Žabljak / Durmitor
Žabljak and Durmitor: the back story
The back story
Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © Daniel.fox123 · CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia CommonsAbout Žabljak and Durmitor: the back story
In winter Durmitor becomes a different world: the meadows of the high plateau vanish under snow, the Black Lake freezes in its forest, and Žabljak, at 1,450 metres the highest town in the Balkans, wakes up to the sound of skiers heading for Savin Kuk.
The mountain
Durmitor, in the north of Montenegro, has been a national park since 1952 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980. It has more than 50 peaks above 2,000 metres, 18 glacial lakes, the “mountain eyes”, and along its edge the Tara has carved what the tourist board calls the deepest canyon in Europe. Its highest summit, Bobotov Kuk, reaches 2,523 metres.
Savin Kuk
TC Durmitor’s ski area on Savin Kuk is, in its own words, one of the two largest in Montenegro. The lower two-seat chairlift, Savin Kuk I, is 1,550 metres long and climbs to 1,907 metres; the upper one, Savin Kuk II, continues for 700 metres to 2,213 metres, near the Savina Voda spring. Between them they serve 4.6 km of runs: three blue, one red, an 800-metre black from the top, and a baby slope, with three drag lifts, one floodlit for night skiing, and a children’s lift. At the base, the Durmitorsko sijelo restaurant and the Kulina café bar wait for you.
Skiing in a UNESCO World Heritage park, above the highest town in the Balkans.
Javorovača
Close to the centre of town, the gentle slopes of Javorovača are where families come to sledge and children take their first turns; there are no lifts in service, so you walk back up.
The town
Žabljak is a small mountain town of hotels, guesthouses and restaurants serving the food of the Durmitor highlands: lamb, kajmak, cheese and cicvara. The Black Lake lies in the pine forest a short walk away, and a path circles it in about an hour.
Our advice: check with TC Durmitor which lifts are running before you travel, as the season depends on snow and lift availability. Stay at least two nights, ski in the morning and walk to the Black Lake in the afternoon, and carry chains for the mountain roads.
Why it's on our list
- A national park since 1952
- UNESCO World Heritage
- Savin Kuk to 2,213 m
- The Black Lake
- The Tara canyon
Savin Kuk in brief
From TC Durmitor (tcdurmitor.me) and the Tourist Organisation of Žabljak (zabljak.travel), October 2026.
Lifts · 4
Savin Kuk I chairlift, 1,550 m long, to 1,907 m, Savin Kuk II chairlift, 700 m long, to 2,213 m, Three drag lifts, one floodlit, Children’s lift
Runs · 5
Three blue, One red, One black, 800 m, Baby slope, 4.6 km in all
Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Žabljak and Durmitor: the back story before you go.