8-Day Albania Culture Tour with UNESCO Cities and Riviera Drive

• Arrive at Mother Teresa Airport in Tirana, meet our representative, and transfer to the hotel.

• Visit the National History Museum in Tirana, which offers an in-depth introduction to Albanian history from prehistoric times to the present day.

• Attend a welcome dinner at a traditional Albanian restaurant with live music.

Overnight in Tirana.

• Have breakfast, then depart for Vlora with your Albanian tour guide.

• On the way to this beautiful coastal town, visit Ardenica, an Orthodox monastery built in the 13th century. It is thought that the marriage of the Albanian national hero Scanderbeg was celebrated in this idyllic place in the 15th century.

• After Ardenica, proceed to Apollonia, situated on the famous Via Egnatia. Apollonia was founded at the beginning of the 7th century BC by Greek colonists. In Roman times, it was a large and flourishing city, with 50,000 residents in the second century BCE, near the Aos River, today known as the Vjosa. The monastery, which houses the museum, has a courtyard enclosed by a Byzantine church dating back to the 14th century.

• Have lunch in Apollonia.

• Continue to Vlora, where you will visit the Independence Museum, situated in the original house where the first independent Albanian Government had its seat.

• Spend the afternoon and evening at leisure.

Overnight in Vlora.

• Have breakfast, then depart for Saranda. Today, you will drive along the Albanian Riviera overlooking the Ionian Sea.

• Halt at Llogara National Park for a quick break and enjoy a stunning view of one of the most dramatic mountains of the Mediterranean, with panoramas overlooking the sea.

• Proceed to Dhermi Beach, a gem known for its crystal-clear waters.

• Have a traditional Albanian lunch at a restaurant.

• Continue to Porto Palermo, where Ali Pasha Castle stands like a barrier in front of the blue rocky sea, protecting the country. The bay of Porto Palermo once served as an important secret submarine base during the regime days. The semi-abandoned base and the tunnel are still visible.

• Travel to Borsh, where you will have a coffee break in an oasis of peace surrounded by waterfalls.

• Continue your drive along the breathtaking road to Saranda, the final destination for today.

• Arrive in Saranda, check in at the hotel, enjoy a stroll along the seaside promenade, and prepare for dinner.

Overnight in Saranda.

• Have an early morning breakfast and check out from the hotel in Saranda.

• Arrive at Butrint, a UNESCO World Heritage Site founded by the Trojans during the first millennium BCE and continuously inhabited for centuries.

• Have lunch at a restaurant inside the walls of a medieval fortress on top of the hill overlooking the town of Saranda, with a breathtaking view.

• Drive to Gjirokastra and halt at the Blue Eye spring, formed by natural underground springs.

• Arrive at Gjirokastra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most beautiful historical towns in Albania, known as a "museum city".

• Visit the biggest fortress in Albania, built during the 4th century and home to the National Museum of Weapons.

• Check out the Ethnographic Museum, located in the house where the Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha was born.

• Explore the rest of the city at your leisure.

Overnight in Gjirokastra.

• After breakfast, depart for Berat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "City of Thousand Windows".

• Halt at Bylis, a very important archaeological centre in Albania and one of the ancient Illyrian cities inhabited by the tribe of the Bylliones.

• Arrive in Berat, check in at the hotel, and have lunch in a traditional local restaurant.

• Walk through the neighbourhood of Mangalem and visit the Ethnographic Museum.

• Continue to the Castle and the Onufri Museum. People still live within the walls of the Castle, just as their ancestors did. Onufri was a 16th-century Albanian master painter who painted many Orthodox churches in Albania and Greece.

• Explore the town at your leisure.

Overnight in Berat.

• Stroll along the streets of Berat after breakfast.

• Depart for Tirana.

• Halt for a wine tasting on the way to sample delicious Albanian wine and enjoy a tour of the winery.

• Arrive in Tirana, check in at the hotel, and visit the Statue of Skanderbeg in Skanderbeg Square, Et'hem Bey Mosque at the southeast corner of the square, the Clock Tower next to the mosque, and some of the government buildings at the south end of Skanderbeg Square.

Overnight in Tirana.

• Have breakfast, then depart for Kruja, the centre of the legendary Albanian resistance against the Turks led by the national hero Skanderbeg. Kruja is located on the cliffs of Mount Kruja, which offer superb views of the coast and the surrounding villages.

• Visit the Kruja Fortress, the Skanderbeg Museum, the Ethnographic Museum, and the famous old Bazaar street.

• Depart from Kruja and continue to Durres, one of the oldest and most important cities in Albania.

• Have lunch at a restaurant on the beach.

• Visit the Amphitheatre and the Archaeological Museum, located in the middle of the modern city.

• Head back to Tirana, where you will spend the rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight in Tirana.

• Explore Tirana at your leisure and depart for the airport.