Relocation to Montenegro (April 2022 - November 2024)

The end of February 2022 was rough, and we decided that we had to leave somewhere. We spent the whole next month figuring out where to go. Luckily, the company where I worked had a relocation plan for employees. The options were Armenia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Georgia and Montenegro. In the end we chose Montenegro, and in hindsight it was the right choice because the alternatives would likely have brought even more problems.

There were a lot of practical issues to solve before moving. By then we were already traveling with our daughter, who was 10 months old when we left Russia. We had to urgently get passports, take a passport photo for Angelina, obtain police clearance certificates and collect other documents. In the end we managed everything, although I forgot to bring the inserts from my diplomas because I thought they would not be needed.

The flights were not easy either. Tickets were expensive, so we had to save money by taking two connections instead of one: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Istanbul, Podgorica. We made it through. It also helped that we had managed to buy a comfortable stroller in Russia, which turned out to be convenient both for flights and everyday walks.

After that things moved quickly. First we rented an apartment in Budva for a week, hired a car there and drove around nearby towns to understand which city would suit us best for life, and where we should look for a long-term apartment.

We did not like Budva. Buildings are packed too tightly, and walking with a stroller is awkward. Kotor felt similar, and it also gets less sun. Tivat is too stretched out and also very hilly. Bar stood apart from the rest. The center is flat, there are many parks for walks, shops are within walking distance, and the sidewalks have proper curb cuts everywhere, which makes stroller life much easier. We decided to move there into temporary housing first and then look for a long-term place on site.

We somehow managed to cram all our belongings into a Toyota Yaris and moved to Bar. I still do not understand how it all fit without making two trips. Right after arrival we realized that we really did not like the apartment we had rented, so we lost 250 euros and moved into a more expensive place in the Soho City complex. That part turned out well. From there it was much easier to look for an apartment for a year, and we eventually found one. I posted in social networks that we were looking for a place, and a guy named Jaksa contacted me. We quickly responded and went to see the apartment. He warned us that tenants were still living there and would move out soon, and it turned out that one of them was a colleague from my company. We talked about the apartment, heard the pros and cons, then Sveta and I thought it over and decided to rent it. It was not cheap, 650 euros per month, and we had to pay for the first month plus the last six months immediately. But at that point we finally had a home we did not need to leave every few days. After that came the long residence permit process and a trip back to Russia to finish some remaining tasks.

I would not recommend Bar as a base if your goal is to travel all over Montenegro because it is far from many of the main sights. Bar is better for a calm year-round life.

Overall we spent two and a half years in Montenegro, from late April 2022 until the end of July 2024. Then we returned again from October to November 2024 to finish a few things and travel a little more, with a short detour through Serbia for about a week.

I will not describe everything in detail here because during the Montenegro period there was no time to properly keep this blog. The format here also fits short and intense trips better, while that chapter of our life was much longer and more routine.

Our life in Montenegro, with a little bit of Serbia and Albania, is documented here: https://t.me/Odnazhdi_v_Chernogorii

I am also sharing the map that I had collected myself from online sources.

At some point it stopped being enough, and a friend recommended that I contact Shasha0404 and buy a more detailed map of places in Montenegro. I did that, and it gave me plenty of new spots for a long time.

Was relocating to Montenegro a mistake? No. It is a wonderful country, and it welcomed us well. We spent that whole period feeling at home there. I worked, and on weekends or in the evenings we would go out to amazing places. Unfortunately, vacation days often had to be spent on trips back to Dubna, so I never had a proper full vacation in Montenegro apart from October and November 2024.

During those two and a half years we flew back to Dubna four times, and traveled around Montenegro countless times, usually in single-day trips. In the last year I got used to driving across to the other side of the country in a single day, exploring there and returning back, but that only worked when I traveled alone. Sveta and Angelina do not enjoy long drives, so I would get up at 4 a.m. and head out alone before sunrise.

Below are a few practical notes in the same spirit as my usual travel posts.

Children

Is Montenegro good for children? I think so. There are many activities available in Russian because a lot of Russian-speaking people live there. In 2022 there were a lot of them; now there are simply enough. I do not know how the situation will change if a visa regime is introduced.

You can find kindergartens and schools in Russian, in English, or choose a Montenegrin school or kindergarten.

My wife was on maternity leave during our relocation, so she could spend time with our daughter while I worked, taking long walks along the sunny promenade with smoothies in hand.

Food

We could cook and eat at home. There was a very good Voli supermarket nearby, so we bought both food and water there. As for water, people usually recommend filtering it or buying bottled water because tap water in Montenegro is very mineralized and may cause kidney issues. We constantly hauled 12 to 18 bottles of 1.5-liter Rosa water on the stroller, because that brand seemed the best to us in terms of mineral balance. Over time we also built up a solid list of restaurants that we liked and kept for ourselves.

Visa

At that time no visa was needed, and that was exactly why many Russians chose Montenegro as their main place to move to. As of the beginning of 2026 there are rumors that visas for Russians may finally be introduced by September.

Transport

Finding a car is not a problem there. Many small local companies rent out their cars, often even through Telegram. At first I used those options, but later a friend gave me the contact of someone he knew who rented out his own cars. I used his services for two years, often renting long-term cars, and was happy with it. If someone needs the contact, write to me and I will share it.

Accommodation

Even though we had a long-term apartment, we sometimes rented apartments in other parts of the country while traveling, mostly through Booking. One convenient detail was that we always paid in cash on site. We never paid by card in Booking.

Entering the country

This part is simple. Montenegro has two airports, Podgorica and Tivat. I liked Podgorica airport more, and it is also closer to Bar.

Internet and mobile connection

No real issues here. For 10 euros back then, maybe 15 or 20 now, you could buy a SIM card with 500 GB of traffic per month. I used Mtel and was completely satisfied with that mobile operator in Montenegro.

Language

The language is Montenegrin, which is similar to Serbian but has some differences. On the coast many locals understand Russian. If they do not, you can still often communicate in a funny mixed mode: you speak Russian, they answer in Montenegrin, and somehow you still understand each other. English is mostly known by the younger generation.

Money

Montenegro uses the euro. In many places you can pay by card, but in some places only cash is accepted.