Hladna uvala, Cold Bay: rock-ledge swimming in the olive groves

Some coves sell themselves on their sand and others on what they leave out. Hladna uvala is one of the second kind. There’s no beach bar pumping music, no long strand and no promenade. What it does have is very clear water, rock to stretch out on, olive trees behind you and the feeling of being well away from the road even though it isn’t far. The name means cold bay.

Where exactly it is

The Bar tourist board puts it in Utjeha, under the name Cold Bay-Bušat, halfway between Bar and Ulcinj at the southern end of the Bar Riviera. OpenStreetMap draws it a little south of the village and just inside Kruče, which belongs to Ulcinj municipality, because the cove sits right on the boundary. For a visitor it makes no difference. You reach it along the main coast road, and it’s the last stop before you cross into Ulcinj territory.

What it’s like

The national tourist board describes it with a line I rather like, forest on your left, rocks on your right and the open sea in front. It’s a small, isolated fishing cove hemmed in by large olive groves, with no parties and, according to the same page, no crowds even at the peak of summer. You swim straight off the rocks into water the Bar listing calls crystal clear. That listing also mentions free entry, sunbeds and parasols, boat trips and sunset watching. It gives neither the length of the cove nor prices for the sunbeds.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Utjeha before prices climb.

By kayak to Kristalna beach

For me, the best thing about Hladna uvala is just round the headland. Near Kruče there’s a beach the national tourist board counts among the best hidden in the country, Kristalna plaža, which on land you can only reach by a steep path through the woods. Its advice is to go by kayak, and kayaks can be hired right here. If you’re paddling, bear in mind the Foreign Office warning for the Montenegrin coast in summer about speedboats and jet skis close to swimmers, and that the number for maritime rescue is 129.

Kruče and Stari Ulcinj next door

Across the boundary, in Kruče, the ruins once known as Stari Ulcinj, Dulcigno vecchio to the Venetians, sit on a small rock. The Ulcinj tourist board explains that people long believed it was the ancient town swallowed by an earthquake, until archaeologists showed it had been a signal station in antiquity and later a fortified lookout, with a small church from the 12th or 13th century. It’s a good excuse to carry on to Ulcinj.

If you would rather have a local show you round, book a guided tour in Hladna uvala and choose by the reviews.

What I’d bear in mind

Bring shoes you can wear on rocks, a mask and some water, and don’t expect a fully serviced beach. With small children in tow, or if you fancy some sand, Olive Bay in Utjeha is only a few minutes away. The rest of the options in the area are laid out in beaches in Bar.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Utjeha before prices climb.