After the previous day being rather long and tiring and the border crossing into Montenegro being rather close it was a relaxed start to the day in Shkoder. I enjoyed my breakfast before returning to the slightly cooled room (the air-conditioning wasn't much better in this hotel) to pack up and get rather hot before departing.
I headed for the border and refuelled and checked and adjusted the tyre pressures on the way. I was looking forward to what Montenegro would be like after dealing with the rather variables roads and service standards in Albania.
Out of Albania into Montenegro
The border crossing was quick and simple. I was given priority to pass through by being directed along the footpath behind the check-point booths where I stopped and handed over my passport and was quickly ushered on.
As has happened elsewhere along the way the border seems to not only signifies the change in country but also a distinct change in the countryside/landscape. There was an obvious change entering into Montenegro with the vegetation, the rocky hillsides, the buildings and also quite noticeably the roads….
A stretch of pure bitumen - Welcome to Montenegro
I headed towards the coast and again was impressed with how different Montenegro was compared to Albania. As I entered Ulcinj I was quite impressed at the seaside town and its bustling town centre and beach. After a quick ride around town and a brief period of time looking for potential places to stay the night I parked by the water to plan ahead.
Ulcinj
Ulcinj
As I waited and referred to my map a German couple appeared and expressed an interest in my bike and travels. The couple had decided to drive after deciding it was too hot to ride their motorbike through the Balkans on this occasion so they were quite happy to talk to me about where they had been and where they were going and how good it would be on a motorcycle. They suggested heading to Sveti Stefan to stay since it was more central and gave the opportunity to do short trips from there as a base. They advised that Sveti Stefan was rather small and was not overly busy and there were opportunities for relatively cheap accommodation.
Ulcinj - the beach was packed
After another look at how busy Ulcinj was and knowing I was in the mood for a relatively relaxing few days I headed off for Sveti Stefan.
I arrived in Sveti Stefan and had a brief look around the small seaside village. I took the advice of the Germans I had met in Ulcinj and headed to the Sveti Stefan tourist accommodation office to see if they could help me with somewhere to stay. I was offered a room in a nearby villa that also had a swimming pool. After a quick inspection I took the room.
I was soon showered and changed into swimmers, T-shirt and thongs - it was time to relax in Sveti Stefan.
I headed down to the beach with a view across to the small island containing the Aman Sveti Stefan exclusive resort hotel.
Sveti Stefan - across to Aman Sveti Stefan
The weather was warm and the views rather pleasant while the village and beach seemed relatively quiet after what I had seen in Ulcinj. After a couple of relaxing beers beside the sea while the sun set and with several options for dinner nearby I was rather happy to have made it to Montenegro. I was looking forward to a swim and a short ride or two and a wander around the seaside while staying in Sveti Stefan.