Peaks of the Balkans Trail
In June 2025 it was time for me to visit Albania. The country has been recommended as one of the more surprising Balkan countries. And with tourism rapidly increasing in the past few years, I didn’t want to miss out on the unique culture. With a rental car I explored the country for 10 days from North to South. Albania has a lot to offer, from hiking in the mountains, picturesque UNESCO villages and pretty beaches. This was my 10 day trip through Albania.
Tirana
The capital city of Albania is Tirana. Unlike other European capitals, Tirana isn’t that large and spending one day here is perfect for seeing the main sites.
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Skanderbeg Square: a huge open area is the main plaza in Tirana, with various landmarks surrounding it.
Tirana Castle: not much of a castle but more of an area within the old walls with restaurants and stores.
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Pyramid of Tirana: a modern and odd sight in historic Tirana. I climbed to the top for a panoramic view of the city.
Namazgah Mosque: the grand mosque of Tirana is the largest mosque in the Balkans, opened recently in October 2024. Even though I’m not religious, I can appreciate the architecture of a church or mosque. As a woman I couldn’t enter the main area (only peek inside), but the open area with pillars, hidden behind a small door next to the entrance was more astonishing.
Bunk’Art: Tirana has two Bunk’Arts, #2 is the smaller one in the city center. Bunk’Art 1 is the larger and apparently more impressive museum outside of the city you can visit if you have extra time to spare.
Shkoder
Going North from Tirana is Shkoder. A small town where we spend the afternoon and evening in the old town on one of the main streets with restaurants and stores. For excellent and affordable traditional Albanian food with shared dining, I personally recommend Restaurant Qilari.
Shkoder is mostly the starting place to do the Peak of the Balkans trail and to visit Komani Lake.
Komani Lake
When crossing Komani Lake on a ferry to reach Valbona, read my Peak of the Balkans trail blog post for more must-know information and insights.
Komani Lake can also be visited as a day trip, either from Shkoder where you will be picked up and dropped off, or you can drive to Koman yourself. For a day-trip I recommend the full tour with the minivan pick-up in Shkroder.
Many travel agencies offer tours to Komani Lake and Shala River, but only one that stood out for me: North Albania Boat. It’s the only operator with a comfortable speedboat, visiting caves on the lake and giving the opportunity for those perfect photo moments. Book directly online to make sure to do the trip with this fantastic operator. (There is no affiliation at all, just my honest opinion).
Theth
A brand new road has opened to reach the mountain town Theth in late 2021. The windy road alone attracts plenty of motorcycle enthusiasts and for a good reason, as it is a stunning scenic ride.
Nature lovers should come to Theth for those mountain landscapes. Hike the 7- hour Peak of the Balkans trail to Valbona, or enjoy the shorter hikes in the area. The Blue Eye of Theth and the Grunasi waterfall are good options for the day.
Tip: book an accommodation with a restaurant as places to eat are still scarce in Theth. I stayed at Hotel Restaurant Alpet Theth and had a perfect stay, with more amazing views of the valley.
Kruja
Next stop is Kruja. The old town isn’t particularly large but it is worth the stop for the afternoon and spend the night. Kruja castle and the bazaar are the main attractions. We started exploring just before sunset to avoid the heat and get that golden hour lighting at the same time.
Berat
Driving further South we spent 2 nights in Berat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with charming streets and buildings. On one side of the river is Mangalem, the historic neighborhood with its iconic white houses against the hill, and the most photographed spot in Berat.
Across the Osum river is Gorica, with its narrow cobblestone alleys. The new and old bridge unites these two areas. On top of the hill is Berat castle which is like a small walled town by itself.
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Wine tasting at Alpeta: In the evening we joined the Alpeta wine tasting tour. This tour (2000 lek) was recommended to me on two separate occasions, so it must be good right? Yes it was! From our guesthouse in Berat we arranged a taxi to bring us to the winery and pick us up when finished (4000 lek return trip).
The tour consisted of walking through the vineyard, visiting the distillery with its production and of course the actual tasting of 3 wines (red, white and rose) and 3 rakis. The tasting was done in an aesthetic garden with long tables where we met fellow travelers, enjoyed fresh fruits and cheeses to pair with our wine. The whole experience was delightful. After the tasting we stayed for dinner with more wine, which also was delicious.
Gjirokaster
One of the oldest cities in Albania and a UNESCO World Heritage Site is Gjirokaster. I didn’t spend the night here but stopped for a few hours on my route from Berat to Saranda. The town is wonderful for a quick stop, to wander the few streets of the Bazaar and visit the castle on top.
Saranda
The last part of the Albania trip consisted of more relaxation. Saranda is one of the popular coastal towns, together with Ksamil. I opted for a stay in Saranda as I read it’s a more lively town. During these hot days we mostly stayed in our beautiful Sunset hotel with an infinity pool and panoramic views of the coast.
In the evening we strolled the boulevard, enjoying drinks and cocktails.
Llogara pass
Driving from Saranda to Vlore it’s worthwhile to take a small detour over Llagora pass. A scenic route along the Albanian Riviera with stunning views below.
Vlore
Vlore is a popular coastal town in Albania with a long spacious boulevard and white beach.
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Speedboat tour: In Vlore we booked a speedboat tour to Sazan island, Haxhi Ali cave and Karaburun. Unfortunately I cannot recommend this day trip. All the tour operators fill up their boats with too many passengers, making it rather uncomfortable. The stops simply aren’t worth visiting and the last stop at Karaburun peninsula is an immensely overcrowded small beach. This was a true bummer as I always love a good boat trip.
Places I missed that could be worth the visit
Because of the extreme heat we opted out of visiting a couple of places that were on my itinerary. With 38°C we unfortunately did not have the energy. These places could still be worth the visit though.
From Berat: to Osumi Canyon and Bogova Waterfall.
From Saranda: to the Blue Eye, we mainly skipped this because it seems overcrowded.
From Saranda: Butrint archeological site.
Ksamil and the other beautiful beaches of Albania.
Accommodations
With accommodations I always go for the best price and value combination. Not the crappy hostels, but also not the most luxurious resorts. But I would have an occasional splurge on a beautiful boutique hotel.
In recent years there are plenty of new modern hotels popping up to choose from. These are places I stayed at and recommend:
Tirana – Hotel La Favorita: boutique hotel in the center of Tirana with modern rooms, extensive breakfast buffet and reserved parking.
Shkoder – ODA Aparthotel: not a typical hotel with reception nor breakfast options but the room was spacious and immaculate for an affordable price.
Valbona – Hotel Margjeka: a guesthouse close to the trail, comfortable room, attentive and very helpful host, really good on-site restaurant and situated in a gorgeous valley.
Theth – Hotel Restaurant Alpet Theth: splendid room, good restaurant with more beautiful valley views.
Kruja – Hotel Dior: top notch modern hotel with delicious breakfast in the city center.
Berat – Villa Arben Elezi: quaint family run guesthouse in the center of Berat with their own parking. Helpful host (arranged our taxi and wine tasting tour) and hearty breakfast at the rooftop terrace.
Saranda – Sunset Shoreline: beautiful boutique hotel with infinity pool and jacuzzi, luxurious spacious rooms and on-site restaurant. The hotel is situated on top of a hill and not in the city center.
Money
The currency of Albania is the Albanian Lek. In 2025 the currency is €1 = ±100 Lek, that’s an easy conversion!
On arrival at Tirana airport I immediately withdrew some cash at one of the ATMs at the baggage hall. I used the BKT ATM as I read that’s the one with the lowest transaction fee. Always make sure to choose the local currency at the ATM and not convert to Euros (or your own currency).
Cash is still king in Albania. Even though I paid for most of my hotels by card, most small restaurants or guesthouses only accept cash.
E-sim
The EU roaming services don’t apply to Albania. To stay online I often use an e-sim when traveling. I’m not stuck on a specific brand/provider when it comes to e-sims, I usually go for the best price, service areas of local providers and amount of data. For Albania I used esim.sm, which had a better overall deal than Airalo.
Albania map
The route we drove from Tirana to the North and all the way South.
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