Momondo: Explore one of Europe’s best kept secret - Albania

“Albania is an untouched and undiscovered piece of Europe’s complex puzzle. Filled with fairy-tale landscapes, eye-boggling views, rich culture and incredibly hospitable locals, Albania should be considered one of the top destinations to visit for an authentic travel experience. Travel writer Anita Hendrieka has set about to discover the country’s finest experiences.”- writes Momondo.

 Momondo is a global travel search and comparison site, based in Copenhagen, Denmark and shares articles for different tourism destination all over the world. Albania, one of Europe’s most untraveled and charming gems is promoted with a long article, highlighting the best things to do in Albania. Splitting Albania between North and South, there are mesmerizing landscapes and breathtaking coastline,- the country has it all.

Source: Momondo

If you go to Southern Albania you will get natural and ancient wonders, like coastal towns of Saranda, Ksamil and Himara. But if you are looking for ancient towns, go to Berat and Gjirokastra.

“Further north towards the centre of Albania is beautiful Berat, listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site. With over 2400 years of history, Berat is a pearl of Albania’s past. A castle is perched overlooking the city, and leading up to it is an assortment of Ottoman influenced white houses, giving Berat its nickname: the “town with a thousand windows”.

© Pero Kvrzica

Gjirokastёr is often referred to as the twin city of Berat, but don’t be mistaken to think you can visit one and not the other. Like Berat, Gjirokastёr also has white Ottoman-styled houses, but with flatter stone roofs, and they’re so unique and well-preserved the city has been inscribed on the Unesco World Heritage list. Come see its cobbled streets, small fortresses and stone houses, and relish in its culinary art, too.

© Serial Hikers

For culture and history buffs alike visit Tirana.

Albania’s lively capital Tirana is a melting pot of culture and the beating heart of this fascinating country. After communism fell in 1992 Tirana was given a makeover, and this once restricted and dull city was flipped upside down – it was painted with bright colours, streets were lined with bars and restaurants, and public squares popped up all over the city. A weekend in Tirana is best spent checking out the array of top-notch museums, admiring the murals that are scattered around the city and bar crawling. During winter it’s the centre of Albanian nightlife when locals return from their summer work elsewhere.

© a.dombrowski

Two other cities that are worth a visit are: Durresi and Shkodra. Durrёs is the most ancient city in Albania, dating back to the seventh century BC. It’s renowned for its ancient ruins, including the largest Roman amphitheater in the Balkans.

Close towards the border of Montenegro is Shkodёr, also known as the gateway to the Albanian Alps. Many writers, artists, photographers and painters were born here, and it’s known to be a culturally rich city.

See full article here

Exploring ancestral lands- fascinating Albania

"Traveling in the ancestral lands of Alexander the Great, I recently explored the unique sights found in the Balkan countries of Macedonia, Albania and northern Greece.
The three Balkan countries I visited preserve a tremendous amount of antiquity and ancient history, as they all have very rich heritages..

Our journey from Greece took us across the border to fascinating Albania, which was the most isolated and closed country in the world following World War II.
Its brutal Communist dictator had closed its borders, and his irrational fear of an invasion led him to construct an unbelievable number of 700,000 small bunkers, plus tunnels, to allegedly protect his population. I have never seen such a weird sight as these bunkers still lining the highways and its cities.

Stunning Ottoman-style homes, ancient fortifications
In Albania, we spent two evenings in the UNESCO world heritage city of Gjirokaster, a very old historic town on a steep hillside containing several Ottoman-era mansions with stone slate roofs and crowned by a massive 15th century castle.
We visited its Ottoman bazaar dating from the 17th century. Later we toured the town of Berat, containing stunning Ottoman-style homes and a 2,500 year old fortification.

Tirana, Albania's capital, was our next destination. It is a fairly modern city with wide boulevards, parks and high rises.
Here we learned about the turbulent history of the country that included 400 years of occupation by the Ottomans, Italians and Nazi's during WW II, and the 45 years of a Communist dictatorship."



 "Exploring ancestral lands", is an article published in Sun Times by Dave Pattison also known as “The Marco Traveler". The author choose these 3 places Albania, Greece and Macedonia to write about in his last article for the Sun Times."This is my last article I will write for the Sun Times, which is ceasing publication, and I hope readers have enjoyed learning about places known and unknown, and have gained an understanding about unique and varied cultures that can be discovered around the world", he wrote.


Read full article:

http://www.marcoislandflorida.com/story/travel/2016/07/05/exploring-ancestral-lands/86714636/

Albania, one of 5 European Countries You Should Visit Now

By Meagen Collins / Travel Freedom Network

It’s 2016 and many of you will most likely be making those two big New Year’s resolutions: 1. Lose weight and 2. Travel more! Well, we are here to help you with the second one.

Not only are we going to inspire you to travel more, but we want to inspire you to outdo your friends this year and discover some of the best off-the-beaten-path European destinations. And guess what? They all are stunningly beautiful — and they’re super affordable too! Score!

These unexpected European destinations will give you a serious case of wanderlust, and will have you packing your bags, booking a flight, and discovering the great unknown this year.

2. Albania
If you want the beauty of the Greek islands with a more affordable price tag - then book that plane ticket to Albania today.

We visited Tirana and Shkodra, but the coastal towns of the ‘Albanian Riviera’ are a popular place to visit during the warmer months. This country is jam-packed with so much natural beauty it would be a shame to leave it off any European trip.
The people are all welcoming, and go above and beyond to help any foreigners in need of assistance.

What to eat: Veal appears to be the specialty of Albania — or 'the baby cow’ as it is usually described. We recommend giving the Albanian pilaf a try, rice cooked in seasoned broth. It usually costs around $1 for a small serving.

Fun fact: Albania, Armenia, Macedonia, and Vatican City are the only European countries without a McDonald’s branch.

Full article: https://www.yahoo.com/travel/5-underrated-european-countries-you-should-1340508871589942.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw

Tirana – Aus grau wird bunt

Tirana - from gray becomes colorful. This is blog written from a German blogger Beatrice. She enjoyed her stay in Albanian Capital, and shared with us a guide about the most beautiful places of Tirana.  

Read and enjoy her article:

Tirana – Aus grau wird bunt

In den Top-Listen attraktiver europäischer Städte wirst Du Tirana (noch) vergeblich suchen. Kein Wunder, denn die Jahrzehnte des kommunistischen Regimes hatten aus der albanischen Hauptstadt einen grauen, düsteren Ort gemacht, in dem die Einwohner ein ärmliches Leben fristen mussten. Der Zusammenbruch des Kommunismus im Jahr 1992 und der Übergang zu einer demokratischen Regierung verschlimmerte zunächst die Situation.

Besser wurde es ab dem Jahr 2000, als Edi Rama Bürgermeister von Tirana wurde und im großen Umfang Maßnahmen zur Verbesserung der Lebensbedingungen durchführte: Illegale errichtete Gebäude wurden abgerissen und Pläne für eine sinnvolle Stadtentwicklung erstellt. Eine gezielte Begrünung wurde gestartet, die vorher grauen Fassaden bunt angestrichen und man begann, sich um die Müllentsorgung zu kümmern.

Für sein Projekt „Clean and Green“ wurde Edi Rama sogar von den Vereinten Nationen ausgezeichnet.

Heute ist Tirana im Aufschwung. Fast 1 Millionen Einwohner leben in der Stadt – immerhin ein Drittel der gesamten albanischen Bevölkerung. Chaotisch geht es immer noch zu: geschäftige Fußgänger, zähfließender Verkehr, staubige Großbaustellen und ein undefinierbares Häusergemisch von modern bis halbverfallen.

Die Aufbruchstimmung ist überall zu merken. Noch funktioniert nicht alles, aber es tut sich was. Schön? Manchmal ja und manchmal nein. In jedem Fall nicht zu vergleichen mit unserem wohlgeordneten (und manchmal ganz schön behäbigen) Leben – und gerade deshalb einen Besuch wert!

Full article: 

http://www.reisezeilen.de/city-guide-tirana/

8 Best Places to Visit in Albania That Are Safe And Beautiful

Another article is published for Albania in international media, this time suggesting 8 best place tourists should visit. The article is published at Insider Monkey, an online platform evaluating markets, economy etc. The tittle is: 8 Best Places to Visit in Albania That Are Safe And Beautiful.
The word 'safe' is surfaced again in international media after the death of two Czech tourists in north of Albania. But we can assure tourists  that all Albania is safe despite a sporadic and isolated tragedy, which can happen everywhere in the world.

Lets see how Insider Monkey ranks the beautiful places should be visited in Albania. The article suggest: Berat, Durres, Tirana, Albanian riviera, Apollonia, Gjirokastra. Kruja and Shkodra as most beautiful places in Albania. But the focus is Adriatic coastline, Albanian Riviera. It describes the beaches as very pristine, breathtaking, which amaze any traveler. Further inland into Albania are stony trails for hiking amongst the sun bleached and lunar mountains. The remote villages offer an inviting welcome to all inquisitive traveler. There is always the benefit of well-prepared tasty meals, great wine and hospitable locals... With its great combination of engaging history, sandy beaches and highly competitive pricing, Albania’s once anonymous charms are being shouted to everyone across the world. 

Here is a list of the best places to visit in Albania that are safe and beautiful.  Full article:

http://www.insidermonkey.com/blog/8-best-places-to-visit-in-albania-that-are-safe-and-beautiful-358992/

 

Open for adventure

"As a visitor, one wonders how Albania, - a European country with such beautiful sea coast and of course bathing water, so high mountains to hike in and with so many well-preserved historical sites to marvel at, has taken over 20 years to appear on the international tourist map. Anyway, this fact is today probably Albania's greatest asset as a tourist destination. Capital Tirana is a colorful acquaintance with many popular restaurants and hip cafes, fine parks and inspiring pulse. Albania is mountainous. Adventure tourism is in its infancy but something that is invested vigorously. Already arranged both rafting and kayaking, wreck diving and hiking in the dramatic surroundings".

This is how a Swedish Journalist, Kicki Lind describes Albania. This article recommending Albania as a very attractive tourist destination was published in three newspapers in Sweden. Here is a summary of this article:

**
Open for adventure
by Kicki Lind

How could it have taken over twenty years for a country that holds so much to see appear on the international tourist map?... Times have changed. Albania is nowadays an open country, and many of the people who fled Albania during the Stalin-inspired dictatorial regime has returned... There was a time when Albania was standing alone against the rest of the world. The dictator Enver Hoxha had in the 1940s, 50s and 60s chummy contacts with both Tito and Mao as Moscow, but broke in turn these into a confidence that Albania could be attacked from both East and West... The bunkers vary in size and remains a prominent feature on the Albanian countryside. Some smaller bunkers are now used for everything from mushroom cultivation to cabanas while others razed to the ground so that building materials can be reused. Hoxha's own bunker on 2685 square meters just outside Tirana was among the larger and was until recently with the military's list of secret items. Most Albanian bunkers are a few square meters while Hoxha's bunkers holds 106 rooms and a cinema. It has now been opened to the public.... The world is notoriously full of places where cruel story turned into tourist attraction. In Albania stands island of Sazan, an hour's boat ride outside the coastal city of Vlora, in line to be such a place. ... the island since Roman times been used as a military base... now there is a hope that Sazan to have become an interesting historical and cultural outdoor museum of the Cold War.
... And certainly, as a tourist country, Albania is cheap, the price level is probably the lowest in Europe. But let us hope that the increasing amount of visitors interested in more than sunbathing and swimming, the Albanians themselves are able to take care of its magnificent scenery and the dignity manages to preserve at least some of their ancient traditions...

A few mil outside Sarandra is the National Park and World Heritage Butrint, a large and very evocative archaeological site with more than 3000 years old. Butrint has been both Greek colony and Roman city and it hardly needs to be especially historically literate to be seized by the powerful atmosphere that fits in the amphitheater, among the pillars and portals, and in the old swimming pool surrounded by lush greenery and salty sea breezes. It is orderly and exciting without even one souvenir salesman in sight.... Another few miles from there, up in the mountains inland, lies the village Pilur whose little more than a hundred residents seem to take a rather sleepy existence. It is precisely in Pilur as Albanian polyphony, an old song tradition that is characterized by multiple melody parts simultaneously, is said to have originated and villagers actively tradition. The polyphonic singing has been given by Unesco World Heritage status as "a masterpiece of humanity's oral and intangible cultural heritage...
As a visitor, one wonders how it is that a European country with such beautiful sea coast and of course bathing water, so high mountains to hike in and with so many well-preserved historical sites to marvel at, has taken over 20 years to appear on the international tourist map. Anyway, this fact is today probably Albania's greatest asset as a tourist destination.

Capital Tirana is a colorful acquaintance with many popular restaurants and hip cafes, fine parks and inspiring pulse. Heavy gray statues reminiscent of another time is now almost piquant feature of the cityscape that is characterized by hilarious lively venues where språkas, drinking cappuccino, latte, macchiato and domestic brew raki from early morning to late evening. Unemployment remains high and income disparities great but the younger generation in Albania face the future with confidence. The express speed.

Albania is mountainous. Adventure tourism is in its infancy but something that is invested vigorously. Already arranged both rafting and kayaking, wreck diving and hiking in the dramatic surroundings.

Full article:

http://www.sydsvenskan.se/resor/oppet-for-aventyr/

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