Podgorica-based developer Kamgel has received a construction permit for a five-star hotel and 20 villas in Đuraševići near Tivat, advancing one of the area’s newest luxury-tourism projects from architectural planning into the pre-construction phase.
The planned complex will contain 16,815.35 square metres of gross built area across a boutique spa and wellness hotel in the upper section of the site and 20 hotel annexes, designed as individual villas, closer to the waterfront. The broader development site covers approximately 24,369 square metres within the Kalardovo–Ostrvo Cvijeća–Brdišta planning zone.
The approval removes the principal construction-permitting obstacle but does not yet establish when work will begin, how much the project will cost or how it will be financed. No hotel operator, international brand or construction contractor has been announced.
Those omissions are commercially important. Tivat’s luxury-property market has benefited from Porto Montenegro, Luštica Bay and the wider re-rating of the Bay of Kotor, but new projects must now compete for guests, branded operators, skilled employees and infrastructure capacity. A building permit turns Kamgel’s proposal into a development-ready asset; it does not by itself make the scheme financeable or guarantee five-star operating performance.
The project combines a 40-unit hotel with 20 villas
The complex is planned as two connected zones. The elevated section will contain a five-star spa and wellness boutique hotel with 40 accommodation units, while the lower part of the site will contain 20 villas operating as hotel annexes.
The hotel is expected to occupy approximately 10,431.79 square metres and is designed across three above-ground levels, with additional basement and semi-basement areas. All accommodation units are planned with terraces, landscaped gardens and views towards the sea.
The hotel’s first block will contain the entrance, lobby, reception, lounge bar, restaurant, service areas and 22 accommodation units. A second block will provide another 18 units alongside the principal wellness and technical facilities.
The proposed amenities include indoor and outdoor swimming pools, saunas, treatment rooms, a gym, a yoga area, a show kitchen and conference space. Internal movement between the hotel and villas is intended to rely partly on pedestrian routes and electric golf carts.
Across the full development, 9,731.44 square metres will be above ground and 7,083.91 square metres underground. The large underground component reflects the parking, plant, servicing and back-of-house infrastructure required to operate a hillside luxury resort without allowing vehicles and technical functions to dominate the guest areas.
The concept provides accommodation for approximately 161 guests and a total of 85 car-parking spaces. A hotel garage is expected to contain 62 car spaces and capacity for 20 golf carts, with the remaining parking distributed through the wider complex.
The relatively low number of keys in relation to the built area indicates a low-density, high-rate positioning rather than a conventional volume hotel. That can support premium room prices and privacy, but it also raises the investment required per accommodation unit. The project will need substantial revenue from suites, villas, food and beverage, wellness services and events to justify the construction and operating costs.
Waterfront access strengthens the commercial position
The site lies at Đuraševići, south-west of Tivat Airport, within the state planning area covering Kalardovo, Ostrvo Cvijeća and Brdišta. It includes 17 cadastral parcels and has direct access towards the sea, the Kalardovo marina and the planned Lungo Mare promenade.
Pedestrian connections are intended to link the resort with the Tivatska Solila nature reserve and the Kukuljina urban area. The development concept also provides for the reconstruction and reuse of the Dončulovina cultural-heritage site for tourism and hospitality purposes.
This combination of water access, proximity to the airport and panoramic views is the project’s strongest commercial advantage. Tivat is one of the few Montenegrin destinations where guests arriving by private aircraft, scheduled flight, yacht or road can reach luxury accommodation within a relatively short transfer.
The location is nevertheless outside the established centre of luxury demand around Porto Montenegro. Kamgel will therefore need to create a destination capable of attracting guests on its own merits or secure a recognised operator whose distribution network can compensate for the less established micro-location.
The resort’s boutique scale may help. A 40-unit hotel supported by villas can be marketed towards guests seeking privacy rather than the retail, nightlife and marina environment of central Tivat. Its success will depend on service quality, beach and marina arrangements, landscaping and the degree to which the surrounding public realm is completed.
Environmental sensitivity is also part of the investment case. The proximity of Tivatska Solila, an important protected wetland, increases the importance of wastewater treatment, drainage, construction controls, lighting and traffic management. Luxury pricing relies partly on environmental quality, making ecological protection a commercial requirement as well as a regulatory obligation.
The permit follows environmental and heritage approvals
The Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property issued the construction permit for a category T2 tourism complex described formally as a five-star hotel with annexes.
Before issuing the approval, the authorities obtained opinions covering transport, fire protection, electricity infrastructure, water and sewerage, electronic communications and civil aviation. The proximity to Tivat Airport makes aviation consent particularly relevant for building height, construction equipment and potential interference with operational zones.
On 27 July 2026, the Ministry of Tourism issued its opinion that the planned facilities met the standards required for the proposed category. On 30 July, the Environmental Protection Agency approved the environmental-impact assessment, while the Administration for the Protection of Cultural Property approved the conservation project.
The project’s architectural design was prepared by M-PRO Consulting & Engineering of Podgorica, led by architect Andrej Mitrović. The technical documentation was reviewed under the direction of Zoran Krivokapić of RMA Inženjering in Nikšić.
Kamgel had previously obtained the chief state architect’s consent for the concept design in February. The subsequent environmental, technical and construction approvals show that the development has moved through several separate administrative tests rather than relying on a preliminary planning announcement.
That progression reduces permitting risk. Residual development risk remains in utility connections, contractor procurement, financing, land consolidation and compliance with the detailed conditions attached to the permit.
Kamgel faces a two-year construction deadline
Under the permit, Kamgel must begin construction within two years of the approval date. If works do not start within that period, the right to build under the permit will lapse.
The company must complete the complex within five years. If construction continues beyond that deadline, Kamgel will be required to pay an annual charge for every additional year, calculated using the project value stated in the revised main design. It must also maintain and secure the site until an occupancy permit is issued.
These conditions create a meaningful execution timetable. Kamgel cannot hold the permitted scheme indefinitely while waiting for land values to rise or financing conditions to improve. It must mobilise capital and begin material works by 2028 if it wants to preserve the approval.
The five-year completion period provides more flexibility, but a resort of this size will still require coordinated excavation, retaining structures, underground facilities, hotel construction, villa delivery, landscaping and specialist interior fit-out. Difficult terrain and the need to control construction near the coast could extend the programme beyond that of a standard urban hotel.
The absence of a disclosed start date suggests that the project remains in the financial and procurement phase. The next investable milestones will be the appointment of a hotel operator, selection of a main contractor, disclosure of the financing structure and visible mobilisation on site.
The land position has been assembled partly through a state transaction
Kamgel’s development strategy has included the acquisition of approximately 8,000 square metres of state-owned land for €2.4mn, equivalent to about €300 per square metre. The transaction was intended to consolidate the plots required for the wider tourism development.
That acquisition price represents only part of the land basis because the site extends across more than twice the purchased state area and includes 17 cadastral parcels. The developer’s full cost will also include privately held land, design expenditure, permit fees, infrastructure contributions, financing costs and any obligations associated with public access or cultural-heritage restoration.
The state transaction gives the project a measurable land benchmark but not a complete valuation. Waterfront development land in Tivat derives value from buildability rather than surface area alone. The relevant calculation is the total land and infrastructure cost per permitted square metre of hotel and villa space.
Against 16,815 square metres of approved construction, the €2.4mn state-land purchase equates to roughly €143 per square metre of permitted gross area. That ratio appears manageable for a luxury scheme, but it excludes the cost of the remaining land and all construction expenditure.
Construction costs for a five-star hotel are materially higher than for ordinary apartments. Pools, wellness equipment, commercial kitchens, elevators, mechanical systems, acoustic treatment, stone façades, landscaping and imported interiors all increase the capital requirement. Large underground areas are particularly expensive because they produce no direct accommodation revenue while requiring excavation, waterproofing, ventilation and fire-protection systems.
A project with only 40 hotel units and 20 villas must therefore generate a high value per key. The villas may provide a route to early cash generation if they can be sold under a hotel-managed ownership model, although no sales structure has been disclosed. If Kamgel retains the full complex, it will need larger long-term equity and debt commitments but will preserve more of the operating and capital appreciation upside.
An operator agreement will determine the project’s bankability
The permit describes the property as a five-star hotel, but the intended operator and brand remain unknown. This is one of the most important unresolved elements.
An international hotel company could contribute reservation systems, marketing, operating standards and access to high-spending guests. A long-term management or franchise agreement would also give lenders greater confidence in occupancy and room-rate assumptions, provided the operator has an established record in comparable Adriatic resorts.
The trade-off is cost. International brands charge management, marketing and incentive fees and may require expensive changes to the design, room specifications and back-of-house facilities. They can also demand owner-funded operating reserves and pre-opening expenditure.
An independent boutique strategy would give Kamgel more control and avoid some brand fees. It would also leave the developer responsible for building a sales organisation and market identity in a destination where established luxury names already compete for guests.
The operator choice will influence whether the 20 villas are retained as hotel inventory, sold to individual buyers with rental obligations or structured as branded residences. Each approach carries different cash-flow and regulatory consequences.
Selling villas can finance part of construction and reduce the sponsor’s equity requirement. It can also fragment ownership and complicate resort operations. Retaining them provides a unified guest product and recurring revenue but increases the amount of capital exposed to Montenegro’s seasonal tourism cycle.
Tivat’s luxury pipeline raises both demand and supply
The permit reinforces Tivat’s position as the centre of Montenegro’s highest-value tourism and residential investment. Porto Montenegro established the city as a superyacht and branded-residence market, while Luštica Bay expanded the model into a larger integrated destination with hotels, residences, a marina and golf development.
Their success has attracted additional projects across the Bay of Kotor. This produces a beneficial cluster of international flights, restaurants, marine services and luxury employment, but it also increases competition for the same high-income guests.
Kamgel’s development will enter a market where pricing can be strong during the summer yet occupancy falls materially outside the peak season. A spa, wellness and conference offer can extend demand into spring and autumn, but only if air access and destination programming support year-round travel.
Tivat Airport remains both an advantage and a constraint. Its location close to the principal resorts reduces transfer times, while limited terminal and runway infrastructure can restrict capacity and passenger experience during the busiest weeks. Road congestion around the Bay creates an additional operational challenge for hotel transfers, employees and suppliers.
A low-density resort in Đuraševići can partly avoid central Tivat congestion, particularly if it develops effective marine access. It will still depend on municipal water, wastewater, electricity and road systems facing rising pressure from continued coastal construction.
The project’s investor significance lies in its transition from a concept to a permitted development. Kamgel now has formal approval for a 16,815-square-metre complex comprising a 40-unit five-star hotel and 20 villas, supported by environmental, tourism, cultural-heritage and infrastructure consents.
The remaining test is capital rather than planning. Kamgel has two years to begin construction and must demonstrate that the scheme can secure an operator, contractor and financing package capable of supporting a high-cost boutique resort. If it succeeds, Đuraševići will become another node in Tivat’s expanding luxury-tourism corridor; if financing or execution slips, the permit’s deadlines will prevent the project from remaining an open-ended land option.
