Anyone been to Durmitor NP in Montenegro?

[raybo]

I am planning my next bike ride that will start and end in Rome. I hope to take a ferry to Dubrovnik and then ride south into Montenegro and then after Kotor, ride to the Durmitor National Park. Then, I will ride back to a ferry to Hvar, a ferry to Split, and a ferry to Ancona and thence back to Rome.

Has anyone ridden in Durmitor NP? If so, any advice on riding there or in Montenegro in general would be greatly appreciated.

[ConRAD]

For sure do exist the ferries Bari-Dubrovnik and Split-Ancona, for other lines you’d better to check. No problem for the ferry from Dubrovnik to Split via Mljet-Korčula-Hvar-Brač. Definitely worthwhile the roundtrip of Kotor, for the rest I didn’t like at all the coastline, too much traffic (it was mid October).
I didn’t know of Durmitor, maybe I missed the best part of the trip … next time!!
PS: please don't do it in summer!!

Here my trip, days 9 to 17 October 2017.

Here below the ferry Dubrovnik to Split via Mljet-Korčula-Hvar-Brač

[Oggi]

I’ve not cycled in the Durmitor National Park but I have climbed there. The area is stunning and quiet by UK or French/Italian standards. There are ample camp sites and bunkhouse type accommodation. The standard of driving is more Eastern European than Western but if you are used to holding your own in that sort of environment you should be fine. Montenegro is beautiful and very friendly.

[RobinS]

The wife and I had vague hopes of cycling Albania and Montenegro on a tour starting and finishing in the UK a few years ago, but unfortunately we only got as far as Italy before having to turn for home across the Alps. As we hadn't made it, the following summer we went to Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro and Albania by car, camping all the time (6 week trip). They wouldn't let us in to Bosnia due to car insurance issues.
Montenegro is a fantastic place to visit, and the Durmitor National Park is really beautiful. We camped there at Zabljac - a lively outdoor activities town. In general everyone was really friendly, plenty of mainly quite cheap and basic campsites, and roads not too busy. Also has the advantage of being really cheap (except near the coastal resorts where it is quite pricey). Be aware that while some roads are wide and well surfaced, others including "A" roads can be narrow, steep, winding, and barely surfaced at all!

[keithg]

Went bike touring a couple of years ago to Durmitor, starting and finishing in Dubrovnik.
We made the mistake of going in April and found many of the high mountain passes closed with snow, so that’s worth thinking about.
It is a very hilly country (the clue is in the name!) with some great riding inland away from the coast. We used booking.com to plan our overnights which went well but we were a bit off-season.
Friendly people, quiet roads, very scenic riding and affordable, I’d thoroughly recommend it.
It’s quite a small country so we were able to cover most of it in about 10 days!

[pq]

I've ridden there and thought it was fantastic, but I went in spring when it was freezing cold and totally deserted - I have no idea how crowded it gets in the summer.

The main road from Dubrovnic to Kotor is pretty horrible, but you can bypass most of it on back roads.

My trip, including routes, is written up here: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/balkanised

[keithg]

Thanks for the link pq, it’s definitely worth a read, our trip in 2016 was quite similar and we too pushed our bikes through snow over the Cokor pass illegally crossing the border, memorable and hopefully never to be repeated.
Sorry to hijack the thread but it’s a good description of the pleasures and pains of riding in the Balkans, fortunately the former well outweighs the latter!
On balance, being a Scot,I think I preferred freezing occasionally in a quiet time of year to overheating in high season though.
Hope you have fun on your ride, it’s a fine destination esp the countryside.

[raybo]

I've ridden there and thought it was fantastic, but I went in spring when it was freezing cold and totally deserted - I have no idea how crowded it gets in the summer.

The main road from Dubrovnic to Kotor is pretty horrible, but you can bypass most of it on back roads.

My trip, including routes, is written up here: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/balkanised

I read your link but I didn't see any routing maps or information. Did I miss something?

[pq]

My apologies, I usually put one - but it seems I didn't on that tour.