Any been to Albania with young family?

[HisNativeLand]

We've been looking at where to go on holiday this year and DH came up with the idea of Albania. You can fly direct and fairly cheaply and there is a hotel resort that looks nice. I like the idea of trying somewhere a bit different.

I'm a bit put off by the government website which says the driving can erratic and dangerous (although it is in lots of countries) and that drivers could be armed (I guess they could be in the USA as well?!). We would just get a private transfer from the airport to the resort so wouldn't be actually driving around.

Any experiences? Good or bad?

Ps we have 3 children aged 3-9

Yes.

All I can say is give it 5 years. Their advertising campaign is ahead of their facilities and infrastructure.

Going on the road is taking your life into your own hands regardless of who is driving, and getting into a car with an Albanian driver would scare me even more. Americans may carry guns but they still tend to respect authority rather than think it's a game to get one over on.

It's being over hyped as they need the injection of cash to get to a decent level. Once they've done that it will be ok. But for now give it and the mountains of litter, a miss.

Thank you.

From reading some travel blogs and things I do think it might be better once our 3 year old is bigger anyway so going in 5 years might work out well!

I saw a travel add for Albania yesterday and I did think for a minute or so that it was beautiful and worth a visit but then decided against it as I know nothing about there medical facilities etc and that would worry me.

Well it's as lovely as anywhere really? It has beautiful weather and beaches, historical sites and attractions, great food. It's also relatively cheap compared to Greece or Italy for example.

It has downsides but so do many countries. It's a big world out there and I'd like to see it! I'm just weighing up whether it's a good place to go just now considering my little one is only 3.

Try Slovenia. It is clean, friendly, staggeringly beautiful.

It's not as cheap as you think!

It actually surprised me. The trouble is they import European things complete with tariffs so they cost more than in Europe. So anything with a European brand is extortionate because it food or clothing (unless it's counterfeit).

But their income is lower. The net result is they have no money, so things are literally gaffer taped together as they have to keep them going as they can't afford to be a disposable economy. This applies to electrics and plumbing as well as cars.

Remember you can not drink tap water which makes it particularly difficult with small children for various reasons.

It is a beautiful country but they are not ready for tourism at all. The litter everywhere was one of my key memories. I've got some nice pictures but I went to effort to get the right angle to avoid the litter!

It also gave me the feeling that it was much closer to north Africa in terms of life attitude and experience. Most of it driven by poverty. The poverty isn't like I have seen anywhere else in Europe, including other non EU Balkan countries. It's decades behind all of them. People joke that all stolen cars go to Albania. Then you go there and realise it's not a joke and the only way the people there can afford the car they are driving is because they are knocked off. And it's just about every other car (I do not need to exaggerate this)

I do think this means the first few years of mass tourism are going to be accompanied with horror stories of various kinds about accommodation, facilities and scams.

It will get better. I think the country has a lot to offer, but right now? Nope give it a few years.

Thanks that is interesting to read. It looks like a country with a lot to offer tourists if it can get its act together!

Disagree with this.

Tourist attractions in Albania don't have the infrastructure to support them. There may be attractions but there's where to stop a car safety for many of them. In a way that would shock you. I'm meaning there's not even a layby.

But the Albanian attitude is if you want to stop you park. Anywhere. That includes the motorway, double parking, literally the most dangerous place you can find is the optimum place. They have yet to discover the concept of a car park. That involves money to build it.

Absolutely. Hence my point about 5 years.

My feeling is that once the EU brings in their visa entry system, there's going to be a bunch of Brits who have had minor criminal convictions who can no longer go to Spain.

So they will be looking for places short haul and cheap as an alternative. Albania is likely to be top of the list and the money and investment will come in.

There's a lot of building work going on in resorts at the moment too (something else to keep in mind in terms of enjoyment).

Don't get me wrong, the people we met were really lovely. But there is also an edge in some places. There's some beautiful places but just not ready. Health and safety doesn't exist which will shock a few. (Especially those with young kids). This isnt a British level of expectation but one for anywhere in the EU.

I thought Albania would be further along than it is if I'm honest. I don't mind low budget and basic. This was testing.

I've been to Albania three times as a solo female traveller as my best friend lives in Corfu and it's really easy to continue travelling on to Albania after visiting her or go on a day trip. I loved it but I like being off the beaten track (my friend wouldn't come with me any of these times though 😂) I imagine a beach holiday would be fine with the kids and it's so cheap there!Infrastructure can be challenging but it's probably like a lot of places were before the advent of mass tourism. Food very much like Greece etc.

@RedToothBrush if they go to Sarande it's very easy to get to Butrint by bus or taxi. You could spend the entire time there if you wanted. Also very easy to visit Corfu for the day.

I travelled all over on public transport. It was fine, if challenging in terms of bus timetables etc.