Skiing in Žabljak, the Savin Kuk resort

Skiing in Žabljak means skiing at Savin Kuk, the resort 6 km from town on the flank of the mountain it’s named after. It’s a small resort, 4.6 km of pistes, but it has something none of the country’s others can match, snowbound Durmitor all around. Its owner, Turistički Centar Durmitor, bills it as one of Montenegro’s two largest resorts, and the national tourist board mainly recommends it to people who already ski with confidence.

The Savin Kuk resort

According to the Žabljak tourist board, the resort has 4.6 km of pistes, 700 metres of vertical and capacity for 3,000 skiers. It runs two double chairlifts, three drag lifts, one floodlit for night skiing, and a children’s lift. The first chairlift, Savin Kuk I, is 1,550 metres long, reaches 1,907 metres and serves about 3.8 km of runs, three blues, a red and the nursery slope. The second, Savin Kuk II, is 700 metres long, climbs to 2,213 and is the one that takes you to the 800-metre black run, which the board keeps for advanced skiers.

The base has a ski school, equipment hire and servicing, and a restaurant. Durmitorsko sijelo, at the foot of the slopes, serves Durmitor dishes and has two terraces seating 120, with the Kulina café next door. The operator puts the base under five kilometres from the centre and two from the main Žabljak to Nikšić and Risan road.

Snow and the season

The Žabljak tourist board counts around 120 days a year when the snow lies deeper than 15 centimetres across Durmitor and about 150 skiable days higher up. It even mentions a snowfield, Debeli namet, in the Kalice area, 200 to 300 metres long, where you can ski in high summer. The town’s official opening of the winter season usually falls towards the end of December, with a Christmas market, an ice rink and concerts.

What was still unpublished on 11 October 2026 were the dates of the 2026-27 season or lift pass prices. Before booking a ski trip, I’d check the operator’s website.

If you are staying the night, see the best hotel deals in Žabljak for your dates: the well-placed rooms go fast.

Beyond the pistes

Durmitor in winter offers a lot more than lift-served runs. The 6.7 km snowshoe trail between the resort and the Black Lake is easy, takes about two hours and climbs 268 metres. Snowshoes cost €4 and poles €3 to hire at the visitor centre of Durmitor National Park and at the resort itself. The tourist board adds cross-country skiing on the plateaus, ski touring, for which it recommends a guide and avalanche kit, and guided snowmobile trips.

Next to town, the Javorovača slope has no lifts or organised skiing at present, but it’s good for a sledge run or a bit of skiing if you don’t mind walking back up, and the tourist board suggests it for families with children.

Savin Kuk in summer

The chairlift doesn’t shut for summer. On the 2026 price list a ride came to €12 per adult and €8 per child, with rides from 10:00 to 16:30 and the final ascent at 15:00. At the top, near the Savina voda spring, which legend says has healing powers, you look over the massif, the lakes and the Tara Canyon. The national tourist board also suggests a paraglider flight from 2,244 metres, lasting 10 to 15 minutes.

If you’re weighing up the country’s two ski areas, the comparison is in the guide to skiing in Montenegro, and for beds, see hotels in Žabljak. The town itself, and everything else it offers, is on the Žabljak page.

So you do not lose the morning at the ticket office, browse tickets and tours in Žabljak on GetYourGuide.

If you are staying the night, see the best hotel deals in Žabljak for your dates: the well-placed rooms go fast.