Itinerary Help

If Cavat is actually Cavtat, then my question is why are you staying 2 nights in Cavtat and 3
in Dubrovnik when Cavtat is essentially a suburb of Dubrovnik?

I think 3 nights, aligning with your reasoning, is fine for Dubrovnik. If you remove the Cavtat
part completely, then you have 2 nights to sprinkle in someplace, or add a couple of days on
an island.

I had a good reason.. I swear. lol

The trip between Kotor to Mostar was a very long bus ride, so I put Dubrovnik in the middle of these two places to break up the travel time.
See the problem is, we would land in Dubrovnik and I did want to go to Dubrovnik twice (once when we landed and once between travel from Kotor to Mostar), so I figured Cavtat was a good place to start the trip and change things up. Plus I read it was beautiful. It seemed the only way to make this puzzle work. Maybe only 1 day is necessary in Cavtat? A good place to unwind after the flight? Roam the town, have dinner, and relax?

Or... I could start the trip in Dubrovnik if I could find a great alternative for the halfway point between Kotor and Mostar.

Because Cavtat can be reached by ferry in 30 minutes from Dubrovnik, you could go by boat and see it as a daytrip. Lokrum National Park also has beautiful beaches, pine forests and is just a 15-minute ferry ride from Dubrovnik’s Old Town port. Lokrum also has a Benedictine monastery from the 12th-century and Fort Royal which Napolean had built after he took Dubrovnik. There are incredible views of Dubrovnik’s walls and the Old Town from Fort Royal. Plan on most of one day on Lokrum Island, and it’s a great daytrip when the cruise ship passengers overwhelm Dubrovnik.
Dubrovnik’s Old Town is quite small— but Kotor’s Old Town is even smaller ( something like 1/4 square mile) and it gets crazy crowded when the cruise ships are in port. The setting is spectacular, but after a day there, most visitors are ready for a new adventure. So, consider shaving down your time in Kotor.
Consider MJLET NATIONAL PARK which is an island accessible from Dubrovnik in 1:45 by ferry to Polace
It also has beautiful beaches and forests without the crowds.
If you make a few adjustments to the itinerary, you could easily work in MJLET.
Have a great trip!

Ok, fair enough, but you can cut out one leg by going straight to Kotor from the airport.

If you take the bus, it's true that you'll have to take the airport shuttle to the far end of
Dubrovnik and then xfer to a bus to Kotor, but depending on your itinerary, you may not
be able to check into your hotel for a while after landing, so going to Kotor may be a
good use of time.

But you could rent a car at the airport, drive to Kotor, and then return it a couple of days
later when you come back to Dubrovnik.

Anyways, I see your point about the bus time, but not sure why you want to go to
Dubrovnik twice...

Consider starting your trip by flying into Podgorica (TGD). Then the trip flows in one direction. Nice simple airport and fairly well served. Another to look at if you are arriving on Turkish Air would be the Tivat Airport which is very close to Kotor.

Also, I wouldnt necessarily do 3 nights in Kotor unless it just to use it as a base to see other parts of the country. Beautiful and very interesting country.

Here is my route for your trip. In to Podgorica and out of Sarajevo. Google the stops along the way.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/6PuyRKDkHocNNPC3A

Oh, and the transportation. Sure busses for most of it, a train for part of it, and maybe one private transfer (not expensive in Montenegro). Let me know if you need help with that.

Omg thank you all for such great suggestions.
Flying into Montenegro changes everything and honestly why didn't I think of that. lol. I will also definitely take the suggestion of staying in Kotor for only 2 nights.
Now... upon arrival, would you stay in Podgorica? Is it a nice city? Or go directly somewhere else in Montenegro. I read about Budva. What about 2 nights there?

No, with your limited time, I would not use nights in Podgorica. What you do might depend on when your flight arrives. But if possible, head straight on to Budva or Kotor.

But make your time and dollars work for you. If you can’t easily get where you want to go by bus and it is costing you an additional hotel stay (and you don’t have unlimited nights), a private transfer might be your friend. Especially if you have to spend an extra night in Dubrovnik, which is somewhat expensive, consider a driver from Kotor or Budva to Mostar. The same would be true if you end up flying in to Dubrovnik and want to head straight on to Kotor. A driver will not cost more than 2 nights in Cavtat and will give you 2 nights to spend elsewhere.

A hotel and a bus ticket in Germany (maybe Croatia) will cost about the same as a hotel and a private transfer in Montenegro .... well .... maybe but you get the point. Check with Dijana for the Montenegro part for sure and she also does Croatia and Bosnia.

I got a pretty in depth tour of Podgorica last week. Much nicer than earlier impressions. I could live there ... no problem. I say this to be fair, the answer is NO dont stay in Podgorica. The drive from the airport the hour or so to Budva is really very beautiful in places. So its part of the tour.