Full-Day Tirana Communism Tour with BunkerArt 1 and Post-Bllok

The journey

Trip highlights

• 01 Explore BunkerArt 1, the anti-atomic bunker on the hills of Tirana
• 02 Visit BunkerArt 2 inside a former tunnel of Albania's Interior Ministry
• 03 Pass through Skanderbeg Square in the center of Tirana
• 04 See the Post-Bllok monument at the entrance to the former Bllok Zone

Join this full-day Communism Tour of Tirana and explore key sites that reveal Albania's communist past. Visit BunkerArt 1, the vast anti-atomic bunker set on a hill toward Dajti Mount, then continue through the center of Tirana via Skanderbeg Square to BunkerArt 2, a former tunnel of the Interior Ministry of Albania. The experience ends at the symbolic Post-Bllok monument, at the former entrance to the once-restricted Bllok Zone.

Visit BunkerArt 1, the vast anti-atomic bunker set on a hill toward Dajti Mount, then continue through the center of Tirana via Skanderbeg Square to BunkerArt 2, a former tunnel of the Interior Ministry of Albania.

From the itinerary

At a glance

What this trip includes

Duration 1 Day

Tour type Private

Activity level Moderate

Accommodation Not included

Transport Included

Wheelchair access No

Cities Tirana, Dajti National Park

Languages Albanian, English, Italian, Romanian

Day by day

The itinerary

1

Day 01

BunkerArt Sites and Post-Bllok in Tirana

• Our tour begins from your hotel and proceeds to our first destination, BunkerArt 1, situated on a hill in Tirana in the direction of Dajti Mount, using my private car.
• After visiting the anti-atomic bunker, we will head through the center of Tirana, passing by Skanderbeg Square to visit BunkerArt 2. Here, we will explore another communist site located within a former tunnel of the Interior Ministry of Albania.
• Our tour will conclude at the Post-Bllok monument, facing Rogner Hotel, which is the former entrance to the Bllok Zone, the area where Communist members of Albania resided and which was off-limits to the public during the Communist era.

This marks the end of our tour.

The route

Where you'll travel

The fine print

Trip details

What's Included

• Tour guide to all three sites
• Private car from Tirana to BunkerArt 1 and back to the center
• Tour assistance
• 0.5 L water

What's Not Included

• Tickets for BunkerArt 1 (300 lekë) and tickets for BunkerArt 2 (600 lekë)
• Meal

Know before you go

• In June 1978, the dictator Enver Hoxha opened to the public the anti-nuclear bunker built by the communist government. A 5-floor underground palace, with 106 rooms and an assembly hall, has now been turned into a historical and art center called BUNK'ART. The passageways, the areas provided for meetings of the General Staff of the Army in case of war, the rooms where it was thought the communist ex-dictator Enver Hoxha and former Prime Minister Mehmet Shehu would sleep in case of a nuclear attack, and the gigantic hall dedicated to meetings of the Political Bureau, which also contains a typical Albanian buffet, have been transformed into a video museum exhibition and art space. Starting from April 2016, BUNK'ART became a permanent and unique attraction site for tourists in the region, showing Albanian life during the 45 years of communism.
• Bunk'art 2 reconstructs the history of the Albanian Ministry of Internal Affairs from 1912 to 1991 and reveals the secrets of "Sigurimi," the political police that was the harsh persecution weapon used by the regime of Enver Hoxha. Bunk'art 2 is the first major video museum exhibition dedicated to the victims of communist terror.
• The Postbllok Memorial includes three pieces. One is a set of concrete girders taken from Spaç Prison, where Lubonja was imprisoned for a time. The girders are lined up in a row as they would have been in the prison halls.

Logistics

Meeting & route

Meeting point

Tirana, Albania

Tour start

Tirana, Albania

Tour ends at the same location as the start point.