Review: Aman Sveti Stefan Montenegro

O M G - its another assisted living fascility - this time in Montenegro that only a 93 year old Norwegian woman would be remotely interested in.

There’s also some great hiking near the hotel. You can hike up to the church located all the way on top of the hill across from Sveti Stefan.

I just Can't. Hiking by a church? I mean what to say about Kansas city? You can hike three blocks to buy bubble gum - that comes wrapped in paper! ????

I can't.

Thanks for the review. It's been on the list of places to go to for a while(we are actually right there about two months before they opened). I've never been crazy about the decor; it just seems a tad rustic for my tastes. However I still am dying to go

Fdw

Great review as usual Ben.

Thank you so much for that.

Interesting review. It was good to see. Fantastic setting and gorgeous public spaces.
But for me the rooms look to rustic and basic (especially the toliet and shower).
And at close to 1000USD a night in a country where the average salary is about 550USD a month it seems terribly poor value. In Venice or Paris fair enough, but rural Montenegro?

...I love this. Everything is so beautiful. To me, the rain adds its own element of loveliness. I know the two of you enjoyed every single second. I cannot wait for the next post.

I agree it is picturesque location but that room is just really plain, even the tv looks cheap. Nothing says top notch luxury hotel mini bar better than ARIZONA ICE TEA, lol

I truly and sincerely believe North Korea has better properties.

That's a lot of cottaging.

Looks like you got the room upgrade, but the room itself doesn't seem very impressive, at least in your photos. To me, it seems like a nice place to see, maybe on that daily tour, but I'm not seeing the value. Certainly doesn't seem to hold up vs the Fogo Island Inn.

Ben, I must say that your hotel reviews are truly outstanding, definitely some of the best out there.

I had my first Aman experiences earlier this year at Amansara and Amanpuri. Loved Amansara! I was fascinated by the Cambodian interpretation of mid century modern; Amansara was like a bit of Palm Springs plopped down in the midst of Southeast Asia. Service was outstanding, food was ok. I really disliked Siem Reap.

Amanpuri? Beautiful setting. Wonderful food. I was consistently asked for our room number, though that didn't really bother me. Service in no way approached the seamless elegance found at Amansara. I was really surprised that our pavilion at Puri was a bit banged-up. I did enjoy our time at Puri (despite the fact that the place was severely infested with children); but, it felt more like a Four Seasons. I most definitely felt the mystical Aman vibe at Amansara while such vibe was completely lacking at Amanpuri.

And while I thoroughly enjoyed reading your review of Aman Sveti Stefan, I can't say that I am eager to give it a try. So you and Ford were never bored during your stay?

I also visited the property last month (roughly the same as Lucky). I've read many reviews and seen many pictures of this property, and I just wasn't impressed enough to shell out $1000 a night at this hotel. The location is very unique like other Aman properties, but the room really are just to simplistic.

Instead, we made dinner reservation at the restaurant and just went around sunset. The view is absolutely breathtaking, and like many Aman properties, there were hardly anyone there. Dinner itself was meh, costs around $100 a person with a glass of wine, but the views are stunning.

They also gave me a tour around the island which I thought was just enough to get a feel for the island.

@brian - My mother always gave this advice. The difference between "fancy" and "luxury" is that "fancy" looks nice at first glance, but it's just a facade (think gold plated faucets), while "luxury" usually looks boring, but delivers where it counts (think 1000 thread count sheets).

(And imported Arizona Tea in Montenegro is, in fact, a luxury item, given the trouble that was taken to obtain it there.)

I agree Ben gives Stellar reviews- he really does and he tries to find the best in things. Borred? I'd venture to say after one night of that the donkeys were starting to look good!

I think the property looks stunning and the spa looks like it blows everything else out the water, although the room does look quite plain. Wondering if it came across as spartan and bad or minimalist and luxury?

For $1000 A night in a 3rd world country you would expect the experience to be faultless. It does not sound as if yours was.

Surroundings look beautiful as does the spa but I would not pay $1000 a night for that room. The shower looks like it is from a Best Western.....

A wooden toilet seat and lid? Who sits on a toilet seat made of WOOD??? Kentucky is calling from 1974 and they want their bathroom décor back!!

Looks worse than many of the Airbnbs I have stayed in for a quarter of the price. Never for me.

@Imperator

When the Amanpuri first opened in 1988 it was a *lot* smaller than it is today. I believe they more than doubled in size during the aughts(?), and they now have over 70 rooms/pavilions/cottages or whatever they call them. Which would make it almost impossible to have the kind of discreet service (e.g., staff knowing room numbers, etc.) one is used to at other properties.

I've been following this property since it opened in 1988, as it coincided with my first trip to Phuket and I really wanted to stay there, but I was young and poor so couldn't afford it. Now that I'm old and not as poor, I just don't think it's worth the money considering how many reviews I've read that echo what you mentioned in this thread. The other Amans I've visited (all in Asia) have all been phenomenal, and I look forward to more visits to other properties.

Albanians?

So to sum up: hard product - meh, soft product - meh, $1000 a night

I love your reviews but in this case - the photos don't seem to match the enthusiasm. It just doesn't sing for price point. Based on photos alone, it looks worth ~€200/night max. I look at the photos and wonder where the other €680/night goes.

So unclear on what happened. Did you get the upgrade?
Also for those of us that consider going there you dont mention the prices anymore. What did you pay for the massage?

I'll chime in with everyone else and say that the room looks decidedly underwhelming for $1,000/nt. The hotel overall looks impressive. However, I wouldn't aspire to stay in one of those rooms.

cant believe anyone paid Fillmore than $300 for that room in Montenegro. With $900/night, can they not afford to add a rain shower or even buy a bigger flat screen tv? Seems like a horrible value.

Nice writing, great pictures but too bad about the service. Having stayed at 7 Aman resorts (my fav Amansara - fantastic food/great private tours), I'd be interested in more room category info. Aman rooms usually have some outdoor space but doesn't look like it here.

Quite an underwhelming room, especially at that price point! Common facilities are nice, at least.

Did you get a Junkie tee or luggage tags, Ben?

Looks really underwhelming for price, I get they are going for minimalist decor but your room looks like it could be any large room at a 3 star resort.

@ Matt -- Just realized we got neither this time. Hmmm!

@ Ivan Y -- Yes, that was a Deluxe Cottage room, I believe, so we did get an upgrade. I'm not exactly sure anymore how much the massage was, though it was steep -- I think about 150EUR or so for an hour.

@ Soltatio -- Somewhere in the middle. The rooms certainly don't have the same "wow" factor as some other Amans I've stayed at, though I found it to be luxurious overall. The room definitely wasn't the highlight of the experience, though.

@ Imperator -- Thanks for the heads up on Amanpuri. Have heard it's one of the less good Aman properties, so not surprised to hear that, though am still disappointed. Nope, we weren't bored one bit, surprisingly. At the end of the four days we said we wish we had another day or two, which we rarely say. But also keep in mind that I still work (mostly) as usual when traveling, so I don't get bored quite as quickly as others, since I'm not "vacationing" nonstop.

This property is a strong candidate for an HGTV remodeling project.

Much like when you went to Sardinia - you were done mate. Agree with others here, the room has the overall look of a very nice Airbnb. Indeed the whole place does look very nice, but not for that money.

The property and setting is beautiful. Like the others, I agree that the minimalist room decor looks a bit tired and uninspiring and the price seems a bit high for such a remote setting.
I've been inside the Aman Venice (Grand Canal Suite) visiting friends on their anniversary trip and it's stunning (and expensive at €5000 per night plus 10% tax and fees) but not anything I could ever consider at that price but if I could get a deal, I'd definitely do it.

Looks stunning. I do think Aman is becoming much more well known, but that at many properties service standards are starting to slip as it becomes more corporate/chain-like under the new management. In Phuket the best place to stay is Iniala.

@mallthus. Ding ding ding. Your mom is right. Luxury hotel doesn't mean bells and whistles, it's everything else that's less tangible that makes a hotel truly luxurious. I've stayed at this Aman before and yes, picture does it no justice even though I think Lucky took very good pictures of this resort. The interiors may look very underwhelming in pictures, but in fact, it is probably one of the best interior I've seen in any luxury hotel I've stayed at. It is very easy to deck out this place with expensive furniture a la Cheval Blanc Randheli (which I absolutely love), it is much harder to design a place without all the wooos and ahhhs and make it look right. The rooms here give you a sense of place that Aman excels at all their properties and this place is no different.

The intangible what Lucky didn't described is things Aman offers many excursions which most luxury hotels such as Four Seasons or Mandarin do not offer. Some of the excursions can be booked if you do your research and pull it together on your own if you are not staying at an Aman property while other excursions are only available to Aman guests because Aman is the only one who have access to the experience. An example would be if you stay at Aman Venice, you can skip the long line and crowds at the Dodge Palace and get a private tour after hour. Last time I check, no other resorts in Venice offer that kind of access. That's one of the difference when staying at an Aman resort vs. Four Seasons and Mandarin. At Aman Sveti Stefan, I went on an excursion and one of the guide offered us some priganice that his grandma made earlier that day. We commented off hand that this is delicious. And everyday after that, we were served priganice (not on their menu) every morning for breakfast in bed among other things. That's call service! Attention to what your guests like and make it happen without asking. This kind of attention to detail I have never experienced outside of an Aman property.

Pretty much any guests at Aman can afford those 100" televisions and expensive Italian sofas. Those kind of things do not make them go woos and ahhhs. It's the attention to service and access to experiences that they cannot otherwise have makes Aman stays unique and worth the money. And no, I'm not affiliated with any Aman property but obviously am a fan.

@ kevinh -- Very, very well said!

@kevinh

oh boy, give me a break. You're sounding pretentious. Pretty much any guests at Aman can afford those 100" TV, so why not put in a TV that is bigger than 32"? You have to squint to clearly see that TV from the bed. While other Amans might be worth it, this one is clearly not. Just because someone's grandma made some sweets doesn't mean service is good or thoughtful. I cringed when Amansara arranged a local monk to give ford blessings for his birthday eventhough Ford is not buddhist! What a waste of the monk's time to have to go "bless" a rich white man who has little understanding of buddhism.

Also, is a property really luxurious when you arrive to breakfast at 7:15 and was ignored for a couple of minutes?? Sometimes people are bending over backwards to justify that something overpriced is a good value.

Always good to see a gym with reformers in them, not enough hotels have them.

Fantastic report Ben. It looks absolutely stunning. If I could afford it I'd be there also.

To the naysayers on here and as we say in Australia "tall poppy syndrome" get a life.

I agree, the rooms should have been more luxurious. I get that they want it to be understated, but you can do luxury without having to be bling about it.

They could have done beautiful stone showers, put in some analine leather or beautifully upholstered furniture, put some local artwork on the walls, I can think of so many things.

I understand they're going for a cottage feel, but having been to some multi-million dollar cottages, there is a lot that can be done to justify $1k a night without making it look garish.

The hotel looks incredible otherwise. I was actually considering booking it for a July a few months ago, but ended up booking the Four Seasons in Seychelles instead.

Stayed at one of these with a deep discount. It was great for that price but not really worth it if paying full price.

Visually stunning place, but the review doesn't really convey why it was worth the price. Also, I was left curious about the quality of the food. How was the included breakfast? How was the included lunch? What are prices like at the restaurant? Though, I suppose at $1K+ a night, "if you have to ask, you can't afford it."

Also, how isolated is this place? Is there a town nearby or are you basically trapped at the resort?

Whoops, just saw your follow up review of the food. Nevermind!

@kevinh
So true in my experience at Aman, for example the excursion to Angkor Wat temple was something very few have access to. Not unusual for Aman properties.

Frankly, I just don't get it ... on this and many other reviews on this blog (not the primary reason I read it and usually ignore them).

I've been to the area and to "nearby" Dubrovnik. Geographically beautiful. One can enjoy it at more mainstream properties. One can stay in good hotels or private apartments for quite some time in that part of Eastern Europe for $1000. $1000/night???

The whole luxury hotel/aspirational property thing ... frankly, I just don't get it. Why is this important or necessary to enjoy visiting a location?

Is the need or desire for something like this based upon one's insecurity and/or need to feel important? I don't mean this to be obnoxious ... I just deep down don't get it. Maybe I'm too practical.

Toiletries? High quality. I'm sure that was based on scientific testing... It's soap! My guess is that one could put store brand toiletries in expensive-labelled bottles and most people would not be able to tell the difference. Yes, here I'm being obnoxious ... but really...

It looks amazing. 3 years back I visited Budva and the northern part of Montenegro and I enjoyed it a lot, I'm from Romania by the way, which is very close by.

Been there before it was Aman... and I can confirm the furniture did NOT change. It was teak furniture then, it is now. (While teak wood is very expensive, it is hardly considered uderstated luxury anymore) One thing that I noticed missing - original paintings from famous artist (hyper realism, very expensive) that graced my room are not to be seen anymore? And room I had for 100us a night had separate living room... not sure what "upgrade" Aman did when they trimmed down the number of rooms, claiming you are getting essentially whole house for yourself. While the service was not polished-topofthenotch kind by any stretch of imagination, still never waited to be served. While this is squarely eastern Europe, the property was good enough for foreign royalties and dignitaries long before Aman existed. I'm just not seeing the "upgrade" worth 1000 per night. And original top deck pool had beautiful waterfall, better then current sterile, can-be-anywhere black box. I think they pored all money into spa (It was blah before), that they left the island as is.

And for those interested: Milocer villa (the one on the shore) is left over royal summer house, and should be much better style and service than island itself (was closed when I was visiting). The park behind it has plenty of self serve white figs, but you have to go in September. Being that is surrounded by manicured gardens and amazing juniper trees, you truly feel like king (and it is notoriously empty, so you are often ONLY guest).

Pity you did not push on to Cetinje, 1/2 hour inland, the old Montenegrin capital, straight out of a Hergé "Tintin" book (those among you European born know what I talk about). In particular "Le Sceptre d'Ottokar". Perfect illustration of the pre-WW1 Balkans.

I've stayed at quite a number of Aman properties (with Amantaka in Laos and Aman Tokyo probably topping the list of my favourites, followed closely by Amanpulo in the Philippines -- curiously, I didn't care as much for Amansara, as others have mentioned), and I can answer the question about price/value pretty easily. Delivering the Aman experience (or any five-star experience) in a remote backwater is considerably harder and more costly than doing so in a place with well-established, mature high-end infrastructure. So yes, it's more challenging to deliver a curated, luxury experience in the wilds of Bhutan on on a small island in Montenegro than it is in the beating heart of Tokyo or even in travel-mature Bali.

My special Aman story is that on two successive queries while staying at Amanpulo, I said that I preferred sparkling over still water. I've never had to answer this question at an Aman property since. They know. THAT tells you how seriously they take service. This is easy to do: all resorts have computers. They just have to WANT to provide this level of service. If you travel solo and always prefer to get into bed on the left side, once Aman is aware of that, your turndown will always be on your chosen side. That's what conveys true luxury... not a bunch of bling.

Hey Ben love the pics! I have never stayed at Aman before . It looks like an amazing place but I too wouldn't shell out $1000 a night there either! Maybe $300 tops ? For That price they should of treat you like a king ! Expensive for a massage to! I love travelling to and massages are a staple for me ! I have had good ones and ones that were very bad ! You never know what to expect while travelling! Thanks for sharing!

Boy, how pretentious are many? Waiting 5 minutes for breakfast service. Comments on turn down service. I have been to Sveti Stefan, beautiful area. Love old town Budva. Budva has hip party vibe. Many small places on coast to enjoy.