Discovering the World with D

Here’s is my detailed description on how I spent 8 days travelling around the south of Albania by car. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Side note: If you want to know more about where I ate, please click here.

Happy reading!

Day 1: Tirana

I arrived very late in the evening and decided to spend my first full day exploring the capital. I started my walk through the city by marvelling at the Skanderbeg Square. Looking around, you can see the Et’hem Bey Mosque, the Clocktower, the Opera and the monumental statue of Skanderbeg himself (considered to be Albania’s national hero).

I continued my way towards the Bunk’Art 2, which to me is a great way to start exploring Albania. It gives a lot of information on Albania’s past and what the people had to go through. Entry fee was 500 lek (4,40€) and I also added an audioguide, which I recommend. There is a lot of information in the bunker and the English is not always great. Keep in mind that the bunker is huge, it took me about 2 hours to get through the whole thing (after all, it was used for the Ministry of Internal Affairs).

After that, I wondered towards a market that I found online (Pazari i Ri). It’s a small local market that sells a variety of fruit and vegetables, spices and a couple of souvenirs. All around the market, you find restaurants that all looked really good, although I had lunch somewhere else.

After lunch we kept wondering around the capital passing by the newly built Namazgah Mosque (which hadn’t yet opened), the Shën Pali Cathedral and the Pyramid of Tirana (which was under construction). I then walked down on the main street connecting Skanderbeg Square to the Mother Teresa Square passing by a couple of interesting landmarks such as the Postbllok-Checkpoint, the President’s residence and the university situated right on the Mother Teresa Square. To finish of my walk through the city, I passed by Enver Hoxha’s villa before passing through the Blloku neighbourhood and finishing at the Resurrection Cathedral (my first time visiting an orthodox cathedral).

In the evening, I went to Artigiano at Vila for some Italian food and then back to the Blloku neighbourhood for some drinks.

Day 2: Tirana to Berat

Without even having breakfast, I went to pick my car up and left Tirana to head to Berat. Berat is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is known as ”The City of a Thousand Windows”. Our hotel was inside the Berat castle so I spend the afternoon exploring the area and had some wonderful views of the whole city.

Later on in the evening I asked the hotel to order a taxi and went to Alpeta winery for a tour and tasting. BONUS: You get to taste Raki as well. It was one of the best nights of my trip! I joined a group of 6 other people and we had great fun. The owner of the winery came over to say hi and drink some raki with us. He didn’t speak a word of English, but the guy who gave us the tour translated everything. The whole tour and tasting lasted from about 6.30pm to 11pm and cost about 30€ (for two people!). During all that time, the driver waited outside until I was ready to leave.

This evening was a great way to experience the friendliness and pride of the local people and I recommend it to anyone going.

Day 3: Bogove Waterfall & Osumi Canyon

The third day was spent hiking. I walked a total of 24.461 steps equalling 15,7km (and yes, I just checked that). The goal was to do a hike at the Osumi Canyon, but on the way there, after about a 50 minute drive from Berat, you can make a stop in Bogove to visit the waterfall. Just punch in Bogove Waterfall parking into Google Maps and leave your car there. From there it’s about a 30 minute, relatively easy walk to the waterfall. When I was there in April, me and my boyfriend were the only people there and it was like something out of a fairytale. There is an area where you could probably dip in for a swim, but it was just too cold that day.

There are a couple of restaurants back in the village where you can get a bite to eat before continuing onto the canyon.

From Bogove to the Canyon it will take you another 30 minute drive. On the way, you will pass many viewing points from which you will get great pictures of the Canyon. If you punch ‘Ura e Vjetër e Zabërzanit’ into Google Maps, it will get it a little wrong and send you past the parking spot and expect you to jump down a cliff. You will pass by a restaurant at the bottom where you can park your car. From there you can start the hike. In the beginning, after crossing the bridge, you will be confronted by quite a steep climb, which is not for the faint hearted. Finding the way can be quite challenging, I actually got lost a couple of times. I would suggest to use Google Maps and punch in Osumi Canyon Bridge if you feel like you’re lost. But it’s totally worth it. Again, there was nobody around and we also passed numerous herds of sheep which was a fun experience. All in all, the hike is about 7km long and except for the steep climb at the beginning, it’s fairly doable.

After the hike, I headed back to Berat for one of the best meals of the whole holiday at Lili’s Homemade Food. You can’t miss it while in Berat!

Day 4: Berat to Gjirokaster to Ksamil

After breakfast, I set off towards Gjirokaster. It’s a 3 hour drive through stunning landscapes, so it seemed shorter. Once you get to Gjirokaster, you can park near the Greek Consulate, but make sure to wait until you get to a wide road before turning right. I turned right too early and ended up on one of the narrowest and steepest roads I ever experienced. It was terrifying.

Once you parked your car, it’s not far to the old town, where you can have a wonder and have a look at the many shops. After lunch, I headed up the castle. I was expecting something similar to Berat, but it was totally different. You have to pay a small entry fee and then you are free to roam around. It’s a lot bigger than I imagined and you can expect to spend at least 1h30 exploring.

After that I headed back to my car and continued on to Ksamil where my next hotel would be. I arrived in the early evening so there wasn’t much time to explore the area, except for a small walk through the town.

Day 5: Butrint & Sarande

Sadly, except for the last afternoon, the weather wasn’t great while I was in Ksamil. But I didn’t let that stop me. A 15-minute drive from Ksamil you will come across the magnificent archaeological park that is Butrint. It took me about 2 hours to get through the whole thing and it’s honestly such a peaceful place. There’s a lot to discover and if you are lucky, you might come across the stray dog that seems to live there. Oh and don’t forget the hundreds of frogs that you will hear – they are quite loud!

After that, you have the option to go back the way you came or to drive your car on a floating platform and cross the river to the other side, which is what we did. Make sure to have some money on you.

I continued along the road and headed towards Sarande for some lunch and a walk along the promenade. It was pouring down with rain by now, so I didn’t stay along and quickly made my way back to my hotel to spend a relaxing afternoon there.

I did drive back to Sarande in the evening though to have some drinks and dinner. The city seemed to be a little more lively than Ksamil.

Day 6: Blue Eye

If you are planning a trip to Albania, one of the things you will have definitely come across will be the Blue Eye, a water spring more than 50m deeps and located quite literally in the middle of nowhere. I was happy to have had Google Maps by my side, because the only sign post I came across was located about 100m from the destination.

You can decide if you want to drive and walk only the last couple of meters or if you want to park your car outside the gates and walk all the way – this will take you about 30 minutes. I opted for the second even though it was raining. You have to pay a small entry fee at the gate and then you are good to go. And let me tell you: it’s one of the most breathtaking locations you will come across. The water is a deep blue colour and in strong contrast with the deep green of the trees and vegetation that surrounds it. Even without the sun it was simply stunning. There is also a small bar where you can sit right on top of the water – although the waiter wasn’t too friendly.

In the afternoon the sun finally managed to get through the clouds and it allowed me to spend the afternoon at the beach in Ksamil. It was the first time that I really got to appreciate the sheer beauty of Albanias beaches. My boyfriend even went for a swim! However, even though for me it was to cold to go swimming, I did love the fact that there were no crowds. Other than us, there were two other families there at the same time we were. I could choose my deckchair freely and didn’t feel harassed by anyone.

In the evening, I had dinner at the Harmony Hotel. We were the only guests, but the food was delicious, although a little more pricey than what I was used to. However, the quality and taste were so good that it was worth every penny.

Day 7: Ksamil to Tirana via Vlore

I’m nearing the end of my trip by now. After breakfast, I left Ksamil behind me and drove towards Vlore (via Himare), passing through beautiful mountains and having amazing views over the sea. Keep in mind this is a 3 hour drive and there is a lot of up and down involved. But as always, the roads are in good condition almost all the way.

Vlore is a beautiful city and in hindsight I would have loved to spend a night there to have more time to explore. It’s quite a historically important city as well, as this is the city where the proclamation of Albania’s independence was signed. Due to lack of time, after lunch I drove through the city instead of walking, and passed the impressive Independence Monument.

I arrived back in Tirana in the early evening. For dinner we went to Mullixhiu, a very famous restaurant in the capital. By going on foot, you will automatically pass through one of Tirana’s biggest parks, which lies on the edge of a manmade lake. I was happy to have discovered this beautiful site on my last evening in Tirana.

Day 8: Tirana and Flight back

I still had over half a day to kill in Tirana before leaving to the Airport, so after checking Tripadvisor, I decided on visiting the House of Leaves. The entry fee is 700 lek. It used to be the headquarters of Albania’s secret surveillance apparatus and revolves around the same topic as Bunk’Art 2 but goes into much more detail. I would recommend the museum to anyone interested in the dictatorship and what civilians had to go through. It was a good way to end my trip and to become even more aware of the privilege that I have, being able to travel and to learn more about the world.

That’s it from me for this time! If you want to know more about Albania or other travels, make sure to keep in touch. Until then don’t forget to always ”Explore. Dream. Discover.” (Mark Twain)

D. x