The Janu condo-hotel at Sveti Stefan: Europa Nostra urges Montenegro to halt its expansion in Miločer Park

In an open letter dated 6 October 2026, the European heritage organisation Europa Nostra has written to Montenegro’s Prime Minister, Milojko Spajić, about Miločer Park, next to the island of Sveti Stefan. It asks him to prevent the construction of a third block of the Janu Montenegro condo-hotel, a project of the Aman group’s Janu brand, while welcoming the procedure to protect the park launched by the government.

☰Contents

1. An open letter dated 6 October
2. What are Europa Nostra’s objections to the Janu?
3. Dragomir Tadić’s royal garage, demolished
4. A third block by the park entrance
5. The “Tourist Resort Miločer” plan, cancelled
6. Among Europe’s 7 most endangered sites
7. Villa Miločer, open since 22 May

An open letter dated 6 October

The letter is signed by Hermann Parzinger, Executive President, and Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, Secretary General of Europa Nostra. Copies were sent to the President of Montenegro, the ministries of Spatial Planning and of Culture, the Administration for the Protection of Cultural Property, European Commissioner Marta Kos, European Union Ambassador Johann Sattler and the European Parliament rapporteur Marijan Šarec.

What are Europa Nostra’s objections to the Janu?

For Europa Nostra, the Janu Montenegro, even in the part already built, is oversized and incompatible with the park’s historic, aesthetic and landscape values. It points out that a special law, a lex specialis, took precedence over the planning documents that protected Miločer. According to architect Branislav Mitrović, a member of the competition jury, the building under construction is larger, in both footprint and volume, than the winning design.

Dragomir Tadić’s royal garage, demolished

The letter cites a loss that has already occurred: the former royal garage built in the 1930s, designed by architect Dragomir Tadić, has been demolished. The park surrounds the former royal summer residence, now Aman Sveti Stefan’s Villa Miločer, once the residence of Queen Marija Karađorđević.

A third block by the park entrance

Europa Nostra urges the government to prevent the construction of a third apartment block of the Janu project, planned next to the park’s historic main entrance. According to the letter, this volume would obscure the entrance as well as the neighbouring former royal villas.

The “Tourist Resort Miločer” plan, cancelled

Europa Nostra welcomes the cancellation of the “Tourist Resort Miločer” planning scheme and the decision to protect the park as immovable cultural property, a procedure still under way. It attributes the damage suffered by Miločer to decisions by previous governments and praises Montenegro’s “impressive progress” towards European Union membership. It recalls that the European Parliament, in its May 2026 report on the Commission’s 2025 report on Montenegro, called for this protection to be finalised.

Among Europe’s 7 most endangered sites

On 13 April 2023, Europa Nostra and the European Investment Bank Institute placed the cultural landscape of Sveti Stefan, in the Paštrovići area, on the list of Europe’s 7 most endangered heritage sites. Their experts’ report, published on 17 July 2024, describes a 1.2-hectare fortified islet from the 15th century linked to the shore by a causeway, and a park with the 1930s royal summer residence, two beaches and a French-style botanical garden. It notes that a lease signed in 2007 with a development company led to the construction of a large condo-hotel in the park, and calls for public access to the shore to be restored. Elsewhere in Montenegro, heritage and hospitality also meet at Mamula Island by Banyan Tree.

Villa Miločer, open since 22 May

Aman Sveti Stefan reopened in 2026: Villa Miločer has been open year-round since 22 May 2026, while the island of Sveti Stefan opens seasonally from 1 July. On 7 October, Aman’s official booking engine showed €1,763 for the night of 14 to 15 October in a Miločer Garden View Suite, for two adults, breakfast and taxes included.

No official response from Aman to Europa Nostra’s letter had been published as of 7 October, and the group’s website does not list Janu Montenegro among its announced openings. Near Budva, Nammos Resort Montenegro is expected in 2029.