How should a first-time Montenegro trip be structured?
Montenegro works best with a clear spine: Bay of Kotor, one coast decision and either a mountain or lake-country section. The mistake is treating its small size as permission to change base every day.
Answer
Start with the Bay of Kotor, because it gives the country its most immediate drama: stone towns, steep water and mountain walls closing in around the road. Then make one honest choice. If beaches and summer energy matter, stay coastal and choose your base carefully. If the landscape is the reason you came, add Durmitor, Tara Canyon, Lake Skadar or Lovćen and accept that the trip becomes more road-shaped. Montenegro is compact, but it is not flat or frictionless. Fewer bases usually give you more of the country than a route that looks impressive on paper.