Goodbye, ferries from Pulija to Montenegro: Croatia in the EU.

Jadrolinija has to skip a stop in Montenegro, the city of Bar, due to new navigation regulations. Now they stop in Split and Dubrovnik. Bar and Montenegro are no longer so close. The summer of 2023 will start without a historical connection with one of the neighbors of the Adriatic Sea.

The reason is political: Croatia's entry into the Schengen zone has changed navigation norms for the Croatian company Jadrolinija, which is forced to skip a stop in Bar, Montenegro. For years, the shipping company has been linking Croatia and Italy, adding an intermediate stop in the port of Bar.

For example, the popular destination Budva, also a favorite of many Bari residents, is a tourist destination that can be compared landscape-wise to Croatia, Greece and Albania, but economically more accessible. Now instead of Bar the new stops are Split and Dubrovnik, both cities are in Croatia.

Looking forward to more updates, the season is almost upon us. Tickets for the ferries to Greece and Croatia are almost all sold out. It seems at this point it's really hard to imagine anyone being able to replace the missing connection to Bar.

The Direct Ferries portal, a reference point for organizing travel by sea, explains: "There are currently no departures to Montenegro; we recommend the Bar-Dubrovnik route, which operates all year round and links Italy with Croatia. The flights are operated by the shipping company Jadrolinija, which offers 4 ferries per week and lasts 10 hours".

Albania and Croatia are still necessary intermediate stops to reach the coveted beaches of Montenegro, which are still untouched by man.