Upon arrival your tour escort and driver will await you at the airport Tirana. Check in at your 4★ hotel in Albanias capital. Remainder of the day at leisure, dinner at the hotel.

After breakfast you meet a local guide for a 3 hour city tour. Tirana is a mix of new and old. Whilst in Albania you’ll have the opportunity to sample the delicious cuisine, which is a real mix of Turkish, Greek and Italian influences, like Byrek - a spinach and feta stuffed filo pie, and in the more rural mountainous areas barbequed lamb and ‚earthy’ vegetables such as griddled aubergines and mushrooms are particularly popular. Afternoon free to discover the colourful city at your own pace. Dinner and overnight.

This morning you drive to Pogradec at the shores of famous lake Ohrid with clear water and mountain views. After crossing the North Macedonian border you will visit St. Naum monastery, a refuge of tranquility at the very southwestern corner of the North Macedonian Republic. The monastic complex and church of St. Naum were built originally at the turn of the 10th century by the monk that beared the same name; North Macedonians believe you can still hear the saint’s heartbeat by pressing an ear to his stone coffin inside the church. Continuation to Ohrid, a picturesque village in the north of the lake. Dinner and overnight. Optional: Boat ride at Ohrid lake

Morning drive to Berat “The City of a Thousand Windows” which is one of the oldest continuously inhabited regions in the world. Geographically beautiful, Berat was built around a precipitous river gorge, leading up to pine forests. Its UNESCO-listed historic centre reveals cobbled streets, ancient churches and mosques, a fascinating ethnographic museum and very pretty white, Ottoman buildings tumbling down steep slopes. In the afternoon you continue to Vlore, located at the so called Albanian Riviera. Vlore is a Greek city founded in the 6th century BCE. The Albanian Declaration of Independence was proclaimed here in 1912. Dinner and overnight.

Wow – you should look forward to the ride you can expect today. You take the coastal road from Vlore to Butrint which provides stunning views. This afternoon you visit UNESCO listed Butrint, which  is one of the great archaeological sites in the Balkans. With a long and colourful history dating back to the early Neolithic age, Butrint has been occupied and fought over until the Ottoman period when it lay abandoned. More recently, excavations have taken place and all periods of Butrint’s history have been revealed including its Roman theatre, Roman house and thermal baths as well as a fine baptistery with fabulous mosaic floors. The setting is idyllic with the ruins nestling in the bend of the Vivari River. After spending time exploring this fascinating site, you continue to the shores of the Mediterranean and Saranda for the night.

Saranda is the unofficial capital of the Albanian Riviera, and come the summer months it seems like half Tirana relocates here to enjoy the busy beach and busier nightlife along its crowd-filled seaside promenade. What was once a sleepy fishing village is now a thriving city, and while Saranda has lost much of its charm in the past two decades, it has retained much of its charisma.

After breakfast at the hotel in Sarande you approach Gijrokastra Gjirokastra where we take a walking tour through the cobbled streets of its UNESCO listed historic centre and visit Gjirokastra Castle. The castle sits at a height of 336 metres and is one of the most magnificent structures in the city with views over the hilly countryside, river valley and city. There have been extensive renovations to the building since it was constructed in the 12th century and it now possesses five towers, a church, a cistern, and houses the Weapons Museum. The museum exhibits captured artillery and memorabilia of the Communist resistance against German occupation. Continuation to Vlore where you stay for the overnight.

Morning ride to Apollonia. Founded in 585 BC and dedicated to the god Apollo, the city achieved fame and wealth before being incorporated into the Roman Empire to become Caesar’s stronghold during the civil war with Pompey. The most impressive feature of the site is the bouleuterion, a facade with six Corinthian columns, which are thought to date back to the 2nd century. Continuation
to Tirana where you stay for the night.

Transfer to the airport Tirana according to your schedule.