Pictured left to right outside the new store are: Paul Hardwick, Fred. Olsen Travel Agents Director of Retail; Emma Bailey, Fred. Olsen Travel Agents; Tutti Taylor, Fred. Olsen Travel Agents; Councillor Candy Vaughan, Mayor of Eastbourne; Trevor Ridler, Fred. Olsen Travel Agents Business Development Manager; and Shirley Waters, Fred. Olsen Travel Agents..
Albania may not be top of everyone’s travel lists yet – it’s not a big tourist hub, or as developed as neighbouring countries such as Croatia, Greece & Turkey, but I’d seen a lot online regarding it being very pretty and having beautiful beaches, so I was tempted to explore. Being a solo female traveller, I decided that a small group tour would be an excellent way to discover the road less travelled in a safe way, with the added bonus of meeting like-minded fellow travellers on my trip.
My “Essential Southern Balkans” 9 day trip with Intrepid was for travellers aged 18-35, and included 5 days in Albania with fleeting visits to Croatia, Montenegro & Corfu.
Our group comprised 16 people from all over the world aged between 18-35, and this worked well in terms of meeting like-minded individuals and learning about their lives back home, making friends for life. It was also a good amount of people because you could easily mix with different smaller groups depending on what activity you wanted to do that day and aren’t restricted to always staying with the same fellow travellers. Our tour guide Lucija was incredible, she made us all feel welcome, and it was great being able to hear her expertise on the areas visited, giving recommendations and booking some group meals for us. She also ensured that a vegan in our group always had something appropriate available. The itinerary was packed, with minibus trips on 5 of the 8 days for around 4 hours. We had two free days included to give flexibility to experience destinations as we preferred. The itinerary had a good structure about it and gave a wide range of history and culture, beaches, architecture and night life!
We stayed in 6 different types of accommodation. All were basic which was perfect for me as we only really needed the accommodation to sleep in, as most of the daytime we were out and about. Beds were comfy, all were clean, and the air conditioning in each was a lifesaver too in the heat! This particular trip is a multi-share trip, so you share a room with one other person of the same gender, but other trips offered by Intrepid have single rooms available for a supplement.
Our first night was in Dubrovnik in Croatia and I visited the beach before a group meal to get to know everyone, after which some of us headed to the Old Town to explore. Day two we travelled from Dubrovnik to Kotor in Montenegro, exploring the town’s cobbled streets, with lunch on a lovely garden terrace followed by a swim at the beach. Travelling on to Stari Bar for the night we saw the old fortress and tried Pomegranate Beer!
The next day we travelled to the capital city of Albania, Tirana. We visited Bunk’art 2 - a museum based around the history of Albania up until 1990, whilst it was a communist country. This was fascinating, learning about the spying that occurred, resulting in imprisonment of many civilians and even executions. I joined the included city walking tour which was insightful, and that evening we had a traditional Albanian meal. The following day in Tirana was a free day so I joined the Bovilla Reservoir excursion for a small additional cost. It gave us breathtaking views up in the mountains and is something I will never forget. That evening I went exploring with some of my new friends, for a cocktail before dinner at a stunning restaurant on the hillside. The panoramic views were incredible, and we watched the sunset before tucking into the delicious set menu. Tirana completely exceeded my expectations – I knew very little about it before we went, but there is such a variety of things to do, from museums and history, shopping, lots of lovely bars and restaurants, architecture, day trips and more.
Travelling onward the next day, we arrived at Dhermi Beach by lunchtime, with its’ stunning crystal-clear waters and lovely chilled ambience to relax in. The next day was another free day, and I chose a private speed boat tour, visiting a beach and the Blue Caves. That evening we watched the sunset over the sea at dinner – I had a brilliant couple of days here.
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Day 7 we took the minibus to the Blue Eye Spring - this 80m deep spring is gorgeous, the water was such a pretty colour and is well worth visiting. Afterwards, we journeyed on to Gjirokaster, an Ottoman town in South Albania. We had a guided tour around the fortress and enjoyed its panoramic views, then explored the town and its quaint Bazaar. Here, we stayed at my favourite accommodation, Old Bazaar 1790 - the hotel is a beautiful, historic building in the centre of the old town which featured some very spacious rooms with lots of seating areas, and I would highly recommend staying here.
On our last full day we caught the hydrofoil ferry over to Corfu from Sarande. It was 40 degrees so the pool at our Sunset Hotel was a welcome place to relax before getting the bus into Corfu town to explore. Our last group dinner was at an authentic Greek restaurant in the middle of the old town. The food on our trip had been lovely and varied, with southern Mediterranean dishes such as Fergese (stuffed peppers) Dolma Japrak (stuffed grape leaves) mixed with influences from Albania’s Italian occupation during the 1930’s. Albanians also love their coffee, and coffee shops are everywhere.
This Balkans trip was a once in a lifetime experience, with the perfect range of history, culture and picturesque beaches. My small group tour was a fantastic way to explore, meeting people from all different corners of the world, learning about their own cultures and creating new friendships. The packed itinerary fully immersed us in our destinations, with local knowledge and insights we would not have had as independent travellers. Albania was above and beyond what I imagined, the diversity it offers as a destination is mind-blowing, there really is something there for everybody to enjoy - hikes up mountains to lakes; cities filled with culture, architecture both old and new; museums, nightlife; beautiful beaches and so much more. The people are lovely, and I felt safe in all areas we visited. It shocked me to hear of the recent history of Albania, and to understand how this has shaped it in the modern day. It may not be as popular as its more famous neighbours right now, but this gem of a destination really is one to visit before everyone discovers it!
My top tips for this trip:
- Bring a backpack or smaller suitcase – some of the accommodation required walking up flights of stairs or steep hills to reach the room, and packing cubes help keep everything organised. A tote bag / day sack for beach essentials is very useful.
- Bring a travel pillow for relaxing on minibus journeys.
- Stay hydrated, especially if travelling in the summer months as heat exhaustion is a big risk. If you struggle with the heat it may be better to visit in May or September.
- Once in Albania, exchange your Euro cash for Albanian Lek, this gives you smaller notes as getting money out at an ATM tends to give you large bank notes of around 50 Euro value - some places don’t accept the big notes or have the change to give you.
- If you visit any mosques wear modest and respectful clothing.
- You would need to be a very confident driver to hire a car in Albania.
- You may need an E-Sim, as Montenegro and Albania are not part of the European Union. I bought a Balkans E-Sim for a small cost, which covered me for 10 days, so check with your mobile provider to see what you will need.
- Thank you in Albanian is Faleminderit which is always useful to know, and shows you are putting in that extra mile to learn a bit of their language!
You can find Rosie at our Framlingham branch
If you would like to plan your own Balkan Adventure contact your local shop
