Albania?

[herewegoagainy]

Has anyone been to Albania on holiday? How did you find it?

We went to Sarande for the day, visited Blue Eye and a local hill top fort with a restaurant that had stunning views.
The town was just just like many others few bars shops etc, people were friendly, we hired a car and driver for the day.
We enjoyed it, Blue Eye is a fantastic place to see.
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g678774-d1165562-Reviews-The_Blue_Eye-Vlore_Vlore_County.html

Many newspapers have covered Albania in their travel sections. Have a search and a good read. There’s plenty of companies going there. My DD was intending to go with a friend so I started looking for info. It’s unspoilt and cheap! Looks very interesting.

Went to Sarande for a day, it was ok. Partner HATED it.
People not the friendliest, nothing special. Food not fantastic.

Ksamil looks so much nicer.

We were devastated as we thought we wanted to go for a 2 week holiday. Haven't been back since that day trip.

Romesh Ranganathan did a travel show a few years which also showed Albania. It would be worth watching it.
BBC Two - The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan, Series 1, Albania

We went to Ksamil last year and had a lovely time! The driving is absolutely crazy though just to warn you...

Thanks, I will watch that show.
We had been thinking of driving. If it is too crazy to drive I am not sure it is realistic for us to go there.

We stayed in Corfu, Albania was across the bay, it looked absolutely beautiful, same as everywhere, good and bad places.

@herewegoagainy I think some people hire drivers.

@TizerorFizz we have done that in other countries. But we really wanted somewhere we could explore at a leisurely pace by car ourselves. So looks like Albania is out then.

@herewegoagainy I guess it depends on whether you can hack the driving there!

I lived in Albania (Tirana) for 2 years. I will never ever go back. It was the most menacing and uncomfortable country I have ever lived in. And I have also lived in a a few other countries that were similarly tricky.

Might be different for a tour though with a responsible tour agency. But I'm not going to go and find out.

Would love to know more...why were you living out there and why so menacing?

To be fair, most holiday companies are offering guided tours. Probably for good reason but there are bespoke tours where you have a driver and car but have pre booked hotels snd stick to an itinerary. I’d be ok with this if I really wanted to go. I think DD and friend were doing this. She did similar in Uzbekistan. It works mainly because you want to go to unesco sights and the best places to visit. Getting from A to B under your own steam isn’t worth it.

We do not want to do tours.
We went to croatia when it did not have many tourists, and trying to find somewhere else like croatia back then.

I worked for a UN agency and it was my 4th posting. I went on to do another 3 postings for a total of some 20 years in the field. It was an undercurrent of anger and hostility and corruption at every level and lawlessness. And foreigners being seen as both targets and expendable. Its a beautiful place but I will never go back. There is no other place I worked I would say that about.

Croatia on the other hand is a fabulous.

I wouldn't fancy Albania. I know it is probably one of the last emerging beach holiday spots in the Med, but it is just too primitive for me just yet. And believe me I do NOT like sunbeds and rows of sunbathers and AI and all that jazz either.

I haven't been, but I do fancy Montenegro. Has anyone been?

Montenegro is really great and just next door to Albania - you could easy have a few days there, even just a day trip and go back into Montenegro at night.

If countries are not developed for tourists - there’s a reason! You won’t find undiscovered that’s 100% to your liking. Many countries have unfortunate histories and Albania was a closed society for decades. You cannot expect soft and cuddly in these circumstances. I’ve done tours of various places and I don’t understand the dislike of them. It’s often a case of going or not. We tend to go. As long as enough people are helpful and friendly, that’s good enough. Russia has the same issues. Would you ever expect to potter about there? Probably not. If wasn’t that long ago the Balkan state governments were killing people based on ethnic grounds. Is all that hatred truly buried?

We spent a week in Albania last year. Reading the comments really surprised by all the negativity. We self drove round the country no problem at all. Found most the roads pretty empty outside Tirana . We went to Tirana , Saran de, Gjirokaster, Vlore and Berat. Loved it had a great time. We are not beachy people and like to explore and there was heaps to see. Stayed in some really nice places found the people lovely no issues at all and very cheap

I haven’t been to Albania, but second Montenegro. Or if you aren’t fussed about sea, then Slovakia is the perfect place to do a week long road trip. It was one of our favourite holidays. We just booked the first and last night and just stopped where we wanted in between.

M’y dsis was there last year for a week. She said there were beautiful places sandwiched between scary and deprived places and she wouldn’t ever go back as she didn’t feel safe.

Sorry posted too soon. They were on a cycling holiday - her and her dh who have cycled most of Europe. The roads were a challenge.

I've been to Tirana, so not a beach holiday, obviously. Everything very good value (loads of great places to eat, although a lot of it not Albanian food!), plenty to see, a few day trips to the coast by bus or taxi. Hotel and restaurant staff perfectly friendly, didn't feel dangerous (although didn't venture off the beaten track). Wouldn't necessarily rush back as it's not particularly pretty, but it was enjoyable for a short stay.