Touristic Albania in the focus of world media during 2017

World prestigious media has written a bunch of articles promoting Albania tourism during 2017. Albania become an emerging tourist destination especially during this summer, where thousands tourists mainly from Eastern Europe visited Albania this year. Albania is not only attracting tourists for its beautiful riviera, sandy beaches, but also for its wonderful nature, plenty of mountains, rivers and lake. Albania is becoming also great destination for the adventurous tourists, who loves hiking, climbing, rafting and diving...

For 2018, Albania is also top recommended from prestigious media. 

Medias such as: National Geographic, The Guardian, Forbes, Vogue, Telegraph, Bradt Travel Guides has listed Albania on the top of the list of “Destination of 2018”. Read below some of the highlighted blogs about Albania during 2017:

1. Bradt Travel Guides: Five Reasons To Visit Albania 
2. Albania among Top Budget Destination for 2017 by Rough Guides
3. Forbes ranks Albania among 30 cheapest places to travel in 2017
4. Highlights of Albania recommended by a German Travel Magazine
5.  Ksamil Beach, hits the list of “20 best beaches to visit in May in Europe” by Telegraph Travel
6.  Albania No 1 on the list of "15 Up and coming Destinations Around the World"
7. Tgcom24 /Albania: The Mediterranean to be explored
8. Between archaeology and bunkers, the contradictions and fascination of Albania  –Repubblica
9. Rear View Mirror: The Best beaches on Albanian Riviera
10. Albanie: nouvelle destination bon marché
11. Vanity Fair: Summer in the sea of Albania
12. City of Himara, Albania among to 6 Balkans destinations for 2017- by Vogue.com
13.  The Dutch Media "Volkskrant " promotes Albania
14. Culture Trip: Swap Costa Brava for the turquoise waters of Ksamil, Albanian Riviera
15. Daily Sabah: Albanian Riviera offers unexpected experiences to visitors
16. German Travel Magazine: Albania -Between sea and mountain
17. The Guardian: Trekking in the highest peak of Albania
18. Suitcase magazine: Why Albania needs to be your next European escape
19. National Geographic: Albanie, la plus belle destination pour 2018
20. Culture Trip: A weekend in Llogara National Park in Albania
21. Telegraph: Albania- Europe's next big beach holiday destination?!
22. Albania among best trips 2018 by National Geographic
23. Le Parisien: L’Albanie des grands trésors à petits prix 
24. Evening Standard: Albania famous for its vineyards
25.  Archeology magazine: Albania’s archeological treasures and findings
26. El Hedonista: Albania, miracles exist 
27. Momondo: Explore one of Europe’s best kept secret - Albania  

 

 

 

Swedish magazine ‘Vagabond”: Albania, the best country of 2018

Albania is being promoted by international media as one of the best tourist destinations for the upcoming year, 2018. Our country has made to be on the top of 35 destinations to visit in 2018 according to Vagabond Beresta Editorial.

Photo source: Vagabond

Winner in the Best Countries category is Albania - a country that has lately been a snack in the travel world, as it has everything from rugged mountain peaks to golden-golden Mediterranean beaches.

Albania leaves behind two countries: Botswana and Switzerland.

Official data from the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) confirmed that the number of tourists from the European and worldwide target market has increased. Statics shown that in 2016 visitors from Sweden increased by 63 percent.

See original article: http://www.vagabond.se/artiklar/nyheter/20171219/vagabond-korar-hetaste-resmalen-2018/

Huffington Post: 10 Amazing Reason to Visit Albania

If you need some good 10 reasons to visit Albania, have a look at what Huffington Post has written lately about this country. 

Monique Alvarez, the author of the article is an expat living in Tirana, Albania for more 10 years now. According to her, Albania has changed so much during these years.  She writes about her first visit in Albania, and why she recommends now that this country should be in others people traveling list .

“This is not a country who is stuck in the past. Yes, they have been through incredibly difficult times, with heartless leaders, but they are moving forward. This is a place that is full of promise and optimism, and definitely one of the most underrated gems in the world “writes Alvarez.

10 reasons you’ll want to book your ticket to Albania this year!

1. For many countries there’s no need to apply for a visa before arriving.

2. Albania is one of the most tolerant countries in the world. There are Christians, Orthodox, and Muslims all living peacefully here. The truest religion here is their ancient tradition of hospitality.

3. Albania’s natural beauty is breathtaking. They have amazing mountains, stunning beaches, lakes, rivers... you name it, it’s here. We enjoyed spending the summer in Ksamil and now we are in the capital city of Tirana. I have been just about everywhere and can tell you each spot has a beauty all its own.

4. The cost of living is LOW. Whether you are planning a couple week vacations or considering moving, you will get great value in Albania

5. The food is oh so good! From meat and seafood lovers to vegans, the options are here.  Fresh markets are on every corner and “organic” is the norm.

6. It’s safe! Crime is almost non-existent. Women can walk around alone, even at night, and not be worried.

7. Albanians are still getting used to the idea of tourists, but they love foreigners. They are thrilled when we visit or move to their country and go out of their way to help with anything you could possibly need. Transportation is often the most difficult thing to navigate, but Furgons (the word for mini-buses) are the best way to play tourist here.

8. Many locals speak English. In fact, most Albanians speak 4 or 5 languages including Greek, Italian, Spanish, and German

9. Internet is fast and widely available. If you work online like we do, this is incredibly important. Unless you are in remote rural areas, most hotels, restaurants, and coffee shops offer free wi-fi.

10. It’s perfectly situated to enjoy Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and the Balkans. If traveling from Greece there are flights, ferries, and buses in. One of the easiest ways to access southern Albania is by flying to Corfu, Greece and taking the ferry over from there. Regular flights from Rome, London, Frankfurt, and Istanbul in and out of Tirana are common.

If you’re looking to visit the next hot spot before it’s overpriced and flooded with tourists, get to Albania.

See full article: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/10-amazing-reason-to-visit-albania_us_5a37953ce4b02bd1c8c60849?ncid=engmodushpmg00000003

El Hedonista: Albania, miracles exist

“The most closed country opens itself to tourism. You have to go now! Albania has a lot to offer”.  This is how El Hedonista describes Albania. The Spanish media has dedicated a long article about Albania’s highlights.

In what was the first country in the world declared atheist today, the muezzins are heard calling for prayer and priests ringing the bells of orthodox and catholic churches. But the miracle is not that, but having survived the 41 years of Stalinist dictatorship of Enver Hoxha with a smile and open arms to tourism.

Albania is a beautiful country with a miserable history that is shaken off in a hurry. The characteristic gray of communism barely appears under the layers of paint on the facades of their cities. The impressive beech and oak forests gradually cover the thousands of cement bunkers scattered everywhere.

© Alberto y Ana Cañizal

The terraces of Tirana

Tirana has flourished like a happy capital full of terraces where people chat animatedly in front of a café or its rich local beers. You breathe freedom.

Skanderbeg square is located in the heart of Tirana, named after the national hero who lived in the fifteenth century. The square is surrounded by beautiful attractions, the national museum, the palace of culture, the mosque of Ethem Bey, the clock tower.  

There is much to see in Tirana and enough to enjoy. A couple of days or three is not taken away from anyone. Then you can choose between touring its impressive offer of natural parks, lakes and rivers; visit Greek, Roman sites and World Heritage sites; spend a few days dedicated to the softness on its fine sandy beaches ... Or better, of course, all together.

© Alberto y Ana Cañizal

A paradise for lovers of stones

The remote ancestors of the Albanians were the Illyrians , and there are still many remains from centuries before our era. Then they were conquered by the Romans, who also left their mark. And then the Byzantines arrived. But the most visible are still the Turks, who were in Albania from the fifteenth century until 1912, the glorious year of their independence. Despite the rage that Enver Hoxha put on destroying mosques and churches, some of special historical value have been preserved.

 

© Alberto y Ana Cañizal

There is also a breathtaking place for its beauty: Butrint , declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1992. The area, inhabited since prehistoric times, Greek colony, Roman city, Byzantine enclave and Venetian conquest, is an archaeological site remains of all periods, to which more beautiful, the oldest of the fourth century a. of C., and between them it thrills a door in cyclopean walls with a lion devouring a bull.

See full article: https://elhedonista.es/hallazgos/escapadas/viaje-a-albania-106233/

Archeology magazine: Albania’s archeological treasures and findings

New archaeological findings in Albania, shows that this country is rich in history and still unexplored. 

As a new pipeline cuts its way through the Balkans, archaeologists in Albania are grabbing every opportunity to expose the country’s history, from the Neolithic to the present, - writes Archaeology magazine in a new article which also featured on the cover of January/February 2018 issue: “The head of a bronze figurine identified as Zeus from Apollonia, Albania”.

(TAP/G. Shkullaku)

In modern Albania, the mélange of historical cultures is packed so densely they often seem to collide. The national E852 highway follows the same bank of the Shkumbin River as an ancient highway, the Via Egnatia, which was first traveled by Roman soldiers around 200 b.c. The road was modernized and maintained for centuries thereafter, and it became the main thoroughfare between Constantinople and the Adriatic, facilitating communication and trade between Rome and the eastern lands of the empire. Today, luxury Mercedes swerve between transcontinental bicyclists taking in the lush Mediterranean landscape and donkey carts hauling towering piles of forage. The route winds gently past medieval Ottoman Turkish bridges and white obelisks from the Communist era immortalizing partisan battles fought during World War II. Scrappy tobacco fields and mounds of hay and cornstalks line the route, planted and stacked by hand, much as they have been for centuries.


See full article here: https://www.archaeology.org/issues/284-1801/letter-from/6161-albania-pipeline-excavations

Evening Standard: Albania famous for its vineyards

Albania now is becoming more popular for foreign tourists, not only for its nature and cultural heritage but also for wine. Evening Standard a British media wrote an article to promote Albanian wine among Serbian and Macedonian wine in the Balkan region.

Kallmet, Albania
Photo source: Evening Standard

Albania is famous for its vineyards, layered over gently rolling hills at an altitude of up to 1,000 metres. As in Macedonia, conditions here produce viticultural diversity — merlot, cabernet, pinot noir, riesling and sangiovese are abundant in this rich soil.

The Zadrima region’s clash of ecosystems — it’s where the Albanian Alps meet the Adriatic — makes for uniquely fertile land producing Mediterranean-style wine. Kallmet, named after the full-bodied, sweet local kallmet grape, produces award-winning red and whites including its “prestige” selection from 30-year-old vines. Arberi and Zadrima have other high-quality examples of native wineries in the area. Expect only locals at these seriously undercover gems.

Arbri Winery, Albania
Photo source: Evening Standard

See full article here!

Le Parisien: L’Albanie des grands trésors à petits prix

Le Parisien, un journal quotidien français au site Web, publie un article dans l'Albanie, ce pays de l’ex-bloc communiste, encore peu connu, recèle d’innombrables richesses. Patrimoine préservé, paysages sauvages et plages sublimes.

Longtemps enserrée dans un carcan communiste, l’Albanie ne s’est ouverte au tourisme que dans les années 1990. Certes, les routes sont encore en mauvais état, les infrastructures d’hébergement, de qualité inégale, et le patrimoine, très mal mis en valeur, mais le « Pays des aigles », dont le drapeau arbore deux rapaces, ne manque pas d’arguments pour les amoureux d’histoire, de nature et de plages. Sur une superficie guère plus grande que la Bretagne, l’Albanie offre des paysages grandioses, avec ses majestueuses montagnes sur les trois quarts de son territoire, ses lacs, ses rivières, ses parcs préservés et son immense littoral de près de 400 kilomètres, qui fait alterner

longues plages, petites criques et falaises plongeant dans la mer.

L’Albanie c’est  une destination bon marché, notamment au niveau de l’hébergement et de la gastronomie subtile aux accents méditerranéens.

Source: http://www.leparisien.fr/week-end/tourisme-en-albanie-des-grands-tresors-a-petits-prix-11-10-2017-7324440.php

Albania among best trips 2018 by National Geographic

Albania is listed among 21 places to be visited in 2018 by the most prestigious media National Geographic. This is great news for our country. But the most important thing is that we are listed for such an extraordinary underwater world, which is still unexplored and unknown even for Albanians themselves. This is a call  for all people who love to dive and explore the underwater world. It is the only country among other 21 placed in the list, to be suggested by National Geographic for such a special underwater tour. Here is what the article says about Albania:

“Sunken aqueducts, shipwrecks, and rarely visited caves are a few of the relatively untouched treasures awaiting divers in Albania. Decades of isolation under communist leader Enver Hoxha limited development and inadvertently preserved underwater cultural heritage, particularly off the southern coast.”

You may ask why scuba diving wasn’t famous in Albania, because the dictator Hoxha banned scuba diving to prevent Albanians from escaping.

See original article: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/features/best-trips-destinations-2018/#butrint-national-park-albania