Stories, history, and travel guides from one of Europe's most overlooked destinations
Deep dives into Albania's extraordinary history, culture, and places
Two cities, one country, and a story stretching back over two thousand years. Berat's tower of white Ottoman houses and Gjirokastër's fortress city of grey stone represent Albania's most dazzling contribution to world heritage — yet most travellers have never heard of either.
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Albania packs an extraordinary density of history into a country smaller than Maryland. From Illyrian ruins to Ottoman bazaars to Cold War bunkers, this two-week itinerary links Albania's greatest historic sites in a logical, scenic loop you can drive or bus.
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Buried inside a subtropical nature reserve on Albania's Riviera coast lies one of the ancient world's most complete cities — Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Venetian layers stacked on top of each other like sediment. Butrint is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that few outside the region know even exists.
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Albania is home to the global headquarters of the Bektashi Order, a Sufi Muslim sect whose shrines and lodges blend mysticism, poetry, and philosophy in a way that has no equivalent elsewhere in the Islamic world. Visiting a tekke in Albania is unlike any religious experience you have had before.
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Between 1967 and 1986, Albania's communist dictator Enver Hoxha ordered the construction of over 173,000 concrete bunkers across every inch of the country — one for every four citizens. The result is one of the strangest military legacies in European history, and they are everywhere you look.
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The SH8 road from Sarandë north through the Albanian Riviera to Gjirokastër is one of the most dramatic drives in the Balkans — sea cliffs, Butrint lagoon, Blue Eye spring, and a UNESCO stone city at the end. Here is how to do it in two days and make the most of every stop.
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