Itinerary

1. Day 1 : Arrive in Tirana

   • Arrive at the international airport of Tirana. Transfer to the hotel in the center.
   • Relax at the hotel. Free time at disposal. 

   Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

2. Day 2 : Tirana to Shkoder to Durres

   • After breakfast depart to Shkoder, the most important city in northern Albania and the ancient capital of the Illyrian in the 3rd century BC. 
   • Visit the Rozafa Castle, and admire a spectacular 360-degree panorama. 
   • Head to the Marubi Photographic Museum, which preserves a selection of photos taken from the second half of the nineteenth century until 1900. 
   • Take a walk in the recently renovated pedestrian area, where Italian and Austrian architecture intertwines, testimony to the city's historical links with these two countries. 
   • Leave for Durres. 
   • On the way, stop in Lezha to visit the Memorial tomb of Skanderbeg, located inside the remains of the Church of San Nicola.

   Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

3. Day 3 : Durres to Vlora

   • In the morning, visit Durres one of the oldest cities in Albania (founded in 627 BC).
   • Head to the Amphitheater located in the center of the modern city.  
   • On the way to Vlora, stop at the Monastery of Ardenica, whose construction dates back to the Middle Ages, as evidenced by the stone placed at the entrance, dating back to 1417. Scanderbeg is said to have married in the small chapel of Ardenica. 
   • Continue to the ancient city of Apollonia, located on the famous Via Egnatia - one of the most important cities of Ancient Rome. It was here that Julius Caesar sent his nephew Augusto Ottaviano to study oratory, testimony to the importance of this city.
   • In the afternoon, leave for Vlora and on the way stop to visit the monastery of Zvernec. Located in the center of the island of Zvernec and totally surrounded by evergreens, this is certainly one of the best-preserved Byzantine monasteries in all of Albania (and beyond). Built-in the 13th / 14th century and dedicated to Santa Maria, it still represents an important religious center for the inhabitants of the Valon district. 
   • Arrive in Vlora and check-in to the hotel.

4. Day 4 : Vlora to Saranda

   • In the morning visit Vlora, the Museum of Independence is located in the original house, where the first independent Albanian government had its offices and where independence was proclaimed.
   • Leave for Saranda. Travel on the spectacular Albanian Riviera admiring the Ionian Sea below. 
   • Continue towards Saranda, make a short stop at the Ali Pasha castle in Porto Palermo, a fortress used to control the sea's commercial routes. 

   Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

5. Day 5 : Saranda to Gjirokaster

   • After breakfast, depart to visit the ancient city of Butrint, a UNESCO heritage site and the most important archaeological discovery in Albania. In addition to the splendid ancient ruins, it has the added advantage of being located on a beautiful peninsula, rich in flora and fauna. 
   • In the afternoon, transfer to Gjirokaster. 
   • On the way, stop for a visit to the Blue Eye.  

   Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

6. Day 6 : Gjirokaster to Berat

   • After breakfast, visit Gjirokaster - declared a Unesco heritage in 2005. A museum city with a very particular historical architecture. 
   • Head to the medieval castle. There is a National Museum of Weapons that displays weapons used in Albania since ancient times and war equipment from the First and Second World War. It was used as a political prison during the communist dictatorship. 
   • See the Ethnographic Museum set up in the house where the Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha was born. 
   • Drive to a Unesco heritage site, Berat, also known as the "city of a thousand windows". It is classified as a museum city. In the past, there were forty churches inside the castle, today only seven remains, out of which one has been transformed into the Onufri Museum. Onufri was a 16th-century Albanian painter, master of sacred icons, who painted many orthodox churches in Albania and Greece. 

   Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

7. Day 7 : Berat to Tirana

   • After breakfast departure for Kruja. 
   • Visit the Fortress and the Museum housed inside, dedicated to the founding father of the Albanian national sentiment, Scanderbeg. Get in touch with still alive and active testimonies of the "Albanian" community in the world. 
   • Depart for Tirana. 
   • Visit the National Historical Museum and the Haxhi Et’Hem Bey Mosque. 
   • Stop at the Palace of Culture, the statue dedicated to Scandenberg, and the see Clock Tower. 

   Dinner and overnight.

8. Day 8 : Depart from Tirana

   • After breakfast, transfer to the airport.