If you are curious what made Budva the place with the most millionaires in Europe, to the proportion of population, here’s the answer. Budva is an ideal resort for Mediterranean: it has marine and mountainous landscape, historic architecture, medieval churches, sandy beaches, night life. To put it in one line, it has the classy look of a Croatian top destination like Dubrovnik and the moderate Montenegrin prices.
Of course the relics from the times of the Phoenicians, more than two millenniums ago, and of Greeks can only be found in museums now. But the medieval look is very well preserved in the citadel. And this is due to almost four centuries of Venetian rule, which embellished it, just like it did with neighboring Croatian cities on the coast. Ironically, because these cities (like Trogir, Dubrovnik and Budva) were so cautious about maintaining their heritage in its classy Medieval line, when it comes to housing, they look better than Venice, which has the upper hand when it comes to monumental buildings. Add to the exquisite Italian style a century of Austrian and Serbian vividness and you will understand the charm of Budva.
The citadel is still protected by large stone walls, but its gate is now opened to a pedestrian street full of souvenir shops and bars, leading to the largest beach around. Despite the crammed aspect of the city and the tiny population, Budva hosted some of the greatest names in show-biz, including the Rolling Stones and Madonna.