The city is resting at the shores of the Adriatic Sea, this means that visitors will not only have the new city and Old Town, but also a large beach to explore. I’m going to walk you from end to end, so you can get a feel for exactly what is here. Slovenska Plaza, the largest beach in Budva, is not for everyone.
Pizana Beach
Beginning right at Old Town is a small and very rocky beach called Pizana. It is tucked up right against the medieval walls of the town in a tiny little cove. On the other side, is the large abandoned looking structure for the dive centre and city swimming pool.
There is quite a bit of trash here at this beach and the morning I went, two people had slept the night with all of their belongings splayed out, on the concrete structure. The setting could be so beautiful, but the current condition is not that nice unfortunately. Like most beaches here, this is a pebble beach with a healthy incline into the sea.
Marina
Walking now along the bay, after the pool is the ferry dock and then the marina filled with yachts and fishing boats.
The marina is actually quite clean looking, only the typical sheen of fuel creating rainbows on the water surface. Its quite picturesque with lots of benches and a restaurant called The Old Fisherman’s Pub, perfectly situated to relax and enjoy the views.
Slovenska Beach
For the remainder of the entire bay is Slovenska Beach. The land has been divvied up into sections for the general public and for beach clubs.
All of the sections are labelled with large signs right at the esplanade. Walking along, the public and ‘organized’ sections alternate one for one. So, a beach club taking up a large space, then a public area using a little sliver, then another beach club and so on.
The Clubs
Some are quite nice, especially Coco, very chill, clean, organized and classy. Others are merely a bar located near the esplanade with rows and rows of loungers placed in front of the shoreline.
The typical price is €15 for two beds and one umbrella for the day. The cheapest I found was towards the end of the bay and it was €10. These loungers had no padding, no extra vavavoom of any kind.
Public Spaces
There are probably a dozen, same number as the clubs. They range in size from quite a small sliver to about three times that size. Two have the city run off water emptying into the sea in the middle of them.
All are rocky, some more than others. In areas with ‘sand’, it is very coarse, I am unable to walk barefoot anywhere here. The water is mostly clear, and the rocks can be smooth or slimy, depending. The further one walks along; the less people are in those public spaces.
In the summer time, in August, these get soooo crowded, it is just not my vibe at all. By 10am most days, the beaches already look like this. And it just gets progressively more crowded as the day goes on.
There are garbage cans and some public areas do have shower facilities, a concrete platform with a shower head or two, no privacy.
Toilets
These are situated all along Slovenska Beach and are a business. Each one is manned and the cost is €1 to visit. Plan accordingly and bring some change and your own toilet paper.
Esplanade
There are actually two. The narrow one runs close to the beach and has restaurants along a large portion of it. The further you go down the bay, these restaurants turn into night clubs and bars.
The wider esplanade parallels the first one, but behind the restaurants. This is a roadway for restaurant deliveries, and is full of people and pick up counters for food to go.
Parts of the esplanade are really run down, with broken old concrete structures and such. It is not an area that has been beautified at all. And still other areas here are filled with the worst tacky tourist carnival like games and rides. It cheapens the whole look of the beach and for me anyways, does nothing to make me want to return.
Slovenska Beach was a really big surprise for me. With the beautiful mountains behind the city, and the overall natural beauty of the area, I was expecting quite a lovely beach. Instead, I am not feeling this seaside at all. With the run-down state of most things here, the trash, and all tacky tourist vibes, its just not a beach destination that I would recommend.
