Ostrog Monastery: Montenegro’s Cliff-Face Sanctuary.

Nothing quite prepares you for the first sight of the Upper Monastery: a whitewashed shrine set directly into a vertical cliff, as if pressed into the rock by hand. Founded in the 17th century around St. Basil of Ostrog, it draws pilgrims of every faith — Orthodox, Catholic and Muslim alike — who come to the two cave churches and the saint's relics.

The pilgrimage climb to the Upper Monastery

The approach is half the experience: a road of tight hairpins climbs from the valley to the lower monastery, and the devout walk the final stretch uphill, some barefoot. Dress modestly (shoulders and knees covered), come early to beat both the heat and the crowds, and take a moment on the terrace for the enormous view back down the green Bjelopavlići plain.

How to visit Ostrog

Ostrog sits roughly between Podgorica and Nikšić, an easy half-day from the coast or the northern mountains. Pair it with a lunch stop in the valley and you have one of Montenegro's most memorable — and most moving — days out, whatever your beliefs.