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One family has run Hotel Pelikan since 1960, and a room here puts you on the bank of Lake Skadar, in the heart of Virpazar, with dinner in a fireplace room styled on an old Montenegrin home.
Hotel, Virpazar. Meridian Dispatch.
Podgorica is the nearest airport, about 16 km from the hotel, with Tivat about 65 km away and Dubrovnik about 95 km. From any of them, a car or taxi is the practical way to reach the village centre.
Yes. Virpazar railway station is 500 metres from the hotel, and buses run to the village from Podgorica, the capital, and from Sutomore on the coast.
Yes. Guests can go out on Lake Skadar with the hotel's own boat, which leaves from the shore at the property. More boats depart from the Virpazar harbour next door.
Yes. The hotel has its own restaurant, with a garden, a shaded outdoor terrace and a rustic fireplace room in the style of a traditional Montenegrin household.
Hotel Pelikan stands on the bank of Lake Skadar, beside the harbour in the middle of Virpazar, and is the village's main hotel. Virpazar itself is small, on the northern shore of the lake, with a stone bridge and traditional wooden boats tied up along the water.
The building was the Zec family house, with a barber shop on the ground floor, before it became a family hotel with a restaurant. Dozens of photographs on the restaurant walls tell that story.
The hosts keep a museum of the hotel's history in the attic and are happy to show it to guests. Beyond the door, Lake Skadar National Park is known for its rare bird species and endemic plants, and the village is a starting point for hiking.
After you arrive, the hotel can take you out on the lake in its own boat, from the water in front of the property. Other trips leave the Virpazar harbour in wooden boats or motorboats and last from two hours to a full day.
Meals are served in the 120-seat restaurant, which has a garden and an outdoor terrace in pleasant shade.
Before you set off, tell the hotel whether you are travelling by car or train, and staff will meet you at a place you agree beforehand.
The hilltop fortress above the village overlooks the lake. Plan your lake trip for the morning, when departures are smoother, since the wind tends to pick up in the afternoon.
Book ahead for an early birdwatching trip or a peak-season weekend. The national park visitor centre in Virpazar has maps and can suggest walking routes.
Nearest first, all within 18 minutes on foot from the door.
Besac Fortress
Best climbed before you plan the rest of your day on the lake: from the upper walls you see Lake Skadar, Virpazar and the Crmnica basin at once. The…
Lake Skadar National Park
Quiet channels between floating lilies, and reed beds where Dalmatian pelicans nest in spring: Lake Skadar is a protected wetland where some 280 bird…
Hotel PelikanThings to do
The town
From Virpazar's quay, a small wooden boat takes you into the lily channels of Lake Skadar, past island fortresses and on to monasteries that stand on islands of their own.
Read the Virpazar guideLast updated
