Your ultimate Albania Travel Itinerary [2 weeks]

Welcome to your Ultimate 2-week Albania Travel Itinerary

Albania Travel Itinerary 2 weeks

Your ultimate Albania Travel Itinerary [2 weeks] takes you on a round trip through one of my favourite European countries, and the best part of my Balkan trip. (Read all about the complete Balkan itinerary: 5 to 6 weeks. I would recommend to spend around 2 to 3 weeks discovering this beautiful country. This itinerary covers: Shkodra, Lake Koman, Valbona, Theth, Tirana, Berat and the Albanian Riviera.

In short

1. Shkodra (1 night) 
2. Lake Koman and stay in Valbona (1 night) 
3. Hike to Theth and stay in Theth (1 night)
4. Shkodra (1 night) 
5. Tirana (3 nights)
6. Berat (2 nights) 
7. Albanian Riviera (4 nights) 

Shkodra (1 night)

As we were arriving from Montenegro, we took a minibus from Kotor to Shkodra. There are also busses from Tirana, in case you are coming from the capital. 

Shkodra is the perfect place to start a 4 nights – 5 day round trip to visit the Albanian Alps. The stories we heard about Shkodra were far from positive and I wasn’t looking forward to ‘have’ to spend 2 nights here, only because of a day hike. However, I was positively surprised!

When in Shkodra, we had dinner in restaurant Elita, one of the ‘most expensive’ restaurants in Shkodra, but it offers good quality for a decent price. For pizza, we loved Fontana, where you can also enjoy a drink on the terrace. For another drink or bite, I recommend Rasputin Bistro. 

 

Lake koman

I was really looking forward to this boat ride towards Fierza and therewith Valbona. We booked our transport at a small booking office in Shkodra (Tourist Information at North of Albania Travel – you can find the trip here), which arranged a pick up in the morning to arrive at the ferry on time, a ferry ticket and transport from the Fierza to Valbona. Read everything you need to know about this ferry ride in my Lake Koman Travel Guide.

Lake Koman, Albania
Lake Koman, Albania
Lake Koman, Albania
Lake Koman, Albania

Valbona (1 Night) & Theth (1 night) - Incl. Day hike

The boat trip through Lake Koman, took us to Valbona, where we rested to start our day hike to Theth the next day. This hike was such a great experience, that I wrote this full report: Valbona to Theth day hike

On top of the Valbona Pass, with a great view
Valbona to Theth day hike, a stunning route in the Accursed Mountains
Discovering the meadows in the Albanian Alps
The church of Thethi, Albania

Shkodra (1 night)

The next day, we requested a mini bus back to Shkodra. To not stress and move on too quickly to a new location, we stayed another night at the same hotel, also because this gave us the chance to leave everything we didn’t need for these 2 nights – and therefore hiked with a lighter backpack. 

Tirana (3 nights)

The capital of Albania, a capital with a lot of history. Naturally, Tirana can’t miss in an Albanian Travel Itinerary. Just a couple of quick tips: Walk to Skanderbeg Square, visit BunkArt, do not miss the pyramid and discover the best neighbourhood Blloku. 

Have lunch at Salt Restaurant and a drink at Radio Bar, just to name some highlights. Did you know there are is no McDonalds in Albania, but they have their own alternative called Kolonat? 

Pyramid of Tirana, 5 things to do, Albania
Tirana, Albania
Kolonat, 5 reasons to visit Tirana, Albania
Komiteti Kafe Muzeum, Tirana, Albania

BERAT (2 nights)

The city of a thousand windows and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It wasn’t my favourite place of Albania, although the view on the city is great. To me, 1 night would have been enough, as there is not much to do in the city itself. We stayed at the castle, which is a great experience, although it is bit of a slippery walk to the city centre.

Berat, Albania
Berat, Albania
Berat Castle, Albania
Berat, Albania

Albanian Riviera - Saranda (4 nights)

Mountains, cities and… beaches! Lastly, this Albanian travel itinerary brings you to the Albanian Riviera, getting more popular over the last years.

We chose Saranda, as we didn’t want to move too much and have some time at the beach. We visited the beach of Ksamil (and enjoy your lunch at Korali). In Saranda, our favourite places for a drink were LimaniBar Lerbi and Boulevard 40.  

Albanian Riviera, Travel Itinerary
Ksamil, Albanian Riviera

WHAT TO CHANGE / ADD?

Albanian Riviera
We regretted staying in Saranda for 4 days, as there was not as much to do as we expected. When you really want to relax, you might consider Ksamil, as the beaches are prettier. You can also choose to visit Himare, Vlora, Dhermi, or rent a car to do a tiny roadtrip and discover the whole coast line.
Gjirokastro
Another popular touristic place in Albania is Gjirokastro, as we didn’t have too much time, we choose Berat over Gjirokastro, but this could be a good addition to your ultimate Albania Travel Itinerary [2 weeks].

WHY THIS ITINERARY?

The one thing, that was certain for our Albanian travel itinerary was the hike from Valbona to Theth. To do this, you are kind of forced to also take the Lake Koman ferry, which was one of the highlights. 

We chose Saranda over other beach places as it is the largest spot, we didn’t feel like moving too often but also wanted to avoid being bored spending 4 days at the beach, so we needed restaurants and bars. 

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Albania Travel Itinerary

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Albania Travel itinerary - 2 weeks

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