Tirana can be visited in two days. The surrounding country requires much more time, and that is precisely what makes the Albanian capital so convenient as a base camp. In less than an hour’s drive, you go from a boulevard lined with colorful buildings to a dammed lake nestled in a valley, to an Ottoman fortress, or to an Adriatic beach. The only real prerequisite is a car, as public transportation poorly serves most of the sites listed below.
Before setting off, two logistical details. Paid parking in downtown Tirana is organized into three zones, charging 100, 40, and 20 leks per hour depending on proximity to the center, and payment is made by SMS to 50500 or via the municipal app Tirana Ime. Also, on the A1 highway heading north, the Thumanë-Kashar section has been tolled since January 2025, costing 250 leks for a car.
Twenty kilometers to the north, forty to fifty minutes by car, and a winding climb up to a balcony clinging to the mountainside. Kruja is the city of Gjergj Kastrioti, known as Skanderbeg, the national hero who stood up to the Ottomans in the 15th century from this citadel.
The castle enclosure and the old bazaar are freely accessible. The Skanderbeg Museum, housed in a modern building inside the walls, can be visited for about 500 leks, cash only, and its upper terrace offers the best view of the city. The bazaar, with its shops selling carpets, copperware, and more or less authentic antiques, can be explored in an hour. If you have time and sure footing, the winding road climbing above Kruja leads up to 1,100 meters to the Sari Salltik cave, a Bektashi pilgrimage site.
Mount Dajti: the balcony of the capital
Dajti overlooks Tirana to the east and can be reached in two ways. The Dajti Ekspres cable car departs from Porcelan, east of the city, and takes fifteen minutes to cover 4.7 kilometers. Expect to pay around 1,400 to 1,500 leks for a round trip, about fifteen euros, and note that the facility is closed on Tuesdays. Bring cash, as the ticket office does not always accept cards.
The other option is to drive up via the national park road, narrow and sometimes damaged, but passable with an ordinary vehicle. At the foot of the cable car’s lower station is Bunk’Art 1, the huge anti-nuclear bunker built for Enver Hoxha, converted into a museum spread over five underground levels. Admission is 900 leks and allow two hours.
The Bovilla lake and the Gamti viewpoint
This is the most spectacular excursion in the immediate surroundings, and the only one that poses a real vehicle problem. Bovilla lake, Tirana’s drinking water reservoir, is about 25 kilometers northeast, about an hour’s drive. Two-thirds of the journey is on decent asphalt, but the last stretch is on rough dirt, very steep and broken up.
An ordinary sedan can make it in dry weather, with caution. However, many rental contracts exclude unpaved roads, and any damage would not be covered: check your terms before committing. From the upper parking lot, the viewpoint called the “Bovilla balcony” is reached in thirty to forty-five minutes on foot, with a metal staircase fixed into the rock near the end. Swimming is prohibited in the lake.
The Pëllumbas cave and the Erzen canyon
Twenty-seven kilometers southeast of Tirana, forty-five minutes by car, then two kilometers of uphill trail from the village of Pëllumbas. The Shpella e Zezë, the “black cave,” opens at about 350 meters altitude and can be explored for a few hundred meters. It is not lit: a headlamp is essential, and bats are part of the scenery.
Below, the Erzen canyon cuts the rock over a hundred meters deep, with pools where people swim in summer. Plan for half a day and good shoes.
Berat is about two hours away via the A2, on good roads. It is the only destination on this list that deserves an overnight stay, but it is still doable in a day if you leave Tirana before eight o’clock.
The Ottoman town, listed by UNESCO, stacks its white houses with multiple windows on either side of the Osum. The citadel is not a ruin but a lived-in neighborhood, with its Byzantine churches and permanent residents. Entrance costs 300 leks at the ticket office, slightly less online. The Onufri Museum, set up in the Church of the Dormition, houses 16th-century icons that alone justify the detour. Park below and walk up: the cobbled streets of the citadel are difficult to drive and parking is very limited there.
Durrës is forty-five minutes away via the highway, on the best road in the country. The Roman amphitheater, built under Trajan and one of the largest in the Balkans, can be visited for about 300 leks. The city itself is concrete and noisy in summer, but it provides a good introduction to coastal Albania.
For something quieter, head north towards the Rodon Cape, one to one and a half hours from Tirana. There you will find the ruins of Skanderbeg’s castle facing the sea and the small Saint Anthony church. However, be careful: the condition of the last stretch of road varies according to sources and ongoing works, so check locally before venturing there with a city car.
An hour and a half to two hours north, Shkodra is the gateway to the Albanian Alps. Rozafa Castle overlooks the confluence of the Buna and Drin rivers, with its three successive courtyards and the remains of a 13th-century Venetian church turned mosque. Entrance costs around 400 leks, payable in leks and cash. Extend your visit to Shiroka, on the shore of Lake Shkodra, for lunch by the water.
Qafë Shtamë and the Shëngjergj Waterfall
Two options for a green day. The Qafë Shtamë National Park, above Kruja, is free and open all the time: pine forests, cold water springs, picnic areas, and trails of all lengths. The road is decent though not wide.
The Shëngjergj Waterfall, thirty-seven kilometers east via Farkë and Shkallë, requires an hour’s drive and twenty minutes’ walk from the restaurant of the same name. It falls about thirty meters and is at its fullest in spring, during the snowmelt.
Renting a car and driving
The major international brands are present at Tirana airport, but independent Albanian renters often offer rates half as much, with a low deposit and no credit card requirement. Comparing the car rental options in Albania before booking takes five minutes and significantly changes the budget: expect 7 to 12 euros per day for a small car off-season.
Regarding driving, speed limits are 40 km/h in towns, 80 on roads, and 110 on highways; the alcohol tolerance is effectively zero (0.01%) and checks are frequent. Fuel is expensive, around 205 leks per liter for unleaded. Finally, avoid driving at night outside cities: lighting is nonexistent, guardrails are missing, and unlit vehicles are not uncommon.
