Ostrog Monastery guide: the cliff-face church, St Basil's relics, dress code, opening hours and how to get there.
Ostrog is an Orthodox monastery built directly into a vertical cliff 900 m above the Bjelopavlići plain, founded in the 17th century by Vasilije, bishop of Herzegovina, whose relics still lie in the upper church.
It is the most visited pilgrimage site in Montenegro and draws Orthodox, Catholic and Muslim visitors alike — around a million people a year.
The Upper monastery is the whitewashed church embedded in the rock face. From the lower monastery you can drive the last 3 km or walk the pilgrim path in 30–40 minutes, which many visitors do barefoot. Queues to see the relics can be long on weekends and saints' days.
This is an active monastery, not a museum. Photography is not allowed inside the churches, dress modestly, and keep voices low in the chapels. Free simple accommodation for pilgrims exists at the lower monastery.
Day tours from the coast usually pair Ostrog with the Njeguši road, Cetinje or Skadar Lake. From Podgorica it is an easy half day.
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No. Entry is free and the monastery lives on donations. Candles and small icons are sold at the gate.
Shoulders and knees covered. Shorts and sleeveless tops are not permitted in the churches; wraps are sometimes available at the entrance.
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