Private Tour with personal Driver & Guide 11 days tour

Details:

From north to south – through the land of the Skipetars

Itinerary

DAY 1: AIRPORT – THETH

At the airport of Tirana, you are already will be welcomed by your personal driver or tour guide. You will immediately drive north and arrive in Theth in the Albanian Alps in the late afternoon. You will get a first impression of the magnificent mountain world of Albania. The journey goes along the Shkodra Lake. You will spend the night in a simple family accommodation, where you will be welcomed with a delicious dinner.

DAY 2: THETHI

Today you will most likely be woken by the cock. After a hearty breakfast you prepare for a short hike. This will lead you past meadows and fields, cows and donkeys to the most beautiful places to admire in Theth. Along the way you will learn a lot of interesting facts about Lock-in towers, the Kanun or the sworn virgins. You will learn about the customs and traditions that have shaped the inhabitants of the cursed mountains for centuries and still work today.

DAY 3: THETH – SHKODRA – KRUJA

After breakfast we return to Shkodra. On the way there is the possibility to walk through chestnut woods. Arriving in Shkodra you can visit the Arubi Museum of Photography, a factory for Venetian carnival masks or the Rozafa Castle. We recommend you to have lunch at the slow food restaurant Mrizi i Zaneve on the way to Kruja. Once in Kruja, you have time to visit the bazaar, the castle and the ethnographic museum to visit.

DAY 4: KRUJA – TIRANA – LIN (LAKE OHRID)

Before you drive to Lin at Lake Ohrid in the afternoon, you will have time for a guided tour of Tirana and visit various museums. Especially recommended are the National Museum and BunkArt, an extraordinary documentation of the communist dictatorship and about the recent history of Albania, which is housed in a bunker. Next to BunkArt 1 you will take the cable car to the local mountain Tirana’s Dajti. From there you can enjoy a view over the whole of Tirana and in good weather as far as the sea at Durres.

DAY 5: LIN – OHRID – LIN

A trip around Lake Ohrid is on the agenda today. Lake Ohrid is, next to Lake Baikal, one of the oldest lakes in the world. For this reason, the lake was selected by UNESCO as a world natural heritage site. On the round trip around the lake you will visit the old town of Ohrid and the Naum Monastery. Here you will also find the outlet of the underground inflow from Lake Prespa, which supplies Lake Ohrid with fresh water. Back to Lin you will travel via Pogradec and along the western shore of the lake.

DAY 6: LIN – PERMET – GJIROKASTRA

You can interrupt the journey through the fascinating landscape of the Southern Albanian Alps in coordination with your tour guide. A stop in Benje is particularly recommended, where you should take a bath in warm spring water. Maybe you decide to have a picnic today and buy the necessary things together with your tour guide. The weekly market in Korca would be particularly suitable for this. The plateau around Korca is famous for its good agricultural soil and the vegetables and fruit grown there. You stay overnight in one of the beautiful old town houses of Gjirokastra.

DAY 7: GJIROKASTRA – BUTRINT – HIMARE

Today is entirely dedicated to the most culturally significant sites in Albania. In the morning you will visit Gjirokastra and in the afternoon you will visit the archaeological park Butrint, which bears witness to many thousands of years of settlement. In the early evening you will enjoy the drive along the Albanian Riviera to Himare, where you will stay for two nights.

8: HIMARE

This day can be arranged according to your own ideas. It is up to you whether you prefer to relax by the sea or make an excursion to Porto Palermo or the mountain village of Qeparo.

DAY 9: HIMARE – LLOGARA PASS – VLORE

The panoramic drive along the Ionian Sea takes you over the Llogara Pass (1,100 m above sea level), with a view of the opposite Corfu. Before you drive back down to Vlore to the sea, a short hike through the national park and a visit to the newly opened information center is recommended.

DAY 10: VLORE – APOLLONIA – DURRES

On the way to Durres you will visit the Apollonia Archaeological Park and visit Ardenica, one of the most beautiful Orthodox monasteries in Albania. In Durres you will finish the journey with dinner overlooking the sea.

DAY 11: DURRES – AIRPORT

We will accompany you to the airport and say goodbye with the wish that we may welcome you again soon.

An example – program can always be adapted

Included in the price are:

• English – speaking tour guide
• Round trip according to the program
• Overnight stays in middle class hotels, partly in historical ambience or in family pensions
• 6 dinners in family guesthouses or restaurants typical of the region
• Airport transfer

Not included in the price are:

• Flight
• 4 x dinner à la carte
• Lunch snacks
• Beverages
• Tips
• other personal expenses

Date

Freely selectable