Unlocking Albania: Reasons To visit Albania

My first year was coming to an end and the days were getting longer. I was keen on travelling solo somewhere in Europe. My exams were almost about to start, my assignments were due and I so wanted to book a trip. With all these things, I couldn’t obtain a schengen visa and was looking for visa free alternatives in Europe. That’s when I stumbled upon a small country located in the Balkan region in Eastern Europe.It was one of the few countries I could go to with my UK BRP. As I read more about this country, I laid out an itinerary and immediately booked my flights. I planned on exploring this country in and out. As a young traveller, it felt like a perfect destination posing a great nightlife, pristine beaches, high mountains and a very friendly environment. Many solo and broke travellers come here as it has so many reasonsIn the mid 1900s , the name Mother Teresa was very famous and in the current times the pop singer Dua Lipa is. All these famous names come from a small country located just above Greece called ‘Albania’. With an area of 28,748 km² the country is a just a bit smaller than Belgium.Albania or Shqipëria (local name for Albania) is a country that has seen many highs and lows. Filled with an amalgamation of Roman, Greek , Turkish influences.From being ruled by the Romans, then the Ottoman empire to being under a communist rule. Communism is a huge part of Albanian history as during the Second World War it was under communism. During this time over 750,000 bunkers were built across the country to be prepared for war which eventually did not happen. Although there is misleading information that’s spread through the news that Albania is “not safe”, “very unstable”. I had the best time in that country. As a 19 year old solo traveller on his first adventure, it was tough to convince everyone that why this country. I have several reasons Why you should visit this country.

Why You Should Visit Albania

1. Inexpensive

Albania is a very cheap country for all kinds of travellers. £1 was approximately 115 albanian lek and 1 Rupee is almost 1.5 lek. You can easily spend £20 or 2000 rupees in day including food, stay and activities.

2. Relatively Unexplored

Albania is a relatively hidden gem in my opinion. Of course due to social media and travel traffic, it’s coming into light but overall most of the places were untouched. It was everything from mountains, beaches, parties, festivals, city with a good night life.

3. Safe

As an Indian, people have always told me that this country is very unsafe, frequent kidnappings, murders, robberies happen but in reality it was very safe. I went out in the night time and I felt absolutely safe. The cities are vibrant and people are generally very welcoming towards tourists and travellers.

4. Beautiful

The beautiful Albanian Alps, the Pristine Albanian Riviera, the vibrant and historical cities. Albania in one word is “stunning”. The scenes and views which I witnessed were just too good.

5. Heaven for Coffee Lovers

Albanians love their coffee. It’s a part of their life. You will find a coffee shop in almost every corner in the capital city of Tirana. Though coffee isn’t produced in the country but the variety you can get is really good.

6. Food

If you love blend of spices and a unique cuisine, Albanian food is for you. For Indian travellers, we tend to seek good food with a blend of flavours and spices and Albanian food passed that test. The food has a blend of greek, turkish, italian and north african cuisines. It’s filled with flavour and taste. My most favourite one had to be “Byrek” which is like an Albanian Pie.

Communication can be a problem at some places but that’s when google translate becomes your friend.

My Albania Itinerary

I backpacked across 6 cities starting from the capital city of Tirana , going down south towards the Riviera and then hitting up north in the Albanian Alps. The places which I covered were Tirana-Berat-Gjirokaster-Himara-Shkodra-Theth. It was really easy to travel around Albania using the local bus transportation. It was very cheap and comfortable too. The helpfulness and kindness of the people there made it even easier for me to travel around.

Cost Breakdown

The total budget for my trip was £350 excluding flights (around 35000 rupees) but in the end I spend £370 which wasn’t an absolute blunder.

This is totally my cost breakdown and you can easily do it in an even smaller budget.

£140 on stay
£120 on food and drinks
£30 on activities
£80 on travel

Final Thoughts

I would suggest to spend a minimum of 1 week in this country with a budget of atleast £150 for the country to surprise you with all its charm.

I spent 17 days in total which was really worth every penny I spent. I met amazing people, saw amazing places, had crazy experiences and adventures. I will continue this story by writing about each city in detail to make it as informative as possible.