Albania trip no.3 - the North (Aug 2022): Saranda - Tirana - Shkoder - Lake Komani

It was with much excitement that we returned to Albania after Covid. Having already done two fabulous trips around the south, it was logical to venture up north.

Once again we flew to Corfu and took the 9am ferry to Saranda. However, while waiting in the port, the sight of a boat with Durres painted on the side, reminded me that in the summer season there is an alternative ferry which would have saved us the long bus journey to Tirana. A useful source of information was the Saranda Expats facebook page, for example, I learnt there that Credins Bank doesn't charge commission for withdrawals.

Saranda "bus station" (walk along the prom to the end of the sand and turn left up Venjil Pandi street) is marked on the map in Bradts Albania guidebook. However, it is in actual fact a bus stop where you will encounter a couple of minibuses whose destinations can be hard to identify. Fortunately, the girl serving in the adjacement cafe speaks English and can help put you in the right direction. We were told to get on the bus to Fiere at 12pm. It turns out you pay at the end of the journey. When we arrived at Fiere, the Tirana bus was waiting, our driver informed that bus that we were going to Tirana and we boarded. We paid 1200lek each when. Irritatingly, the main road that enters Tirana centre, which is always rammed, was totally jammed due to an accident, so the bus driver told everyone to get off the bus. We then had to walk along the dual carriageway in 37 degrees heat (thank god we were carrying only small rucksacks) until we could flag down a taxi to take us to our hotel. I will add that both the North and South bus stations are quite far out of the centre.

A private taxi service to Tirana is advertised on the Saranda Expats FB. On Sundays he often advertises the ride for 25€ but on weekdays, with a full car of 4 passengers, it is 45€ per person. He will advertise to get the full quota of passengers. People looking for lifts and car shares, accommodation, advice etc. also post on the FB page. The bus takes 5 hours and the car takes around 3.5 hours, both via the road to Gjirokastra rather than the scenic coastal route. The bus makes a 5 minute stop to get water and snacks from roadside stalls. The bus journey was bearable, largely due to meeting a lad from Tirana called Eddie, who spoke excellent English having lived in USA and UK and chatted with us the whole journey, giving us useful info, which is one of the plus points of travelling by public transport in a foreign country. You meet a lot of Abanians who have lived in the UK, and all are keen to chat.

Once again, we chose to stay in Hotel Orchidea, 60€ a night for a comfortable double room if you book direct (or 68€ on booking.com), buffet breakfast included, friendly English-speaking staff, delicious homemade pizzas, and a great swimming pool.

We had already visited the main museums in 2018. This time we saw the beautiful old mosque of Et'hem Bey, just off Skanderbeg Square, which was closed for renovation on our previous trip. Tourists are welcome but you must take off your shoes and women should cover their head and shoulders with a scarf. (I always carry a thin pashmina which can be used to shade from the sun, lie on at the beach, wrap you up in a cool wind, protect your modesty if you need to get changed in a public place, carry things in, and cover you head in a religious building).

We lunched in the Kalaja Tirana (castle) which has been made into a type of food court, full of trendy tapas restaurants and wine bars. It is more expensive than typical Albanian restaurants but a welcome change from Greek salad and pasta.

That evening we took the cable car up to Djati mountain. The number 11 bus to Porcelani leaves from the main road near the clock tower, just along from the mosque. It takes about 25 minutes and gives you an insight into what the rest of Tirana is like as it winds its way through the neigbourhoods. Ask for "teleferiku" which means cable car. The bus should have a map of the route inside so you will know where to get off. A ticketman will come round collecting the fare of 40 lek. You alight at a junction, turn right and walk up a steep hill, right at the top next to a restaurant and you will see the cable car station in the distance. Although the timetable says it finishes at 10pm, in fact the last car leaves from both ends at 19.30. Tickets were 1200lek return. At the top is an odd collection of tourist attractions: a futuristic hotel which resembles a Darlek, a snack bar, a horse riding field, a shooting range, mini-golf, and a kids park. The views from the cable car and from the top are really the main attraction. Then of course many visitors go hiking in the the mountain. Not us as we arrived at 6.45pm. We took some photos, had a beer then went back down.

Instead of getting immediately back on the bus we decided to have a look for a restaurant in the area. We ended up in Ristorant Fresku, a huge and extremely popular place with a large outdoor eating area, varied menu, friendly staff and very reasonable prices. Having been fed and watered, we got on the bus back to the centre, only to be stopped after a few kms and ordered off; the bus then disappeared up an alley for ten minutes with two passengers still on it. The police arrived. I have no idea what was going on, neither did anyone else, but eventually the bus appeared again and we continued our journey.

Day 3 : Petrela

We were lucky to be given the use of a car, thereby avoiding the extortionate car hire prices. If you want to hire a car, my advice would be to do it with a local company when you get to Tirana. I was quoted online around 900€ for 10 days by several companies, but I spoke to a group who paid 55€ per day with a local company, and there are lots of companies. In Saranda, car hire options are limited.

So we made the 45 minute drive south, via the chaotic dual carriageway to the village of Petrela. The castle is famous for the wonderful views. In fact little remains of the castle; the tower is a restaurant which is a marvellous spot for lunch. There is nothing to do in the village other than the steep walk up to the castle.

Day 4: Kruja (pron. krooya)- Lezhe and Shengjin

Kruja is 38kms north of Tirana. We set off at 11.30am. It took us 1.5 hours to drive across Tirana, then another hour to reach Kruja. This is pretty much par for the course wherever you drive in Albania. The antiquated road systems cause immense traffic jams at every junction. There are few roundabouts (no-one obeys the rules of roundabouts anyway!) no flyovers or tunnels, and the roads switch from single to dual carriageway every couple of miles. Accidents are extremely common. Also be aware of the speed limits which change from 70 to 30 every few kms also and I'm told the police are using radar now to catch speeeders.

Kruja is a sizeable town, but the old quarter consists of only the ruins of the castle and a street of tacky souvenir shops which was once the old bazaar. The castle museum and teqe are closed for restoration after they were damaged by the recent earthquake. The Skanderberg museum consists mainly of documents written in Albanian, was boring and cost 700lek. I can't say I would recommend suffering the traffic jams in order to get to Kruja.

It is 63kms to Lezhe, but with the ever-present traffic jams, the drive took another 1.5 hours. But this time it was worth the hassle. Lezhe has a great castle, albeit mostly in ruins. Entrance costs 300lek.

What Lezhe doesn't have is many eating options. And this is true in many towns. There are lots of bars but few restaurants. We ended up making do with a microwaved pizza slice and a croissant in a snack bar on the main road.

Feeling hot and weary, although we had intended to go to Shkodra, we decided to head for the beach resort of Shengjin 6kms away. Oh dear! I know some people like crowded, noisy resorts, but it is just not my cup of tea. We hated it. The town consists of dozens of huge hotels, bars fast food restaurants and deafening discos, a long strip of dirty beach covered with sunbeds, and very shallow, murky sea. We stayed one night in Hotel Comfort, which is hidden in a back alley perpendicular to the strip, and we would not have found without phoning them for help.

Day 5 Shengjin to Shkoder

More traffic jams. I hadn't expected Shkroder to be so big and busy. What's more, it is not on the banks of the lake either. The old quarter consists of two streets of Venetian style buildings, most of which are restaurants frequented by obviously wealthy tourists. Convoys of luxury cars cruise around the centre, or at least try to. We stayed in Hotel Floga, a 15 minute walk from the centre, in a very working class neighbourhood.

It took us an hour and a half to drive 2.5kms to Rozafa Castle, but the steep uphill climb in the heat would not have been easy if we had walked. The castle site is extensive, the views are wonderful, and the restaurant is cheap and very good. We were there for at least 2 hours, including a quick lunch. Rozafa Castle

After Rozafa, we drove along to Shiroke on the banks of Lake Shkodra. It is a scenic drive and on a weekday was quiet. Shiroke is not much more than a few restaurants along the edge of the lake, but the views are gorgeous. Unfortunately, there is not what you would call a beach. We went to what is the nearest thing to a beach, but is in fact a section of white rocks about half a kilometre past the village. (Another tip: I always take my rockhopper shoes to Albania because the beaches tend to be pebbles.) The water was incredibly warm, although not particularly clear.

Despite the fact that the people were friendly, I can't say I was taken by the vibe of Shkoder. I didn't like seeing young, barefoot gypsy children begging from the luxury cars, there are dogs everywhere, the old quarter is very noisy at night, and really there isn't much to see.

Day 6: the drive to Lake Komani

Knowing it would be arduous, we set off on the 25km journey to Lake Komani. It is a beautiful drive but took 3 hours. The last 10kms is not tarmacked. Our little Peugeot managed admirably though. We stayed at Hotel Firenze, set in the valley, with its own vineyard, with basic double rooms for 35€ and great buffet breakfast for 2€ per person. Swimming in the lake was a welcome respite here, although the lake is freeeeeezing. The location is really stunning and I will surely return. I will add that Lake Komani is actually behind an enormous dam. The powerstation, visible from the hotel, is beneath it and not at all attractive, as you can imagine.

Having booked the ferry tickets online (14€ return to Fierze), we asked the hotelier, Amazona, for advice on how to get to the ferry station, which is 2.5kms up the hill, as after so much driving, we had decided not to take the car on the ferry. She told us we could flag down the minibus as it passed around 08.20. Day 7: Lake Komani ferry

The ferry is timetabled to leave at 9.00. After an early breakfast, we walked up to the road to catch the Berisha minibus. Three came but were all full and did not stop. It was now 8.35am and we were in a panic. We decided to go back for our car. However, the gods were with us, as one of the staff from the hotel was coming out in his car. I asked if he could take is to the ferry station and he did, much to our relief.

You will see many cars, coaches and mini buses winding their way up the hill to the dam. At the top, there is a carpark for around 40 cars, and a chaos of traffic and people jostling to get through the road tunnel which leads to the ferry station. Although it is not allowed, many cars have no option but to park on the roadside and even in the tunnel. It was not 8.55, convinced we were late, we weaved hurriedly through the vehicles, while noticing many others sauntering along as if they had all the time in the world. On the other side of the tunnel was more chaos. As well as 2 or 3 ferry boats, there are a dozen small boats which are for the organised day tours. The ticket office building is on the right and there is a snack bar.

We took the Berisha ferry, along with dozens of other travellers, so many that a second boat was attached by ropes to the main boat to take the overspill. They separate once it is time to go.

The trip through the gorge is beautiful, which constantly changing landscapes.

The ferry docked in Fierze at 12.15, not long before our return leg which was scheduled for 13.00. There is a bar, which was immediately crammed with passengers grabbing a quick snack to go. We had time for a beer and a bag of crisps. We also had a sandwich in our bag. Right on time, the ferry departed for Koman at 13.00 and we arrived back at 15.15. It was marvellous, but in hindsight, I would have taken my car and continued up the valley. The majority of travellers are getting the waiting minibus up to Theth. I regret not doing that. (I will next time!)

Fierze ferry station

Day 7 > Patok Lagoon

We hit the road for Tirana, and knowing it was probably going to be a tiring drive, we planned to stop for lunch in Patok Lagoon. Google reviews are mixed, so we weren't expecting much. We were pleasantly surprised. Being a weekday, it was empty. I'm sure it is a different story at weekends. Basically, there is a spit that stretches out into the vast lagoon, along which are a series of restaurants. The day was windy and the water choppy, which I guess must be common, as all of the restaurants have huts, some built on sticks over the sea, where you can eat suitable protected from the wind. We stopped at the first place, Palma, and had a lovely lunch in their garden. I would like to return in the evening to witness the sunset which it is famed for.

We arrived back in Tirana a couple of hours later and enjoyed a relaxing dip in the hotel pool.

And so our third adventure in Albania came to an end. On one hand it was good to be back; many aspects were familiar and we slipped into the swing of it quickly. On the other hand, of the three trips we have done, it was the least exciting, and I felt like I had spent a disproportionate amount of time in the car. I really missed cultural options, which were limited to the ruined castles. I am convinced there are more medieval churches to be found though. I also noticed a significant rise in prices, and a lot of construction going on, especially in Tirana, and a lot of litter. Don't let that put you off. Albanians are extraordinarily friendly and cheerful. The food is simple and delicous. The landscapes are fascinating. It won't be like this much longer.

The north east awaits me.