Albania beyond the headlines

By Penelope Bielckus Blackburn

Ten years ago, telling someone you were spending your summer holiday in Albania would most likely have earned you a raised eyebrow or a somewhat puzzled “but why there?” in response.

Even when I first visited in 2019, many people’s impressions of the country came from films and TV shows portraying the Albanian mafia, blood feuds and organised crime (the 2008 film Taken being the most obvious example), or from news coverage of the decades-long dictatorship that made Albania the most isolated country in Europe.

Fast forward to today, and it’s no longer considered particularly odd to travel to Albania. Open social media and you’ll be greeted by videos referring to the Albanian Riviera as the ‘Maldives of Europe’, or suggesting you head north to the Albanian Alps for the ‘Switzerland of the Balkans’.

The beaches are beautiful. The mountains are impressive. And, yes, the brutal dictatorship left significant scars on the country and its people.

But I’m not here to tell you that you can get a Maldives-style holiday on a Balkan budget. Albania has already been compared enough to other countries.

What I want to show you instead is the Albania beyond the headlines, and the side you don’t always see on social media.

This is a country where a centuries-old code of honor still shapes life. Besa, which loosely translates to “keeping the promise”, is closely tied to Albanian hospitality. Its roots lie in medieval law, and it’s considered one reason Albania ended the Second World War with a larger Jewish population than it had prior to 1939.

Today, you can still see besa in many aspects of Albanian life.

Take the journey from Tirana to Berat by bus. Getting to the bus station was a tad more complicated than anticipated, primarily because they’re currently in the midst of building a brand-new bus terminal. And as someone who regularly travels by bus from La Linea, I have to say it felt strangely familiar.

Let’s just say that the place currently serving as Tirana’s bus station is more of a large car park with aspirations.

Still, you won’t find yourself getting too lost. The moment anyone sees that you’re unsure where to go, they’ll point you in the right direction if you say your destination.

A white-haired gentleman lounging in a plastic chair near a snack kiosk is more than happy to help me.

“Po, po, autobusi për në Berat!” With a cigarette in one hand and an energy drink in the other, he gesticulates towards a few minibuses that do indeed have “BERAT” displayed on their windscreens.

“Berat?” Approaching said minibus, I show them the tickets we had booked in advance. “Good, Berat!” I’m promptly relieved of my luggage by a friendly man who turns out to be the conductor.

There’s a certain charm to travelling in Albania, in my experience. While it may feel a little chaotic and rough around the edges at times, there is a system and logic behind it all. More importantly, the majority of people you encounter are more than happy to ensure you enjoy your trip to their country.

Shkoder Mosque.

“Your hotel, where do you stay?” As we approach Berat’s historic centre, one of the remaining passengers turns to us. Rather than drop us at the bus station on the edge of town, she explains, the driver wants to leave us near our hotel if he can. Despite it not being on the route at all!

I’m firmly assured that this is “no problem, no problem”. We alight just a few minutes’ walk from where we are staying, delighted that collapsing in the hotel room is much closer than anticipated.

And this wasn’t an isolated experience in the slightest.

On our journey from Shkodër (in the north of Albania, close to the border with Montenegro) to neighbouring Kosovo, our Daytrip driver Vini was determined that our trip should be so much more than simply a convenient way of getting from A to B.

He answered my many questions (including my very niche ones on the Albanian language), pointed out places along the route and suggested a place for our lunch break that became one of my favourite restaurants of the entire trip.

The beaches and mountains may well be what first draw you to Albania. But my strongest memories are of the people who repeatedly went out of their way to help, without fuss and without expecting anything in return.

If you learn just one word in Albanian when you visit, “faleminderit”—thank you—is an excellent choice. You’ll want to use it often.

Flight information: Wizz Air flies direct from Malaga to Tirana several times a week.