If you were following the news in the 90s, a. you’re old (apparently so am I) and b. you probably remember Albania as a war-torn and closed off country, once under the tight control of a brutal dictatorship.
Luckily, the Albania we experienced in 2014 couldn’t have been further from that: beautiful white-sand beaches, clear turquoise water, cheap food and wine, and some of the absolute nicest people!
And by nicest we mean that the owner of the first hostel we stayed at didn’t bat an eyelash when we showed up sans passports.
Wait what’s that? Yeah, somehow we managed to lose our passports at the border.
The story goes that we were on one bus coming from Athens going to a city two hours away from our destination. When we told other passengers where we were going they immediately spoke to another bus driver at the border who would take us to exactly where we needed to go, for free. Perfect, right?
Well no, actually.
As we were sitting on the new luxury bus (exhausted mind you, it was 4 am at this point and we weren’t thinking so clearly) we looked at each other and said,
“The border guards gave our passports to this bus driver, right?”
Wrong.
So we assumed we would get them when we stopped at the Albanian border.
Wrong.
The bus never stopped. Once we realized we weren’t getting our passports back we spoke (“spoke,” there was really no shared language) to the bus driver, who promised to take us back to the border that evening to retrieve our passports.
Fast forward to an hour later and the three of us were standing in the middle of a field next to the bus parking spot, with our driver telling us in a mixture of Italian and broken English that we should go take a nap at his apartment.
He loved Americans! Especially Bill Clinton. Why? “Because of Monica,” he told us with a grin and a wink.
Um, help?
We thanked him for everything and hurried off to find ourselves a hostel.
By the time we arrived at Saranda Backpackers it was almost 6 am. The owner Tomi, upon hearing our dilemma, took down all of our information and sent us to bed.
Two hours later he was waking us up, telling us our passports had arrived. We never did figure out how he did it, but let’s just say we were grateful. I mean, we had heard of U.S. passports selling for thousands of dollars in Albania so…
Saranda, Albanian Riviera
Small yet lively beach town. We were there pre-season but there were still plenty of people. The prettiest beach, Ksamil, was just a 15-minute bus ride away.
There’s plenty of fresh, cheap seafood along the coast. We found a nice, local seafood restaurant – just walk about 20 minutes north on the main road until you get out of the touristy area.
Read also: The Ultimate Guide to a Budget Beach Holiday on the Albanian Riviera
Stay at Saranda Backpackers ($12/night, dorm) and don’t sleep through breakfast (yes, I’m speaking from experience here)!
Himara, Albanian Riviera
An even smaller but possibly more beautiful beach town. It was pretty dead when we were there but it still quickly turned into a favorite. The vibe is just so relaxed and once again those Albanian beaches did not disappoint. 
The ride from Saranda was stunning. It will rival any other coastal drive you have ever done. We hitchhiked, which was relatively easy and how we got around the entire country. Hitchhiking in Albania is incredibly easy with the warm and welcoming locals – highly recommended!
By asking around when we arrived in Himara, we were able to find a random room for $10/night each.
Vlora
Big and built up beach town. We came here specifically to visit an Albanian-America couple who had given us a ride from Saranda to Himara in their Pennsylvania-licensed car! (Have we mentioned yet that Albanians are the nicest?)
Vlora has pretty beaches but it was a little crowded for our taste. We wouldn’t have gone if not for our new friends, but if you’re looking for a lively city on the beach, Vlora is your spot.
Tirana
Albania’s capital is a beautiful European city with lots of street side cafes and bars.
We got $3 haircuts, our first since Tajikistan (9 months ago!).
We would love to tell you more, but we spent the entire time hanging out with our Couchsurfing host and eating pizza.
Update: You can read about my return to Tirana with more details on what to do in the city here!
I didn’t think it was possible to get sick of pizza but it is! That being said, eat pizza while you’re here – the Italian influence is noticeable but the prices are cheap!
Otherwise there’s always Albania Fried Chicken!
This post was written together with Danielle and also appears on her blog The Roaming Coconut.
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Corinne says
Silvia, Albania looks stunning. I would love to explore it. Enjoy!
Silvia says
Thanks, Corinne. I really was blown away by Albania – it’s hard to believe it’s not yet a top tourist destination, but I’m sure it will be in the near future!
Kami says
I’m debating if I should go to Albania, even if just for 2-3 days, later this year and you just convinced me it’s a good idea 😉
Silvia says
Yes! You should absolutely go – such a wonderful place.
Alejandra Gil says
Love reading you girls — SO glad you got your passports back!
Silvia says
WE ARE TOO! haha it was a stressful time, as you well remember from our frantic messages 🙂
Rachael C says
Wow! I loved this post, Albania looks and sounds amazing. Thanks for sharing, I had never considered putting Albania on my “to-visit” list before.
Silvia says
Yeah, Albania seems to still be off a lot of people’s radar, but it’s seriously the perfect holiday destination. I sound a bit like an ad for the country when I go on about it, but it was just so ideal!
Shaun says
I remember the Albania of the 90s and what a difference now! If only we could hear the story from the passports perspective…lol. The beach towns look amazing. Reminds me of many I saw in Greece.
Silvia says
Hahaha I bet those passports have quite a tale to tell! And yeah, the Albanian Riviera was sort of like a really cheap version of Greece. In fact, we went to Greece afterwards and kept kicking ourselves for not just staying longer in Albania.
Pam | a Blonde around the World says
I’ve heard Albanian riviera is becomnig very in vogue, I’m glad you reviewed it with useful info and very nice pictures! I’d love to go there some day!
Silvia says
I can definitely see the Albanian Riviera gaining popularity in the future, which will be good news for the local economy at least!
Frank says
I like the Bill Clinton story, cute.
Frank (bbqboy)
Silvia says
Haha it wasn’t as cute when I was worrying where the guy was going to take us, but in retrospect it’s pretty funny!
Young Accountant says
Albania – my target for the next year.
Andrew says
We had a short but uncomfortable time in Albania. It’s amazing at how they have destroyed their tourist destinations and there is no sense of being friendly towards tourists. We felt that tourists are only seen to be ripped off or harassed. We were relieved to return to Corfu. Perhaps things will improve in time.
Silvia says
That’s too bad you had that experience, because everyone was so friendly to us! I think it may have helped that we were there a little before tourist season, so maybe locals weren’t thinking about making money from us as much.
Alex says
Hey! Just came across your article. Glad to see someone else had a good time here, I’m in a rented apartment in Saranda as we speak and heading to Tirana tomorrow! I find the people maybe arent the most out going but everyone I have spoken to has super nice and honest. Underrated spot for sure!
Silvia says
Ahh you’re so lucky to be there now! I really, really loved Albania, and agree that the beaches there are totally underrated!
Doris says
Silvia I am so glad you enjoyed Albania! I was born in Albania in the 90s and it has changed so much over the last two decades. I have traveled to many of the Mediterranean countries (Italy, Croatia, Albania, and Greece) and I completely agree about Albania not being a well-known tourist destination. I think that is definitely changing. On the one hand I would love for the rest of the world to discover it but I also know that sometimes too much tourism during a short time span (mostly the summer months) in a small country can tarnish the land and/or people’s experience.
Silvia says
Oh wow, I bet Albania has changed a lot since you were born! I felt the same about Albania – part of me wanted to scream to the world that it’s so beautiful and the people so nice, so everyone should go! But the other part of me wants to keep it a secret so tourism doesn’t spoil it.
Marco says
An amazing post on Albania, my destination for summer 2015!
Silvia says
I’m positive you will love it!