Photos: Ivan Stojanović and montenegro.com
Many people think that summer is the best time of year. All those who cannot afford to spend all summer by the sea know how much it means to have a house or a kind friend who has a country house. So we were all more than pleased to have the opportunity to spend a few days at our friend’s holiday bungalow in Kumbor.
Although we didn’t know the place very well (none of us had ever been there) we didn’t take long to make up our minds, and accepted the offer without more to-do and packed and set off in record time. All we managed to find out about the place before leaving was that it was near Herceg Novi, which was enough for us at that stage. It was enough to be by the sea, to be together and to have a good time.
We spent the whole journey with our noses glued to the windows of the bus, gazing in amazement for the umpteenth time at the coastline of our country. When we had crossed to the other side of the Bay of Kotor by ferry we counted the number of villages to our destination, so that, God forgive, we wouldn’t miss the place where we should get off. 
When we caught sight of the shipyard we knew we were in Bijela and that there was only a little way to go to our destination. We stood up as soon as we saw the first sign post for Kumbor but we didn’t get off the bus until the end of the village where our kind host was waiting for us. After unpacking we did a tour of the lower part of Kumbor and the first thing we noticed was that we wouldn’t have far to go to the sea, because it was right there within easy reach.
We covered the lower part of the village relatively quickly and our host explained that Kumbor is much bigger than it seems, but the biggest and best part of it has been taken over by the army. The locals, and all those who have ever holidayed in Kumbor hope that one day that part will be open to all.
As far as beaches are concerned one might say that everyone is catered for. There are little sandy beaches, many jetties and concrete beaches, many of them very nicely arranged with sun-loungers and reed sunshades. Kumbor is especially suitable for holiday-makers because it is enclosed between the main road and the sea. The paths from the main road lead through thick woods, down typical seaside steps to the sea.
At one end of Kumbor there are holiday bungalows in the woods, and at the other is the military complex surrounded by trees. A typical promenade by the sea, restaurants on the shore, a beach of fine shingle and a small jetty complete the charm of this place which is never crowded, but always has visitors.
They say that Kumbor is the place in Montenegro with the highest number of days sunshine in the year, but we don’t know if that is why the sunsets here are so extraordinary or we were just lucky to see them.
The thing we also noticed straightaway is that the place is exceptionally peaceful and ideal for a family holiday and for all those who want to get away from crowded beaches and noisy cafés. But that doesn’t mean that it is boring. On the contrary. One of the things we were most interested were excursions to nearby places.
One of the advantages of Kumbor is maybe the fact that it is in the middle of the Herceg Novi Riviera and sometimes you just don’t know which way to head first, whether to go to Herceg Novi and Igalo or towards Bijela and on to Kotor.
You just can’t help filling your day to the full. However many days we spent in this part of the Bay of Kotor it would not be enough, when you consider all there is to see. The thing that no one can be indifferent about, and which everyone remembers are the excursions to the many interesting places around Kumbor.
They include the popular beaches of the Lustica peninsular: Zanjice, Miriste, Dobrec, the small fishing village of Rose, the extremely interesting fortress of Arza with its wonderful view, and the special attraction of the Blue Grotto (a cave with indescribably beautiful blue water), as well as the island of Mamula with its fortress which once served as a prison. Just to travel to some of those places is a wonderful feeling, you know those sea scenes when the wind tangles your hair, and the waves splash against the boat…
Yes, summer, sea, sun, beaches, night life … you can never have enough of it. We liked Kumbor, we liked the friendly local people, we liked the beaches, because we didn’t have to fight for a place in the sun, and we came home full of memories and for a time bored everyone around us with our stories of our holiday and tried to persuade everyone that they must go to one of the places in the Herceg Novi Riviera.
That is why we were as interested as the locals in the rumor that the famous tennis players, the Williams sisters are interested in building a modern sports complex where the barracks now are in Kumbor...
There is no doubt that the construction of such a complex would be significant not only for Kumbor but for the whole of Montenegro, and for the tourist industry as a whole, but on the other hand it would no longer be a place where you could spend a truly pleasant holiday.
Whatever may be, we hope there will still be room for us there in the future.
