Perast, Montenegro

Perast is a charming village located on the Bay of Kotor not far from Medieval Kotor. It dates back to the Neolithic Period with archaeological evidence demonstrating that the Illyrians, Romans and early Christians once had settlements here. Fast forward to the 14th century, and it had transformed into a fishing village with a shipyard when the Venetians settled here. With them came growth to the village by the addition of churches and palaces which line the main street even today.

As you can see from the photos, Perast is a charming and beautiful place to wander, but we came mostly to explore Our Lady of the Rocks.

As I mentioned in last week’s post, Thrills and Spills – Speed Boat Tour, Kotor, Montenegro, according to legend, two sailors discovered a madonna and child icon on a small reef in the bay in 1452, and decided to build an island there. For the next 200 years, people in the area would toss rocks and sink old boats on the reef to add to the dimension. The rock throwing continued, and sailors returning from successful trips were required to toss a rock on the site. Eventually, the island was large and strong enough to build the Roman Catholic church that stands there today. There is now a yearly festival held on July 22, when locals gather at sunset to toss rocks in the sea to commemorate this historical event.

The church was built in the early 1600s, and was dedicated in 1630 and named Gospa od Škrpjela, Our Lady Of the Rocks. The interior holds dozens of painting, artifacts, tapestries and other collectibles.

The church is quite small so it doesn’t take long to wander through, depending on how interested you are with the art. The island itself is also small, but it’s nice to take in the views once you’ve finished visiting the church.

There are multiple boats that will take you to the island, so there’s no need to book in advance. We paid about €15 per person for the 5 minute boat ride and entry to the church. Click here for additional information.

Perast is a 20 minute drive from Kotor, there are taxis available, and there is also a bus that runs between the two towns. Although the bus service is completely unpredictable. We waited close to 30 minutes after its scheduled arrival time, and when it finally did arrive, it was standing room only. Something to keep in mind when you visit.

As a side note, I was thrilled to receive this achievement from WP earlier this week!

We’re back home now from our European adventure, but I still have much more to share about our time there. If you’re interested, check out theTravelsketcher’s post about our current activities.

As always, I would love to hear from you, so feel free to leave a comment.

Wishing you grand adventures,

Tricia