{"id":7161,"date":"2026-09-06T09:00:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T07:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.travel.orange.com\/albania-road-trip-itinerary"},"modified":"2026-09-06T09:00:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-06T07:00:11","slug":"albania-road-trip-itinerary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.travel.orange.com\/en\/albania-road-trip-itinerary","title":{"rendered":"Albania Road Trip: A 10-Day Itinerary by Car"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.sayna-article .quick,.sayna-article .tip{background:#f4f7fb;border-left:4px solid #467AFF;border-radius:8px;padding:14px 18px;margin:20px 0}.sayna-article .tip{background:#fff7ef;border-left-color:#ff7900}.sayna-article .h{font-weight:700;font-size:1.05em;margin-bottom:6px;color:#0a0a0b}.sayna-article table{border-collapse:collapse;width:100%;margin:18px 0}.sayna-article th{background:#eef1f7;text-align:left;padding:10px 12px;font-weight:700;border-bottom:2px solid #dfe3ec}.sayna-article td{padding:10px 12px;border-bottom:1px solid #eef1f7}.sayna-article .faq details{border-bottom:1px solid #e5e8ee;padding:4px 0}.sayna-article .faq summary{font-weight:600;cursor:pointer;padding:9px 0}.sayna-article .cta-box{background:#fff5ec;border:1px solid #ffd8b0;border-radius:12px;padding:22px;text-align:center;margin:26px 0}.sayna-article .cta-box a{display:inline-block;background:#ff7900;color:#fff;padding:12px 26px;border-radius:8px;text-decoration:none;font-weight:700;margin-top:8px}<\/style>\n<div class=\"sayna-article\">\n<div class=\"quick\">\n<div class=\"h\">\u26a1 In short<\/div>\n<p>The classic <strong>Albania road trip<\/strong> is a 10-day southern loop from Tirana: <strong>Berat \u2192 Llogara pass \u2192 Riviera \u2192 Saranda &amp; Butrint \u2192 Gjirokast\u00ebr \u2192 back to Tirana<\/strong>. It totals about <strong>25 to 30 hours of driving<\/strong>, under two hours a day, so you get mountains, ancient cities and the coast without the long hauls. A standard car is enough.<\/p>\n<div class=\"tip\"><span class=\"h\">Stay connected on arrival<\/span> Set up your <a href=\"https:\/\/travel.orange.com\/en\/buy-a-sim\/offers\/albania\">eSIM for Albania<\/a> before you go: 100% online activation, no physical SIM to swap.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<nav aria-label=\"Contents\" class=\"toc\">\n<div class=\"h\">Contents<\/div>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#route\">The route at a glance<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#car\">Car, licence and driving basics<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#days12\">Days 1-2: Tirana and Berat<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#days34\">Days 3-4: Llogara pass and the Riviera<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#days56\">Days 5-7: Saranda, Ksamil and Butrint<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#days89\">Days 8-9: Gjirokast\u00ebr and back<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#north\">Adding the northern Alps<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#connected\">Navigating the loop and staying connected<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<p>Albania is made for a road trip. It is small enough that a single loop links snow-capped passes, Ottoman old towns, Roman ruins and the best beaches on the Mediterranean&#8217;s cheapest coast, and the driving days are short.<\/p>\n<p>Here is the ten-day southern loop I would drive, day by day, with the stops that earn their place and the practical notes that make it smooth.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"route\">The route at a glance<\/h2>\n<p>The whole loop starts and ends in Tirana, so it is easy to book with a single airport car pickup.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Days<\/th>\n<th>Stage<\/th>\n<th>Drive<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>1-2<\/td>\n<td>Tirana \u2192 Berat<\/td>\n<td>~2 h<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>3-4<\/td>\n<td>Berat \u2192 Llogara pass \u2192 Riviera<\/td>\n<td>~4 h total<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>5-7<\/td>\n<td>Riviera \u2192 Saranda, Ksamil, Butrint<\/td>\n<td>~2 h<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>8-9<\/td>\n<td>Saranda \u2192 Gjirokast\u00ebr \u2192 Tirana<\/td>\n<td>~4 h total<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10<\/td>\n<td>Tirana &amp; departure<\/td>\n<td>none<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The total is roughly <strong>25 to 30 hours of driving<\/strong> across ten days, which leaves most of each day free for the actual sightseeing.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"car\">Car, licence and driving basics<\/h2>\n<p>A <strong>standard saloon<\/strong> is plenty for this loop, including the Llogara pass, so you do not need a 4&#215;4. Expect <strong>35 to 60 \u20ac a day<\/strong> in summer plus fuel, and your <strong>EU or UK licence<\/strong> is accepted, with a minimum hire age usually of 20.<\/p>\n<p>The golden rule: <strong>drive the mountain sections in daylight<\/strong>. The main highways are newly rebuilt and easy, but the passes have unlit switchbacks, and Albanian overtaking is confident. Save Llogara for a clear morning or afternoon.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"days12\">Days 1-2: Tirana and Berat<\/h2>\n<p>Land in Tirana and give it a day: Skanderbeg Square, the Bunk&#8217;Art bunkers, the House of Leaves and dinner in Blloku. Then drive about two hours south to <strong>Berat<\/strong>, the &#8220;city of a thousand windows&#8221;, where tiers of white Ottoman houses climb the hillside above the Osum river. Stay a night in the old <strong>Mangalem<\/strong> quarter, walk up to the castle (still inhabited), and eat in a courtyard taverna.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"days34\">Days 3-4: Llogara pass and the Riviera<\/h2>\n<p>This is the day the trip earns its stripes. Drive from Berat toward the coast and up over the <strong>Llogara pass<\/strong>, where the road climbs a forested ridge and then falls away in switchbacks, unveiling the Riviera and the Ionian Sea far below. It is the finest drive in the country, so take it slow and stop at the viewpoints.<\/p>\n<p>Drop down to the <strong>Riviera villages<\/strong>, Dh\u00ebrmi, Himar\u00eb or Vuno, and base yourself for two nights. Swim, eat grilled fish one street back from the water, and walk down to a wild cove like <strong>Gjipe<\/strong> for a beach the road cannot reach.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"days56\">Days 5-7: Saranda, Ksamil and Butrint<\/h2>\n<p>Continue south to <strong>Saranda<\/strong>, your base for the far south. Three days lets you do it properly:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Ksamil<\/strong> (15 km south): shallow turquoise bays and tiny islands you can swim to. Go early or late to dodge the midday crowds.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Butrint<\/strong> (17 km, ~10 \u20ac): the UNESCO archaeological park of Greek, Roman and Venetian remains by a lagoon. Morning is best.<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>Blue Eye<\/strong> spring: mesmerising, but remember swimming is banned.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Lekursi Castle<\/strong> above Saranda for a sunset with the whole bay in view.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If the mood takes you, a fast ferry to <strong>Corfu<\/strong> (30 minutes to an hour) makes an easy day in Greece, passport in hand.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"days89\">Days 8-9: Gjirokast\u00ebr and back<\/h2>\n<p>Turn inland to <strong>Gjirokast\u00ebr<\/strong>, another UNESCO old town, this one of grey stone houses and a huge hilltop castle with a Cold War spy plane parked in the grounds. Walk the slippery cobbled bazaar, tour an Ottoman merchant&#8217;s house, and try the local <em>qifqi<\/em> rice balls.<\/p>\n<p>From Gjirokast\u00ebr it is a steady drive back to Tirana on rebuilt roads. Break the journey with a coffee stop, and leave day 10 loose for the capital and your flight.<\/p>\n<div class=\"tip\">\n<div class=\"h\">\ud83d\udca1 Good to know<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li>Drive the Llogara pass in daylight, ideally heading south toward the sea for the best reveal.<\/li>\n<li>A standard saloon is enough for the whole southern loop. Skip the 4&#215;4 upsell.<\/li>\n<li>Book Riviera nights ahead in July and August, when villages fill up fast.<\/li>\n<li>You cannot swim in the Blue Eye. Enjoy the view and save the swim for Ksamil.<\/li>\n<li>Bring your passport for the optional Corfu ferry: it is an EU border crossing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"north\">Adding the northern Alps<\/h2>\n<p>Got two weeks? Extend north from Tirana toward <strong>Shkod\u00ebr<\/strong>, then take the <strong>Lake Koman ferry<\/strong> through a steep, fjord-like gorge into the <strong>Valbona and Theth<\/strong> valleys, home to the country&#8217;s finest hiking. The classic <strong>Valbona-to-Theth<\/strong> pass hike is best from mid-June to late September. Note that some of the far-north roads are rougher, and this is where a signal genuinely disappears.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"connected\">Navigating the loop and staying connected<\/h2>\n<p>A self-drive loop lives on your phone: real-time directions on rebuilt roads maps sometimes lag, offline maps for the Llogara switchbacks, booking the next guesthouse from the beach, and translating a village menu. On the passes and corniche roads, the signal is at its thinnest, so reliability is everything.<\/p>\n<p>Albania is outside the EU, so your Europe roaming plan will not apply. Set up an <a class=\"cta-inline\" href=\"https:\/\/travel.orange.com\/en\/buy-a-sim\/offers\/albania\">eSIM for Albania<\/a> before you go. Thanks to our negotiated roaming agreements, it connects to several local networks and switches to the best available signal, which is exactly what you want on a mountain switchback with a booking to confirm.<\/p>\n<p>With Orange, the service used by <strong>over 300 million customers<\/strong>, you keep your bearings the whole loop: <strong>200+ destinations<\/strong> covered, quick activation by app or QR code, <strong>24\/7<\/strong> human support, and <strong>100% refunded<\/strong> if you do not use your eSIM.<\/p>\n<div class=\"cta-box\">\n<p>Ready to drive the Albanian loop without losing the signal?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/travel.orange.com\/en\/buy-a-sim\/offers\/albania\">Discover the Albania eSIM by Orange Travel<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<section aria-label=\"Frequently asked questions\" class=\"faq\">\n<h2>Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n<details open=\"\">\n<summary>Is Albania good for a road trip?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"a\">Yes. It is compact and varied, so a self-drive trip pairs mountains, ancient cities and the Riviera in a short loop. Main highways are newly rebuilt, and a standard car reaches almost everything, including the Llogara pass.<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details open=\"\">\n<summary>How many days do you need to road trip Albania?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"a\">Ten days is ideal for the classic southern loop from Tirana through Berat, the Llogara pass, the Riviera, Saranda, Butrint and Gjirokast\u00ebr. A week covers the essentials faster; two weeks lets you add the northern Alps.<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details open=\"\">\n<summary>Do you need a 4&#215;4 in Albania?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"a\">No, not for the southern loop. A standard saloon handles the rebuilt highways and the Llogara pass fine. A 4&#215;4 only helps for rough tracks in the far north.<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details open=\"\">\n<summary>What is the best drive in Albania?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"a\">The Llogara pass, where the road climbs a ridge then drops in switchbacks to the Riviera. Drive it in daylight for the views and safety, ideally heading south toward the sea.<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details open=\"\">\n<summary>How much driving is there on a 10-day Albania road trip?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"a\">Roughly 25 to 30 hours over the ten days, under two hours a day. The distances are short, so most days leave plenty of time for beaches, ruins and old towns.<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":7160,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_titles_title":"Albania Road Trip: 10-Day Itinerary by Car (2026) | Orange Travel","_seopress_titles_desc":"Albania road trip: a 10-day itinerary by car through Berat, the Llogara pass, the Riviera, Saranda, Butrint and Gjirokast\u00ebr. 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