Help us get into Albania!
September 6, 2010 7:18 AM Subscribe
Help us get into Albania! My partner and I will be in the Balkans at the end of the month, and would like to go south to Albania but I'm having trouble finding a way in. Apparently there are no trains into the country. Are there buses? Taxis? Ferries? Is it easier to go via Kosovo?
The rough plan:
Budapest -> Sarajevo -> Montenegro -> Albania -> Dubrovnik -> Mostar -> Split -> Ljubljana -> Budapest
Both traveling on Canadian passports.
The rough plan:
Budapest -> Sarajevo -> Montenegro -> Albania -> Dubrovnik -> Mostar -> Split -> Ljubljana -> Budapest
Both traveling on Canadian passports.
Wikitravel says you can get there from Kosovo by bus, I went from Skopje, Macedonia. Albania is definitely an adventure. When you hit the albanian border, foreigners have to get out and pay a insurance fee of 1 euro, so if they order you off the bus, this is what that is for.
Getting into Albania was fine, getting out was more difficult. We had to reserve our seats back on the bus while in Albania, this is a bit of a nightmare. The bus stop is a shitty unmarked area by the railway station. The bus office is in a building across the road that took us two days to find. My wife speaks Bulgarian and luckily someone inside spoke Macedonian so we managed to get our tickets out of there.
I think it's a trip worth doing. Locals are friendly, but not many speak English. Italian is a help. Also private cars weren't introduced until the 90's, we witnessed 4 major crashes on the way into the city. I spent time in Duress and Tirana, I imagine things get a lot more interesting if you go further out of these areas.
There is also a ferry than links Durres, Albania; Italy and Dubrovnik, that is something I would love to do.
posted by DOUBLE A SIDE at 7:52 AM on September 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
Getting into Albania was fine, getting out was more difficult. We had to reserve our seats back on the bus while in Albania, this is a bit of a nightmare. The bus stop is a shitty unmarked area by the railway station. The bus office is in a building across the road that took us two days to find. My wife speaks Bulgarian and luckily someone inside spoke Macedonian so we managed to get our tickets out of there.
I think it's a trip worth doing. Locals are friendly, but not many speak English. Italian is a help. Also private cars weren't introduced until the 90's, we witnessed 4 major crashes on the way into the city. I spent time in Duress and Tirana, I imagine things get a lot more interesting if you go further out of these areas.
There is also a ferry than links Durres, Albania; Italy and Dubrovnik, that is something I would love to do.
posted by DOUBLE A SIDE at 7:52 AM on September 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
*that links.....
posted by DOUBLE A SIDE at 7:59 AM on September 6, 2010
posted by DOUBLE A SIDE at 7:59 AM on September 6, 2010
The ferry I linked to above, links Bari (Italy), Dubrovnik (Croatia), Kotor (Montenegro) and Durrazo/Durres (Albania)
posted by vacapinta at 8:07 AM on September 6, 2010
posted by vacapinta at 8:07 AM on September 6, 2010
My boyfriend has been to Albania. I'll ask and see what he says. In the meantime, you can read the travelogue he kept from that visit. About halfway down the page (easier to CTRL+F for Albania) he starts talking about getting into the country. Hopefully I'll be able to report back with specifics soon!
posted by phunniemee at 9:31 AM on September 6, 2010
posted by phunniemee at 9:31 AM on September 6, 2010
Best answer: Here's his response:
I traveled extensively around the Balkans in the spring and summer of 2008. I was in Albania specifically in May 2008.
To get to Albania, I departed Dubrovnik, Croatia for Budva, Montenegro. From Budva, I took another bus to the border town of Ulcinje, Montenegro. It is at this point that transportation became less trivial. In general, buses to, from, and within Albania seem to be operated by individuals and not larger bus companies, resulting in an ad hoc system where departure and arrival times vary depending on how quickly the buses fill up with passengers.
Mini buses run from Ulcinje to Shokdra, Albania daily. In Ulcinje, it will be difficult not to be greeted by individuals offering one night's lodging and mini bus service to Albania. These people typically have relationships with the private bus drivers and can arrange with them to pick you up early morning from your lodging. In my experience, the solicitors in Ulcinje spoke good English.
I believe similar services to Albania run from Podgorica, Montenegro as well. I also know that there is a a more substantial bus that links Pristina, Kosovo with the Albanian capital of Tirana. An alternative route from Pristina is to take a large bus to Jakova, Kosovo, from which mini buses depart and board a vehicle-carrying ferry to the Albanian town of Bajram Curri. From Bajram Curri, either the same mini bus or one of the driver's acquaintances can complete the journey to Tirana.
I also understand that Albania is accessible via Macedonia and Greece, but I do not have personal experience. Albania has a tourism website that describes the routes from neighboring countries.
In general, drivers are available for hire in and around Albania. All fares should be negotiated prior to boarding. Also, some believe that there is a 1-euro or 5-euro tariff to enter Albania, but I have seen no evidence that this alleged tariff is official. I encountered many non-Albanian travelers in Tirana who testified to paying anywhere from 0 to 15 euros to enter. Everything is ultimately negotiable.
If you are looking for lodging, I strongly recommend the Tirana Backpacker's Hostel.
I noticed that natives did not know their streets by name, so showing an address or a map was often futile.
Tirana has plenty of Deutsche Bank ATMs, so cash withdrawal is not a problem.
English is hardly spoken. Italian is probably the best alternative to Albanian, since many Albanians speak or understand the language from Italian satellite television or from working in Italy during the Balkan wars.
I highly recommend Albania. It was one of the most enjoyable trips I've made. I found Albanians to be very welcoming, helpful, and honest. I felt quite safe there, and the hostel staff in Triana is incredibly friendly and helpful as well. I describe some of my journey in my travel letters, if you are interested in more details.
posted by phunniemee at 12:08 PM on September 6, 2010
I traveled extensively around the Balkans in the spring and summer of 2008. I was in Albania specifically in May 2008.
To get to Albania, I departed Dubrovnik, Croatia for Budva, Montenegro. From Budva, I took another bus to the border town of Ulcinje, Montenegro. It is at this point that transportation became less trivial. In general, buses to, from, and within Albania seem to be operated by individuals and not larger bus companies, resulting in an ad hoc system where departure and arrival times vary depending on how quickly the buses fill up with passengers.
Mini buses run from Ulcinje to Shokdra, Albania daily. In Ulcinje, it will be difficult not to be greeted by individuals offering one night's lodging and mini bus service to Albania. These people typically have relationships with the private bus drivers and can arrange with them to pick you up early morning from your lodging. In my experience, the solicitors in Ulcinje spoke good English.
I believe similar services to Albania run from Podgorica, Montenegro as well. I also know that there is a a more substantial bus that links Pristina, Kosovo with the Albanian capital of Tirana. An alternative route from Pristina is to take a large bus to Jakova, Kosovo, from which mini buses depart and board a vehicle-carrying ferry to the Albanian town of Bajram Curri. From Bajram Curri, either the same mini bus or one of the driver's acquaintances can complete the journey to Tirana.
I also understand that Albania is accessible via Macedonia and Greece, but I do not have personal experience. Albania has a tourism website that describes the routes from neighboring countries.
In general, drivers are available for hire in and around Albania. All fares should be negotiated prior to boarding. Also, some believe that there is a 1-euro or 5-euro tariff to enter Albania, but I have seen no evidence that this alleged tariff is official. I encountered many non-Albanian travelers in Tirana who testified to paying anywhere from 0 to 15 euros to enter. Everything is ultimately negotiable.
If you are looking for lodging, I strongly recommend the Tirana Backpacker's Hostel.
I noticed that natives did not know their streets by name, so showing an address or a map was often futile.
Tirana has plenty of Deutsche Bank ATMs, so cash withdrawal is not a problem.
English is hardly spoken. Italian is probably the best alternative to Albanian, since many Albanians speak or understand the language from Italian satellite television or from working in Italy during the Balkan wars.
I highly recommend Albania. It was one of the most enjoyable trips I've made. I found Albanians to be very welcoming, helpful, and honest. I felt quite safe there, and the hostel staff in Triana is incredibly friendly and helpful as well. I describe some of my journey in my travel letters, if you are interested in more details.
posted by phunniemee at 12:08 PM on September 6, 2010
Response by poster: English is hardly spoken.
Et français? Nous sommes canadiens, donc...!
Thanks so much for all your leads! It looks like Ulcinj is the most common way in. Hopefully we won't have the same troubles as DOUBLE A SIDE did getting out!
I'm having more trouble finding specific info on the Durres-Bari-Dubrovnik ferries. Parts of their website don't seem to be working for me, and it looks like they wind their services down a lot after the summer rush is over.
vacapinta, that site is a treasure! I'm so glad you pointed it out. :)
posted by heatherann at 12:57 PM on September 6, 2010
Et français? Nous sommes canadiens, donc...!
Thanks so much for all your leads! It looks like Ulcinj is the most common way in. Hopefully we won't have the same troubles as DOUBLE A SIDE did getting out!
I'm having more trouble finding specific info on the Durres-Bari-Dubrovnik ferries. Parts of their website don't seem to be working for me, and it looks like they wind their services down a lot after the summer rush is over.
vacapinta, that site is a treasure! I'm so glad you pointed it out. :)
posted by heatherann at 12:57 PM on September 6, 2010
how far down into Albania are you hoping to go? Albania basically has two highways that run north-south, so it's extremely easy to travel within the country. Several minibuses per day make the trip up and down the country so you can hail one from the side of the road and get where you want to go. In larger cities, finding the bus station or minibus stop is incredibly difficult. My advice is to take a taxi (tell them "autobus/furgon (minibus) city name"
I entered Albania from Kosovo. Getting to Kosovo is a headache itself (especially since you seem to be bypassing Serbia) so I wouldn't recommend it. My Montenegro bus experiences were far, FAR better than my Kosovo or Albania bus experiences.
Albania absolutely has friendly, welcoming people. I can't tell you how many people stopped, unsolicited, to let me hitch a ride somewhere. And then there's the time a construction crew smuggled me into a hotel they were renovating and let me camp after I couldn't find a vacant guesthouse. However they are very, very different from the rest of Europe and be warned that some of your interactions will be filled with confusion.
If you want some beach time I recommend the seaside town of Dhermi and the neighboring beach Drymades, which has almost no development. Very peaceful-- you can camp wild on the beach-- although things might have changed in the year since I visited. Perfect warm water, just like Greece or Croatia but not crowded at all.
posted by acidic at 11:52 PM on September 11, 2010
I entered Albania from Kosovo. Getting to Kosovo is a headache itself (especially since you seem to be bypassing Serbia) so I wouldn't recommend it. My Montenegro bus experiences were far, FAR better than my Kosovo or Albania bus experiences.
Albania absolutely has friendly, welcoming people. I can't tell you how many people stopped, unsolicited, to let me hitch a ride somewhere. And then there's the time a construction crew smuggled me into a hotel they were renovating and let me camp after I couldn't find a vacant guesthouse. However they are very, very different from the rest of Europe and be warned that some of your interactions will be filled with confusion.
If you want some beach time I recommend the seaside town of Dhermi and the neighboring beach Drymades, which has almost no development. Very peaceful-- you can camp wild on the beach-- although things might have changed in the year since I visited. Perfect warm water, just like Greece or Croatia but not crowded at all.
posted by acidic at 11:52 PM on September 11, 2010
Response by poster: Follow-up:
We decided not to go to Albania after all because we only had 2 weeks this time and we fell utterly in love with Bosnia, particularly with Sarajevo. Who knew! Our actual trip ended up being:
Budapest -> Sarajevo -> Mostar -> Trebinje -> Dubrovnik -> Split -> Zadar -> Zagreb -> Budapest
If I had it to do over again, we would have skipped Dubrovnik and Split completely. Zadar was just as lovely, and the cruise ships haven't discovered it yet, so it retains some actual non-tourist life in its old town. Plus the Sea Organ is the most amazing thing ever!
We are planning to visit Albania on a future trip, when we are not so pressed for time. Thanks for all your comments!
posted by heatherann at 5:00 PM on October 10, 2010
We decided not to go to Albania after all because we only had 2 weeks this time and we fell utterly in love with Bosnia, particularly with Sarajevo. Who knew! Our actual trip ended up being:
Budapest -> Sarajevo -> Mostar -> Trebinje -> Dubrovnik -> Split -> Zadar -> Zagreb -> Budapest
If I had it to do over again, we would have skipped Dubrovnik and Split completely. Zadar was just as lovely, and the cruise ships haven't discovered it yet, so it retains some actual non-tourist life in its old town. Plus the Sea Organ is the most amazing thing ever!
We are planning to visit Albania on a future trip, when we are not so pressed for time. Thanks for all your comments!
posted by heatherann at 5:00 PM on October 10, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
It has no trains but it has some buses, taxis and ferries. He describes how to get there from Montenegro. Then, I assume, ferry is your best option to Dubrovnik.
posted by vacapinta at 7:39 AM on September 6, 2010