Tours

Tirana International Airport arrival – Durres  (35 KM)
Upon arrival at Tirana  international Airport, you will be met by our staff and transferred to your hotel in Durres. Overnight in Durres.
Please note!

• Hotel check-in time is around 14:00 -15:00
• Depend on your arrival time, the program will be adjusted accordingly. 

Durres – Elbasan  - Korce – Pogradec (240 KM)
After breakfast, guide will meet you in the hotel lobby. At 08:00 check out and depart to the Elbasan City, the third-largest city in Albania. Located in central Albania, this city is thought to date back to the 2nd century BC, when it was an ancient Illyrian settlement. In the 2nd century, Elbasan was known by the name of Skampius or Skampi. 
Around local time at  09:30 we will have a stop and visit the most interesting historical attractions of this city . We will learn more about the Castel, Clock tower and King Mosque.  Our stop will take approximately an hour.
Afterward we drive to Korca City.  
We will do on opur way  a couple of stops to see Ohrid lake  and Lin peninsula, the prehistoric village dates back over 8500 years. 
Optional: Lunch in Lin Village
After an hour and twenty  minutes  we will be in Korca City.  The city's markets, monuments, and mosques and churches (dating back to early Byzantine and Ottoman times) highlight the significance of this important Balkan crossroads city.

During the city walk through Korca you will enjoy and see  a traditional market rooted in Ottoman heritage, visit the first Albanian School, now the National Museum of Education, visit one of the oldest mosques in the Balkans: Iliaz Bey Mirahori mosque, etc. 
Next stop is  the Birra Korca Factory, which became an important trading and handicraft center in the 18th century due to the development of trade with neighboring regions.
Optional:  Dinner at Birra Korca factory. 

Transfer and overnight  in Pogradec. 

Pogradec – Ohrid - Pogradec (110 KM)
Breakfast at the hotel.  repare to enjoy the full day by exploring ciy of Ohrid, a city in North Macedonia (approx. 55 km ~ an hour driving) Arrive at borders, process your visa clearance (if any) or customs, after clearance procced with guide awaiting you.
The highlight of the Ohrid tour include Ohrid Castle, Church of St. Sophia, St. Jovan Kaneo,  Old Bazaar, Antique Theatre,  Ohrid Fortifications.
 At 10:00 we will start a boat trip from Ohrid Port. It takes 1h and 30m for one way till St. Naum. You will see  Samuel’s Fortress, a panoramic view of the fisherman village Trpejca, fisherman sattelment, bay of bones. Visit at monastery of St Naum. The monastery was established in the Bulgarian Empire in 905 by St Naum of Ohrid himself. 

Free time for lunch. 

Overnight in Pogradec. 

Pogradec – Berat – Gjirokaster – Sarande ( 385 KM)
After breakfast, check out and  we start at 08:00 our excursion to Berat “City of 1000 windows” designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008. After a 3 hour journey, we'll arrive at our destination. Discover one of the most beautiful ancient cities in central Albani. The first stop of  the tour will be Berat Castle, located at the top of a hill. The medieval Castle of Berat houses old churches, museums and iconography by the greatest Albanian artists as well as old bazaars. 
Planned visit: 
Onufri Iconographic Museum

Then we'll visit another one of Berat's jewels, the famous Onufri Museum, located inside the Cathedral of the Assumption of Saint Mary. The church, which dates from the 18th century, houses numerous works by the painter Onufri. Afterwards, we'll continue discovering other holy buildings such as the Lead Mosque, the King's Mosque and the Bachelors' Mosque.
Free time for lunch. 
After visiting Berati, we drive for 2h and  30m to reach our next stop, the town of Gjirokastra,listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005, as one of the few surviving examples of commercial cities in the Balkan’s Ottoman style. We also will have the opportunity to visit the city's fortress. The Castle of Gjirokastra, associated with the city of Gjirokastra, is mentioned for the first time as a city and a castle in 1336. 
Duration around 2 hours. 

Transfer to Saranda.  
 Overnight in Saranda. 

Sarande – Butrint National Park– Blue Eye – Sarande  (50 KM)
After breakfast departure  to the archaeological site of Butrint, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1992, is an ancient open-air city that bears witness to centuries of human occupation, as the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Venetians and Ottomans successively occupied the site.
Planned visit: 
•   Butrint Archaeologic Park 

Leave Butrinti and drive to BLUE EYE water spring. Duration of transfer  is an hour. 
Blue Eye, a magical place, this source of groundwater is surrounded by woods and enjoys its name of blue color, like the colored part of the eye. This is one of the most beautiful natural curiosities of Albania. We need to walk for 30 min (each way ) to reach the water spring. 

Free time for lunch.

Overnight in Sarande. 

Sarande – Porto Palermo – Llogara Pass – Vlore - Durres (255 KM)
Breakfast in hotel. 
Start tour at 08:00  to Porto Palermo. Drive for 1hr and 15min to a scenic road. The mountains meet the sea, the landscapes are splendid. The olive trees and the blue-turquoise color of the Ionnian sea will accompany us along the way through small and typical villages of the south.
Porto Palermo Castle  is a castle near Himarë in southern Albania. It is situated in the bay of Porto Palermo, a few kilometers south of Himarë along the Albanian Riviera.
 Optional: Taste of homemade filo pastry with cheese. 
Afterwards, leave Palermo Castel and continue to travel. Within 1 hour we will be at Llogara National Park. Llogara Pass is a scenic drive that crosses over the mountains at an elevation of 3,369 feet (1,027 m).  
Albanian Riviera is considered one of the most beautiful ones in Albania, with typical Mediterranean landscapes.
Coffee break. 
 
 Afterwards,  take a stop to Vlore, considered the pearl of Albanian tourism.
 Vlora is a coastal city, known for one of the most important ports in the country. It is also a place of great significance for the Albanian nation, as it was in Vlora that the independence of the country was proclaimed on 28 November 1912 .
Free time for lunch. 

On the way to reach Durres City. Arrival late in the  evening and  you will be free at your own exploration. 
Overnight in  Durres. 

Durres – Tirana – Durres  (75 KM)
Breakfast at the hotel. 
Start the tour at 08:00. About an hour  drive to reach the capital of Albania, Tirana. 
Visit will consist at  the key spots such as Sheshi Skënderbej (Skanderg Square) where you will be able to see the Mosque of Et’hem Bey (built between 1798 and 1812) and the 35m high Kulla e Sahatit (Clock Tower), built in 1822 with a San Marco style cupola. Next, you can visit the famous Tirana Mosaic as thought to have been part of a Roman villa of the third century, Ura e Tabakëve (a bridge constructed in the beginning of the 19th century, 
 Castle of Toptani family in Tirana, the new bazaar. 
Planned visit: 
•   National Historical Museum 

Free time for lunch. 

After approximately 55 minutes' drive, we'll reach our destination and begin our guided tour of Durres. The ancient city of Durrës is at once a relaxed beach town and a historical center, home to the largest amphitheater in the Balkan Peninsula.
After exploring the remains of the Roman amphitheater, we will proceed along the Byzantine walls from the 4th and 5th century. We'll get to admire the Venetian Tower of 15th Century. 

Overnight in Durres. 

Durres – Transfer to Tirana International  Airport  (35 KM)
After breakfast, free at leisure until transfer to the airport for a departure flight.  
End of service. 
Please note!
-   Hotel check-out time is around 12:00.