- Duration: 4-7 days
- Distance covered: 460km (approx. 8 hours of driving)
- Highlights: Albania’s beaches
The incredibly beautiful path that stretches down Albania’s coast is a must-see for beach lovers. The route is simple to drive and offers several wonderful locations to pause for a dip or take a detour to explore the sights inland, but you need to rent a car.
We took our time to unwind and enjoy the beaches as we traveled this route over the course of three weeks. If you were very tight for time, you could theoretically drive the entire coast of Albania in a few days.
Take the highway from Tirana, the capital, directly to Durres, a seaside town. You may then turn off to the beach whenever you’d like by following the route south from there! Himare, Dhermi, and Vlores have some of the nicest beaches. Reaching the secret beach at Gjipe needs a 4×4 or a 20-minute walk, but it’s definitely worth the visit.
Lastly, proceed to Sarande along the coast, taking a diversion inland to see the Blue Eye. From there, you can either head back to Tirana via Gjirokaster, continue south to Greece, or wrap off your road adventure.
Most seaside towns have hotels, guest homes, and even a few hostels. The best experience is definitely wild camping along Albania’s shore. There are tons of beautiful places to park your campervan (or tent, in certain cases) and enjoy views of the beach right outside your back door. The availability of excellent pizza and gelato is indicative of the Italian influence that can be sensed from over the sea. Additionally, there are many of reasonably priced eateries that provide fresh fish.
