gudynaitė the purpose of review, without written Montenegro, 24 hours per city’s original old town area – although little remains Rr. Papa Gjon Pali II, pall. 11/1, kati 6, Photos Rentapocket.com permission from the publisher and day. Normal telephone costs of the bustle of yesteryear. Ottoman-era landmarks Tirana, Albania Maps Intersistem, Belgrade copyright owner. The brand name In Your apply. here include the Clock Tower surrounded by a small Tel +355 4 225 17 84, Cover photo Miroslav Jovović Pocket is used under license from UAB bazaar, the fortress and two small mosques. A kilo- Fax +355 4 227 19 60 In Your Pocket (Vokiečių 10-15, Vilnius, Tourism Board of Podgorica (TOP) E-2, Slobode metre west of the city centre, the Novi Grad (New [email protected] The Podgorica In Your Pocket team Lithuania tel. (+370) 5 212 29 76). City) district, informally and better known as Preko would like to thank the tourism offices 47, tel. +382 20 66 75 35, fax +382 20 66 75 www.inyourpocket.com Editor’s note 36, [email protected], www.podgorica.travel. Right Morače (Across the Morača), is Podgorica’s brand Montenegro office: of Podgorica, Budva and Kotor for their new business district. Originally a residential suburb kind help. The editorial content of In Your Pocket next to the Carine restaurant, the city’s friendly tourist PgIYP, c/o Marko Mirović, Goričani bb, guides is independent from paid-for information office does its best to inform you about all with uniform highrise apartment buildings, in the last 81304 Golubovci, Montenegro Sales & Circulation advertising. We welcome all readers’ three sights in town and the plethora of interesting trips decade it’s seen massive investment and now has Manager Marko Mirović comments and suggestions. We have in the surroundings. They have informative brochures various new developments including offices, hotels, ISSN 1800-7929 marko.mirović@inyourpocket.com made every effort to ensure the accuracy and a good city map and can help book you a city tour upmarket restaurants and shops.