Come and explore a newly born tourism destination
Be taken by Albania!
Part 1 – Tirana the bustling entry gate to Albania
Intro
Long time I was planning to go to Albania and just earned surprised comments among my friends – “Why you wanna go there? There is nothing to see, it is not safe, people are rude, it is dangerous to drive around, it is still a socialist country and now organized in a mafia-style way” were prejudices I had to listen when I revealed my plans to travel to Albania.
However, this image has changed recently as Albania is heavenly investing into tourism and is trying with great efforts to bring Albania up on the touristic map. Therefore, new hotels are being built, a lot of investments are done into the infrastructure and Albania spreads the word on all media that it is a fantastic country to visit. Albania nowadays is very present in many magazines and on social media. The first brave travellers that came back from their trips to Albania had only good things to talk about this country and thus Albania earned itself already some Traveller Choice Awards on TripAdvisor and other platforms. In many established tourism publications Albania has been selected to be THE country to visit in the coming year(s).
This pint-sized, sunny slice of Adriatic coast has been ground down for years by poverty and blood vendettas, but Albania now manages to pack a wild punch of traditional Mediterranean charm and Soviet-style inefficiency. It´s a giddy blend of religions, styles, cultures and landscapes, from Sunni Muslim to Albanian Orthodox and from idyllic beach or rocky mountain to cultivated field. Relics from one of the longest dictatorships in Eastern Europe rub shoulders with citrus orchards, olive groves and vineyards (Lonely Planet / Travel Book).
Tirana Street Art:
How to reach
Most of the travellers arrive in Albania through the expanding airport in Tirana. A road trip from Montenegro could be also another nice alternative. Travellers that only want to reach the southern beaches around Saranda often arrive via a flight to the Greek island of Korfu and then take the ferry boat to Saranda.
How to get around
Just to go on a beach holiday to Albania would be a big mistake – as this country has so much more to offer. Therefore, I highly recommend a road trip around the country. As Albania is relatively small you can see most of the interesting places within a 10 – 14 days trip.
Either you can rent a car and go on this trip by your own arrangements or as Albania is still in the process of developing its infrastructure, I would highly recommend choosing a local tour operator to arrange this tour for you. On top Albania has so much history which is quite unknown for us foreigners, so it is good to have a local guide who can shed the light on Albania´s turbulent past.
Our trip was organized through Albania Express Travel (www.albaniaexpresstravel.com) – Alma who curated our tour was very professional and really has chosen an excellent program plus accommodations for us. The correspondence with her was very quick and efficient. If you like to book your trip to Albania please get in touch with me and I will set it up with the agent for you.
Personally, I always prefer to spend that extra money for a private tour – as that allows more flexibility and freedom within the tour.
Our private guide Adam was a show of his own and I think the best guide I ever had on a trip. He really introduced us to all the insights into this country, always took that extra mile for us and on top was so funny and entertaining – in Albania he is indeed a star as he seems to know everybody 😊ADAM thank you so much – you made this tour really special for us.
Best time to travel
Of course, if you mainly come for the beach then the summer month from June to August will be the time of travel. However, be aware that due to its increasing popularity hotels and beaches will be extremely full at this time of the year.
For cultural round trips and hiking tours April/May plus September/October will be a good time to come. In winter Albania has a mild Mediterranean climate at the coast, whereas it can get freezing cold in the mountain areas. In the Albanian Alps winters are rough with snow, ice and many roads will be closed during that period.
Let´s get started…..Tirana an up-coming metropolis
Tirana will be most probably your first contact with Albania. It is a relatively small city, but a city in which you can feel that this country is on the rise. Everywhere you can see construction works and billboards are showing the bright future look of the city – in some areas modernity has already made its way. On the other side you can still find a lot of relicts from the communistic past and especially the Bunk Art projects give an interesting insight into this dark part of history – but to this I will come back again later.
Where to stay
Tirana is recently experiencing a wave of newly built hotels, so you have a good choice of modern mainly economic 3-4* properties. We stayed at the modern Oxford Hotel (www.hoteloxford.al/en), which is a nice city hotel with an excellent location. It is situated in a quiet side road, but just a few steps away from the bustling centre of Tirana. Rooms were clean and spacious, staff very friendly and the breakfast was good as well.
What to do
Street Life
Best thing in Tirana is just to wander around the busy streets of central Tirana and soak in the atmosphere of a modern city versus the monuments of the past.
A good place to grab a small bite before your tour and to mingle with the locals is the pedestrian street behind the Toptani Shopping Mall. During the day this is a laid-back street that is flanked with many bars and restaurants, while at night it gets a busy hotspot.
Walking Tour
Tirana´s centre can be easily discovered by foot. Best to start your walk at the impressive Skanderberg Square, which is named after the national hero Gjergj Kastrioti Skenderbeu. His statue dominates this huge square. The square is surrounded by many landmark buildings as the Clock Tower, Ethem Bey Mosque, Palace of Culture, National Opera, Tirana Hotel and a number of other infamous buildings that mainly belongs to various government ministries.
From there you can make your way towards the art installation “Cloud” and into the Rinia Park.
On your way after the “Cloud” you will pass by an old communistic looking building – that was the former Dajti Hotel – the primary centre where the few international guests and foreign diplomats were staying during Albania´s socialist period. The guest rooms were bugged with microphones and guests could only leave the hotel with a companion from the government. Nowadays the building belongs to the Bank of Albania and is hosting their offices.
Rinia Park is a tranquil oasis within the bustling city – especially in the late afternoon and early evening hours it is packed with locals that are walking their dogs, families enjoying time together, playing kids and elderly people enjoying their tea at the Taiwan Center (https://www.facebook.com/bar.restorant.taiwan/) a multicomplex restaurant and entertainment facility in the middle of the park.
We then continued our walk further to the significant Pyramid of Tirana (www.piramida.edu.al). Formerly it used to be a museum and became later a NATO base during the Kosovo war. Nowadays it is a newly opened IT center, which is not of any interest for tourists, but you can climb up the outer stairs of the Pyramid for a fantastic view over Tirana until Mount Dajti.
If you continue your walk then on Bulevardi Deshmoret e Kombit you will see further massive government buildings and some former bunker relicts.
It is worth to make a small detour here into the neighbourhood of Blloku to pass by the remains of the residence where Albania´s dictator Enver Hoxha has lived for many years. This neighbourhood is a very lively area of Tirana with many newly opened modern restaurants and coffee shops. Also for a walk at night this is a recommended area.
Back on the Bulevardi we then have almost reached our turning point the Mother Teresa Square, Tirana´s second largest square and named after the Albanian-born Indian Roman-Catholic nun. I think only a few of you, including me, know that Mother Teresa´s homeland was actually Albania.
The square is flanked on one side from the Tirana Football Stadium and to the other side from the Tirana University. Behind the university building the huge Tirana City Park is stretching out.
On the way back to our starting point a stop at Komiteti Café (https://www.facebook.com/komiteti.kafemuzeum/) is highly recommended. This authentic Café is a creative collection of various original items from Albania´s troubled socialist past – therefore it is rather a museum than a Café, but you can enjoy a real good coffee and food over there as well.
Before reaching back to Skanderbeg Square have a visit to the impressive Resurrection of Christ Orthodox Cathedral to make your walk through Tirana´s past and present complete.
Something Special – Bunk Art
Something really special and a not to be missed experience in Tirana are the Bunk Art museums, which are located, as the name already reveals, in former bunkers.
A general word on bunkers – as they are something unique to Albania´s history. The dictator Enver Hoxha became at one point so paranoid that he even turned his back to his former communistic allies Russia and China and began to close down the country completely. Almost nobody could travel in and out, a fact that pays tribute to the myth of Albania. As he wanted to prepare the country and its citizens to all kind of outside attacks, his paranoia spread over to the whole country. Albanians saw themselves in a constant threat, therefore military exercises and evacuations were practised on a regular basis. In order to keep the whole inhabitants of Albania safe during an enemy attack the dictator started to build bunkers all over the country. The first prototype had to be tested by the constructor himself.
The bunker didn´t collapse and therefore gave way to an insane build-up of bunkers all over the country. Many can still be seen today as ruins and few of them became a new purpose as bars, hotels or museums.
In Tirana you have two transformed bunkers: Bunk Art 2 which is close to the Skanderberg Square.
Bunk Art 2 from outside (www.bunkart.al/2/home)
Bunk Art 1 is a bit out of town. As according to our guide Adam Bunk Art 1 is the better one we skipped the one in town and ventured out to see Bunk Art 1.
Bunk Art 1 (www.bunkart.al/1/home)
Already the approach is quite an adventure as you have to leave the main road and pass through a narrow tunnel. It will lead you to the parking area, where you will also get your entry ticket. From there it is a short walk to the hidden entry door into the bunker system.
This bunker was the biggest of its kind during the Cold War in Albania. The bunker was built for Enver Hoxha and his closest staff by hundred of workers whose destiny after the completion is still a big myth. The bunker system consisted of more than 100 rooms on several levels.
Nowadays it is an interesting, but also very grim museum of Albania´s dark history – the showcases and various rooms are impressive and give a real good impression of Albania at that time – and I guess most of the foreign visitors that are coming here are not very familiar with all this history. Some rooms in between are dedicated to contemporary art displays and various exhibitions. Allow at least around 2 hours for a visit – although you could easily spend a whole day here.
Gas Hysteria.
Redo of a local store and flat.
Modern art display inside the Bunker:
If you have more free time after your visit to Bunk Art, emerge from the underground and take the cable car up to Mt. Dajti. The cable car station is very close to Bunk Art. Mount Dajti is part of the Skanderberg mountain range and a popular weekend get-away for the people of Tirana. The Austrian built cable car will bring you up to the complex on top of the mountain. This is also the longest cableway in the Balkan. On top you can find restaurants and various entertainment facilities, get more information on www.dajtiekspres.com
Where to eat
First, I have to roll out the red carpet for the Albanian food in general. Wherever we ate we got the freshest and most tasteful food that I ever had on a trip and that was throughout the whole journey! In Albania most of the ingredients are locally sourced, without any preservatives and just simply delicious. It might take some time until the food is ready, but that is because everything is freshly cooked – microwaves don´t exist in this country. The food is a great mixture of Italian, Mediterranean and Oriental influences, lots of meat – but also fish, seafood, salads and all kind of vegetables. Albanians are never on a diet, so portions are always big. Prices are cheap and a great value for money. Within the cities you can also find modern international restaurants, which come with a more expansive price tag – but compared to western Europe standards it is still very reasonable.
Oda Garden (https://odagardenrestaurant.com/en/) – is for sure rather a tourist than a real local place, but it is definitely not a tourist trap. Food is delicious, the portions are generous and the atmosphere in the courtyard garden is fantastic. Better to make a reservation before you go!
Near to Oda Garden you can also find the market hall – around there you have a great variety of restaurants.
Another real nice dinner area is the pedestrian street behind the Toptani Shopping Mall – especially the complex inside Tirana castle. Here you have a great choice of restaurants, all representing the new and trendy face of Tirana (www.kalajaetiranes.al).
Another recommended nightlife and dinner place is the already mentioned neighbourhood of Blloku. What was a closed-off precinct for the party elite in socialist time, is nowadays a hip and trendy place- -to-be with stylish bars, global restaurants and luxurious boutiques. We enjoyed a real good organic dinner at Fresh Garden Restaurant (www.fresh-garden.al), followed by drinks at the Pepper Lounge opposite (www.instagram.com/pepper_lounge_tirana/?hl=en).
So that was my take on the emerging metropolis of Tirana – watch out, I am sure that in a couple of years Tirana will be on the bucket list of every city trip traveller.
But for now, let´s explore more of this stunning country – Albania turns out to be a real travel treasure box!
In my next Blog we will discover the breathtaking scenery of the Albanian Alps.
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