The Perfect Albania Road Trip Itinerary: 10 Days From Tirana to the Riviera

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Somewhere on the switchbacks above the Llogara Pass, with the Ionian Sea opening up below us in about six shades of blue, Todd pulled into a gravel turnout and said, “Okay, this is the best drive we have ever done.” We have driven a lot of coastlines, and he was not wrong.

Albania is built for a road trip. The highlights are spread out, public transport is a patchwork of minibuses with no real timetable, and some of the best stops (hilltop castles, tiny beach coves, roadside grill joints) only make sense when you have your own wheels. This is the ten day loop we would hand to a friend, with the drive times, the overnight stops and the honest notes about Albanian roads that nobody tells you until you are already on them.

Albania Road Trip at a Glance

Here is the shape of the route. It is a loop that starts and ends in Tirana, so you avoid one way rental fees, and it hits the country’s two UNESCO towns, the southern Riviera and the best mountain pass in the Balkans.

• Days 1 to 2: Tirana, with a half day in Kruja
• Day 3: Tirana to Berat (about 2 hours)
• Day 4: Berat
• Day 5: Berat to Gjirokaster (about 3 hours)
• Day 6: Gjirokaster, then the Blue Eye and on to Ksamil (about 1.5 hours)
• Days 7 to 8: Ksamil, Saranda and Butrint
• Day 9: The Riviera drive to Himara or Dhermi (about 2 hours with stops)
• Day 10: Llogara Pass and back to Tirana (about 4 hours)

Total driving is roughly 900 kilometers. That sounds modest, and it is, but Albanian averages run slower than the map suggests. Plan on 50 to 60 kilometers per hour on most routes and you will rarely be late for dinner.

Before You Go: Renting a Car in Albania

Where to pick up

Tirana International Airport has the widest selection and the most competitive rates. Local agencies are often cheaper than the big international brands and, in our experience, perfectly reliable. Read recent reviews, photograph every panel of the car at pickup, and confirm the fuel policy in writing.

What it costs

In shoulder season, a small manual car runs roughly $25 to $45 per day with basic insurance. Automatics cost more and sell out in summer, so book early if you need one. We broke down every line of the budget in how much a trip to Albania costs.

Insurance and borders

Take the full coverage option. Albanian roads are improving fast, but potholes, loose gravel and livestock are part of the package. If there is any chance you will pop into Montenegro, Greece or North Macedonia, ask the agency for a cross border “green card” when you book. Most will add it for a fee, and you cannot get it at the border.

Driving culture

Honest version: Albanian drivers are assertive. Overtaking on blind curves is common, roundabouts are loosely interpreted, and you will share the road with a donkey cart at some point. Drive defensively, keep your headlights on, and do not try to match the locals’ pace. Police checkpoints are frequent and routine. Slow down, have your license and rental papers handy, and you will usually be waved through with a smile.

An International Driving Permit is technically recommended alongside a US license. It costs about $20 from AAA and is cheap insurance against a long conversation at a checkpoint.

Days 1 and 2: Tirana and Kruja

Start in the capital. Tirana surprised us more than anywhere else in the country: painted apartment blocks, a leafy café culture, and a history that is still visible in Cold War bunkers turned museums.

Spend the first day on foot. Walk Skanderbeg Square, duck into the Et’hem Bey Mosque, tour Bunk’Art 2 right off the square, and end with drinks in the Blloku neighborhood, which was once off limits to everyone but the communist elite and is now wall to wall bars. Our full Tirana travel guide covers where to eat and stay.

On day two, pick up the car and drive 45 minutes north to Kruja, the hilltop fortress town of the national hero Skanderbeg. The castle museum is worth an hour, and the old bazaar below it is the best place in Albania to buy handmade rugs, copper and felt. Come back to Tirana for the night, or push on toward Berat in the afternoon if you want an extra day on the coast later.

Where to stay in Tirana: Anything within walking distance of Skanderbeg Square or Blloku. Parking is the headache here, so look for a hotel with a garage or a guarded lot.

Days 3 and 4: Berat, the City of a Thousand Windows

The drive south to Berat is about two hours on good highway, then a slower final stretch through olive groves. Arrive by mid afternoon so you can watch the light hit the Ottoman houses stacked up the hillside in the Mangalem quarter.

Berat is one of our favorite small towns anywhere in Europe. Give it a full day:

• Berat Castle. The citadel on the hill is still lived in. Wander the lanes, find the Onufri Museum inside a Byzantine church, and stay for sunset.
• Gorica bridge and quarter. Cross the river for the classic photo of Mangalem’s windows.
• Wineries. The hills around Berat produce some of Albania’s best wine. Several family estates offer tastings for a few euros.

Park outside the old quarters. The lanes in Mangalem and the castle are steep, narrow cobblestone, and you do not want to reverse a rental car down them. For more detail, see our guide to Berat and Gjirokaster.

Days 5 and 6: Gjirokaster and the Blue Eye

The road from Berat to Gjirokaster takes about three hours through the Vjosa valley. The Vjosa is one of the last wild rivers in Europe and was declared a national park in 2023, and the scenery along it makes a strong case for pulling over every twenty minutes.

Gjirokaster is Berat’s grayer, moodier sibling: a town of slate roofed stone tower houses climbing toward an enormous castle. Tour the castle (bring a flashlight for the tunnels), visit the Skenduli House for a look at how wealthy Ottoman families lived, and have dinner in the old bazaar. Try qifqi, fried rice balls with herbs that you will struggle to find anywhere else.

On the morning of day six, drive south to the Blue Eye (Syri i Kaltër), a spring where water surges up from a depth divers have never fully mapped. The color really is that blue. Go early; by late morning in summer the boardwalk is shoulder to shoulder. From there, it is under an hour to the coast.

Days 7 and 8: Ksamil, Saranda and Butrint

Base yourself in Ksamil for the beaches or Saranda for more restaurants and nightlife. We preferred Ksamil in shoulder season and would pick Saranda in August, when Ksamil’s tiny beaches are packed chair to chair.

Plan your two days around:

• Butrint National Park. A UNESCO site layered with Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Venetian ruins, set in a lagoon forest. Go at opening time and budget three hours.
• Ksamil Islands. Rent a kayak or take a water taxi out to the little islands just offshore.
• Lekuresi Castle. Drive up above Saranda at sunset for the view across to Corfu.

Everything you need to know about the beaches, including which ones are free, is in our Albanian Riviera guide. If you are combining this with Greece, the ferry from Saranda to Corfu takes about 30 minutes on the fast boat.

Day 9: The Riviera Drive

This is the day you will talk about for years. The coastal road north from Saranda (the SH8) winds past olive terraces, stone villages and beaches that look like they belong on a Greek postcard.

Stop at Porto Palermo to see Ali Pasha’s small triangular fortress on its own peninsula, and at Borsh, one of the longest beaches in the country. Spend the night in Himara or Dhermi. Himara has a relaxed old village on the hill and good family tavernas; Dhermi has the prettier beach and a more polished feel. Gjipe beach, a hike down from the road through a canyon, is worth the effort if you have the legs for it.

Day 10: Llogara Pass and Back to Tirana

Leave Dhermi and climb the switchbacks to the Llogara Pass at a little over 1,000 meters. Pull over at the top for one last look at the Riviera, then stop at one of the roadside restaurants in the pine forest for grilled lamb and fresh yogurt.

From there, it is downhill to Vlora and about three hours on highway back to Tirana and the airport. If your flight is early the next morning, stay near the airport rather than in the center.

How to Adjust This Itinerary

If you have 7 days

Drop Kruja, give Berat one night instead of two, and skip either Himara or Saranda. You will cover the highlights but feel the pace.

If you have 14 days

Add the north. Drive from Tirana to Shkoder, then take the Komani ferry and hike across to Theth, which is one of the great mountain experiences in Europe. You can also add a night in Permet in the Vjosa valley, famous for thermal springs and homemade raki. Our Theth and Valbona guide covers exactly how to route it.

If you are combining countries

Albania pairs naturally with its neighbors. Many travelers drive in from Montenegro via the Shkoder border crossing; our Montenegro road trip itinerary links up neatly with this one. Just remember the green card for the rental.

Practical Tips for Driving Albania

• Fuel: Stations are plentiful on main routes, but fill up before mountain stretches. Most accept cards; small village stations may not.
• Cash: Carry lek for parking, tolls and small restaurants. ATMs are everywhere in towns, sparse in the countryside.
• Tolls: There is one notable toll on the Milot to Morina highway toward Kosovo. Most of this loop is toll free.
• Navigation: Google Maps works well. Download offline maps for the mountains and the Riviera, where signal drops out.
• Parking: In towns, look for guarded lots. They cost a dollar or two and save you the hassle.
• Night driving: Avoid it where you can. Unlit roads, pedestrians and animals make it genuinely risky.
• Safety: Albania is a safe country for travelers, and road safety is the main thing to take seriously. We go deeper in is Albania safe.

Best Time for an Albania Road Trip

May, June, September and early October are the sweet spots. The sea is warm enough to swim by June and stays warm into October, the roads are quiet, and hotel rates are half what they are in August. July and August bring heat, crowds and inflated prices on the Riviera. Our full breakdown is in the best time to visit Albania.

Where to Book

For lodging along the route, Booking.com has the best selection of family guesthouses in Berat and Gjirokaster and apartments on the Riviera, many of them with free parking listed as a filter. Search Albania stays on Booking.com.

For guided add ons (a Butrint archaeology tour, a boat trip along the Riviera, or a Berat wine tasting), we use Viator. Browse Albania tours and day trips on Viator.

Final Thoughts

Albania rewards the travelers who take the wheel. The country’s best moments happen in between the headline stops: a grilled fish lunch in a village you cannot pronounce, a shepherd waving you around his flock, a coastal viewpoint with nobody else at it. Drive slowly, eat everywhere, and leave room in the schedule for the places you did not plan.

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Still planning? Start with how to plan a trip to Albania, then dig into Tirana, Berat and Gjirokaster and the Albanian Riviera.