Mamula Island

The Four Seasons Sultanahmet in Istanbul, the Liberty in Boston or the Wilmina in Berlin: there are several luxury hotels in former prisons - and I have no problem with them in principle. In the case of Mamula Island, however, it was not bank robbers or bandits who served their (just) sentences here, but political prisoners of the Mussolini regime, some of whom were brutally tortured on the mini-island in the Bay of Kotor. Can your cells be turned into rooms and suites? The question must be answered by everyone who wants to spend a holiday on the almost circular mini-island with a diameter of just 200 meters.
would like to go on vacation. In any case, I am glad that the operators have at least set up a small museum that is open to the public. However, you rarely meet visitors there - the majority of hotel guests don't want to be confronted with shameful deeds on display boards.

And for the locals, the journey by (cab) boat to Mamula Island is usually too far and too expensive. In general, the accessibility of the house is both its biggest plus and minus point. On the one hand, Mamula Island is almost meditatively quiet, but on the other hand, there are always days when waves and wind make it impossible to land by boat or take off by helicopter. Then the citadel, which has been converted into a superlative spa, is a good address. Under a glass roof, the main focus here is on holistic experiences such as aqua flotation, yoga or joint excursions for a sunrise swim in a nearby lagoon.

Dining on Mamula Island takes place in the stylish Kamena restaurant, which is often frequented in the evening by discreet yacht owners. Due to the past of the complex, which was built as a fortress in the 19th century, the pool in the inner courtyard only overlooks old sandstone walls. And the majority of the Sea Junior suites also only have windows as small as embrasures. You have to like that - or book a Panoramic Refuge with a private balcony and telescope for stargazing.

TEXT: Jörg Bertram