Hello,
My friend and I will be in the Balkans for about 3 weeks in September 2008, and plan to spend about 5-6 days in Albania on our way from Montenegro to Greece.
Here is the current plan. For anyone who has travelled or lives in the area, please let me know if my travel assumptions are reasonable. Also, if we are spending too much/too little time in some place and missing other great places to visit, please let me know so we can adjust!
Day 1 -- Very early AM taxi from Ulcinj, Montenegro to the border with Albania. Walk across the border, and find a taxi to Shkroda that will bring us to the location in Shkroda to pick up a shared van to take us to Tirana. Furgon to Tirana and spend the afternoon/evening there.
Day 2 -- Furgon to Berati (3 hours?). Spend the day and night there.
Day 3 -- Furgon from Berati via Vlore to Dhermi. Spend the balance of the day exploring the beaches around Dhermi. How long is this trip likely to take? Will there be any time to explore Dhermi that afternoon?
Day 4 -- Furgon from Dhermi to Sarande. Doing this mainly for the scenery along the coastal road. If we get to Sarande in time, would like to take a trip to ruins at Butrint.
Day 5 -- Furgon from Sarande to Gjirokaster. Spend the day and night there.
Day 6 -- Leave Gjirokaster. Take a taxi to Greek border. From there, catch a bus through Ioannina to Kalambata to visit Meteora.
Please let me know if this sounds reasonable. Are we squeezing too much in? I know we are skipping Durres and Kruje-- but it is impossible to see it all!
Also, our original thought was to fly from Montenegro directly to Ohrid in Macedonia and spend a few days there before trying to jump over to Albania for a few days and then heading to Greece. The more research we%26#39;ve done, the more intrigued we are with Albania and have decided to skip Ohrid so we can spend more time in Albania. Does anyone think that is a mistake?
Thanks for your advice!
Craig
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Hello Craig,
I don%26#39;t think you are making a mistake (although Ohrid is very beautiful city) because Albania is an amzing country.
I would suggest you take a furgon from Ulcinj to Shkodra sine there are few during the day. From Berat to Dhermi should not be more than three hours. There is a new road buing built so hopefully by September next year good part will be finished if not all. You should have some time to see Dhermi and to lay down on a beautiful beach.
Depending on the time of the furgon you should have some time to visit Butrinti and I would strongly suggest you do so. From Dhermi to Saranda is three hours and it is very beautiful.
I am sure you will have a great time. If you need anything else please let me know.
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Thanks for the advice! Looks like we%26#39;re on the right track.
As we plan more, I%26#39;m sure we%26#39;ll have more questions. Hopefully it will be ok to contact you with any specifics!
Thanks
craig
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Hi Rozafa,
One question -- how easy is it to find furgons/buses from Berat (or Vlore) to Dhermi? Would we need to take a taxi?
The other concern is transportation from Dhermi to Sarande. I assume it is a very small town and am concerned it might be difficutl to find transportation.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Craig
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Taxis are quite cheap there as well Craig. Whenever l visit Albania l prefere them to furgons and busses since the taxi fares are very reasonable considering you coming from a western / first world country - this way you also dont have to waste much time waiting around for the furgon to get full in order to depart - a typical 60 km journey will not cost you more than 20 - 25 $
Rozafa is right when she suggests you ought to get a furgon or a taxi from Ulcin to Shkoder and not take your chances of looking for a taxi at the border. Avoid crossing that border at night, the road from Ulcin to Shkoder via Muriqan border crossing is in a very poor condition and goes through some pretty remote and isolated areas.
I am sure you will enjoy your time in albania given the renowned hospitabilty and the utmost respect they show ftowards the guests - people will go out of their way to help you if you are need of any assistance.
Good luck and enjoy your journey
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Hello craig201, I am a travel agent from Albania and we can arrange your trip perfect, if you have interese please replye us.
Best regards from Edmir.
Our web-site is www.edialtour.com
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Hi
I%26#39;m sure you%26#39;ll have a great time in Albania - I spent a few days there in the summer and loved it! I can%26#39;t comment on most of your trip as we didn%26#39;t go that far south....
I would say, though, don%26#39;t walk across the border as it%26#39;s not as you might imagine! You end up on the outskirts of Skodra and there%26#39;s not much option for getting a cab! We hired a driver to take us from Ulcinj to Skodra, I think it cost about 40 euros.
The Albanian people were so friendly it was lovely, even people that couldn%26#39;t speak any English were so incredibly helpful - it%26#39;s amazing what you can achieve with sign language!
Have a great time!
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Craig,
It all depends on what you want to see and what type of travel you prefer. Your planned itinerary looks a little ambitious to me. All of the places you mtnion are worth seeing, but are widely separated, by time, not distance. Catching the furgons is a great idea, but they don%26#39;t leave on a schedule. They leave when the are full of paying passengers. You could wait for 5 hours in Berat to find furgon with enough people to justify a trip to Vlore. The you wait in Vlore for a ride to Dhermi.
I%26#39;d suggest you decide what you want to see, place the towns in priority order, and hit as many as travel conditions allow. Time is much more flexible here.
If you have specific questions, drop me a line at sksintirana@hotmail.com
Steve
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Kruje is very interesting with museums, the market and a nice restaurant, go through the market, past the Skenderbej museum, up some steps and it%26#39;s the top one off to the right. I would think about reconsidering if you have a couple of hours to spare. You should be able to find a taxi to take you there from Tirana, wait for 2 hours or so and then bring you back. Make sure you agree on a price for the whole trip before you leave Tirana or your hotel might be able to arrange it for you
If you like lamb, make sure you order Paidhaqe (pronounced pie-thatch-uh), lamb ribs. This is delicious throughout Albania in my opinion.
Travelling by furgon is an experience, the roads in Albania are not that smooth so be prepared.
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