When people think of Albania, they generally don’t think of good things. I knew this coming into Albania but was looking forward to it anyway because it was my last country to visit in Continental Europe. I still have a few islands to go but the hard ones are done and what a way to finish.
We hired a driver to drive us through the mountainous terrain of Albania from the Montenegro border down to Sarande which is a beach resort of sorts near Corfu, Greece. I am not going to try to talk it up too much, it was what it was and I am glad we saw it and we also went to Butrint and saw some ancient Greek ruins but aside from that, the best part of what we saw in Albania was the pretty mountain scenery in our long drive through the entire country.
I think our driver summed it up well for us. Even Albanians don’t trust Albanians, which of course put us at ease along with his maniacal driving. Well anyway, we safely arrived in Corfu and it’s now time for me to head to the beach.
Albanians have been responsible for most of the crimes in Athens since we started letting them in after 1991, they are hard to like for us Greeks
“Even Albanians don’t trust Albanians”
That’s absolutely not true.
There are foreigners who travel through Albania on low budget and on mere moped bikes, and have a good time.
OH, I see. Comments are moderated but you have allowed a Greek to speak ill about Albania. So you’re biased about this. Sorry for losing my time here.
Settle down Andi, this article was written 5 years ago…I have no bias to Greeks or Albanians and yes comments are moderated for obvious reasons
… in that case it’s high time to delete the racist first comment here. The vast majority of the hundreds of thousands of Albanians working in menial jobs in Greece are honest and hard-working, and their arrival may have helped Greece stay out of financial trouble for a few years.
Pity you didn’t have time to get out of the car in Albania, it’s a fascinating place with welcoming locals.
I’ve just found your site and am enjoying reading through it, but am surprised and saddened you had a poor impression of Albania, I was there for a few days last August and loved it, some of the friendliest people I’ve ever met, very keen to show me round and teach me about the unique history of their country. A surprisingly good nightlife scene in Tirana too! The national museum in Tirana is very affecting and poignant regarding their time under Hoxha too. Maybe you could take some time to reevaluate the country after you’ve hit all your other targets 🙂
Dear Lee and Michael,
During the last 9 Years I was 3x times n Albania,nowhere the people where so kindly and helpfully like there.. 9 years ago the people in Germany told that I .’ m crazy and it is dangerous,, but not at all.Albania is now my faouritev. country in Europe. My (secret)) tip is the MKD – AL Ohrid lake. ,beautiful landscapes like in Switzerland and almost no ttourists.
Yours
Mario Beder, Wuppertal, Germany
This is a pretty poor depiction of the beauty of this lesser known country in Europe. You spent most of your time in a car, so of course you wouldn’t know that the locals are some of the friendliest, welcoming people in Europe. My wife and I spent a week in Albania this year during our trip around the Balkans, and we both agreed it was by far the friendliest place to visit as well as one of the most diverse (stunning mountain scenery as well as amazing beaches). It was also a lot cheaper than the other places that we visited, and the food was all organic!
By the way if you are truly not bias, you would moderate the comment regarding Albanians being “criminals” in Greece- what has that got to do with travel?
Anyway thank you to all our Albanian friends for making our stay the highlight of our trip! We hope to visit soon!
Dave & Margret Barnes