DAY 01: Tirana Airport – Kruja (25km – 30min)
Welcome in ALBANIA!!!
Upon arrival, meet the driver and the guide and depart toward Kruja (the transfer takes about 40mins in consideration the traffic as well). Depending on your flight details, visit of the city can be done on the afternoon.
Visit KRUJA. Kruja is considered one of the principal old town and is’ one of the most glorious cities in Albania. The walking tour takes you through the Ottoman bazaar, wooden shops and displays various gifts and antique items for the home. Visit the castle walls and an old house converted into an ethnographic museum, invites you to a special cultural aspect of life in northern Albania
Check in hotel in Kruja and prepare for dinner.
Day 02: Kruja – Berat – Vlora (230km – 4h30min)
Breakfast and check out of the hotel. Today, we’ll head to Berat, a medieval town listed under UNESCO World Heritage Sites. We will walk up at the fortress, called Kalaja and visit its unique architecture of stone houses, of multiple window buildings; walls and towers, several orthodox churches and ruins of Mosques, reflecting the harmonious coexistence between the Muslim population and the Orthodox Christian, a very positive example for the whole world.
Continue the visit in the lower part of the town where two other quarters are situated in both sides of Osumi River: Mangalemi and Gorica. Take some unforgettable pictures of the city of the “windows one above the other”
COBO Winery — Optional Visit & Wine Tasting
You will see cultivated vineyards, the winery within a spacious kulla (a form of traditional Albanian architecture), and a wine presentation room, elegantly constructed and furnished in the Berat style. A tour of the facilities includes an extensive viewing of the wine making process and explanations, punctuated by alternating poignant and comic vignettes that paint a glow ing picture of the family’s history and the origins of their wines.
Continue to Vlora city for dinner & overnight
DAY 03: Vlora – Butrint – Saranda – Gjirokastra (6hrs)
Breakfast at the hotel and depart for Saranda. With its jumble of rugged mountains fringed by pristine curls of beach, Albania’s south is the most appealing part of the country.
Scenic journey to Vlora, heading on down the Ionian Coast of Albanian Riviera, the high mountain and fascinated views, you’ll find one of Europe’s only unspoiled sections of Mediterranean shore, a near – permanently sunny spot, where the twin blues of sea and sky are ripped asunder by a ribbon of grey mountains of National Park of Llogara, passing by medieval villages of Dhermi & Himara to Porto Palermo Bay, with its long history buffs, from the Mediterranean pirates to the stronghold of Ali Pasha
Lunch on the way to Saranda
Afternoon walking tour of Butrint Archaeological Park (UNESCO Heritage). This impressive walking tour will stir your imagination about the ancient word during the peak of the Roman power and the classical Greek mythology. Under the Byzantine Empire, Butrint became the center of a bishopric in Epirus Vetus. The Forum came to an end in the late 4th century AD, as a result of a devastating earthquake. Nevertheless, large-scale construction projects in the 5th and 6th centuries included the Great Basilica, and the Baptistery, whose stunning mosaic floor survives. Start with the Asclepius temple, theatre, Roman portico and baths, early Christian baptistery, byzantine basilica, defensive walls and their impressive gates.
Proceed driving to Gjirokastra (1h30min)
Check in at the hotel and prepare for dinner
DAY 04: Gjirokastra –Ioannina – Kalambaka (4hrs)
Breakfast at the hotel, check out and start the visit of Gjirokastra Castle. The museum city of Gjirokastra was built on the eastern side of “Mali i Gjerë”. Since 2005 became part of UNESCO World Heritage sites. The main characteristic of Gjirokastra is the intensive use of stone in building the houses, which look like small fortresses, the streets of cobblestone, which all lead to the Old Bazaar.
After the visit, we’ll depart for Kalambaka/Greece, with stop en route to Ioannina for lunch (2hrs)
Please note the time difference between Albania and Greece: 0/+1
Proceed driving to Kalambaka (2hrs)
Check in at the hotel and prepare for dinner
DAY 05: Kalambaka – Bitola – Ohrid (300km – 5hrs)
Breakfast and check out of the hotel. Today we’ll start the visit of a religious place with many Byzantine churches and Monasteries. The special characteristic of Meteora is that it looks like hanging rocks and that monasteries are all built on top of rocks, overlooking a beautiful valley. Visit of two Monasteries the Monastery of Varlaam & Monastery of St. Stephan
Important notice: For entering the monasteries of Meteora, appropriate clothing is required. Ladies must not wear short skirts and must have long sleeves. Men are not allowed to wear shorts. However, all the monasteries have wrap skirts at the entrances that you can borrow
After the visit, we’ll drive towards North Macedonia – Enjoy the drive through northern Greece, crossing the border to Macedonia, with stop en route for lunch.
Please note, border procedures and time difference between Greece & North Macedonia: 0/-1
After the border crossing, we may stop for a sightseeing of Bitola city. Bitola is an administrative, cultural, industrial, commercial, and educational center and one of the oldest cities on the territory in the Republic of Macedonia, founded by Philip the second. Have a nice walk to Sirok Sokak, before our departure to Ohrid, for dinner and overnight (1h30min).
Check in at the hotel and prepare for dinner
DAY06: Ohrid
Walking tour of Ohrid old town (UNESCO heritage site), city of light with rich cultural and historical heritage in which a lot of civilizations left their own mark. A magical place where on an amazing way the cultural and natural heritage are mixed along with the hospitality, city for which many world searchers of beauty use to call – Macedonian part of paradise. The highlight of the Ohrid tour include Cathedral of St. Sophia, church of St.Bogorodica Perivlepta, Ancient Theater and the Old Bazaar
You can spend pleasant moments in the restaurant and enjoy our various specialties of high quality food, vide choice of original drinks and pleasant ambience of calmness during the day…
Boat ride in Ohrid Lake
Afternoon visit to the Medieval Monastic Complex of St. Naum (30 km distant from Ohrid)
Dinner and overnight in Ohrid
DAY 07: Ohrid – Tirana (140km – 3hrs)
Breakfast at the hotel, check out and depart to Tirana/ALBANIA (3hrs)
Please note the border procedures. Guests are kindly required to keep their passports handy!
Upon arrival, time for the lunch at a local restaurant
Tirana Walking Tour – Tirana, the capital of Albania, is an important political, administrative and cultural city with a history enriched by the interaction of cultural forces originating in the Islamic and European Christian worlds. During the tour, you will encounter the impact of these influences in the Tirana’s architecture. The tour will highlight some symbols and remains of the communism era to provide you with a general understanding of Albanian history
Free time by your own
Check in at the hotel and prepare for dinner
DAY 08: Tirana – Airport (20km – 30min)
Breakfast and check out of the hotel
Free time until your departure to the Airport
Transfer to Mother Teresa Airport (40 min)
End of our Service