Description
- Day 1
Tirana – Elbasan – Pogradec
Meet with the driver and guide at the lobby of your hotel and get a general explication about the tour that you will have .Start the Short walking Tour of Tirana
Visit: the Skenderbeu Square, the National Museum, the Palace of Culture, The gallery of Arts, the National Theater, the Bunkart, the Pyramid, the Government area, the Blloku are, the mother Theresa square, the House of Enver Hoxha. After finishing the short tour of Tirana depart to You will have a short stop in Elbasan, the present-day location of the antique city of Skampa, built in the 1st century BC. Visit the castle of the town and then move to Pogradec along with the ancient street Via Egnatia. We will arrive at the beautiful city of Pogradec via Ohrid Lake in Southeastern Albania. The lake is outstanding for its spotted lake. Lunch in Elbasan. Dinner and overnight in Pogradec city.
Your Gastronomic itinerary for Day 1 Lunch: Have lunch in Elbasan traditional restaurant inside the Elbasan fortress. Menu: Tavë kosi is a national dish exclusively in Elbasan. It is a dish of lamb and rice
baked with a mixture of yogurt and eggs added to a roux. It is also popular in Greece and Turkey, where it is known as Elbasan tava, named after the Albanian city of Elbasan. Dinner: You will have dinner in a traditional restaurant in Pogradec at “ Rosa e Tymosur”. Lunch: Food is fantastic and priced very reasonable. I would recommend the sizzling Koran with vinegar and garlic, a real treat. Service is very good and the waiters are very friendly and welcoming.
- Day 2
Pogradec – Voskopoja – Korca
After breakfast depart to Korça, which is also called the threshold of Albanian culture. Before arriving to Korca city we will visit Voskopoja village, which is the at the east of Korca. This perspective offers you an amazing view of the landscape. Voskopoja known
since the 14th century as an art and science center remains to this day an abundant storehouse of art works. Some well-known churches are: St. Mihal, St. Athanas, St. Maria etc. Late afternoon drive to Korca city.
Visit the museum of Medevial Arts where works of different famous painters are exhibited. Your visit continues and you will have free time. Dinner and overnight in Korca. You will Have lunch in a traditional restaurant in Voskopoja village “ Restaurant Ambassador”. Ambassador is a well-known traditional restaurant located in a nice and small village. The food is great and fresh. The ambient is warm, cozy and the staff is very friendly.
Menu: Traditional diverse food, tasted fresh and smoked meat, home bread, handling pie “ Lakror”.
Dinner: Have dinner in a local and very well –known restaurant called “ Vila Kofiel”. The staff is friendly and very welcoming. They cook delicious and a variety of local and mix foods. Menu: Traditional Meals ( Lakror, different types of pies and local dishes). Raki, wine and beer are the most favorite drinks.
- Day 3
Depart to permet ,Visit the Thermal Water baths in Benja and overnight in Gjirokastra.
After breakfast meet the guide and depart for Permet city, on the way to permet you will pass by to one of the most natural parts of Albania because of its untouched nature rivers lakes and amazing panoramic views ( there is possibility to have picnic lunch )Before arriving in Gjirokaster stop in Përmet. It stands out for its beautiful folk songs with the clarinet and for its old history. You will visit Benja Thermal water and have some time for relaxation. Arrival in Kenyon of Langarica and start walking tour with bare food in Kenyon. Enjoy the wonderful scenery of this region in Albania, and have some photo breaks. Have lunch in Benja restaurant and then depart to Gjirokaster. Visit the Castle of the city, which was built in the 4th century. The castle offers fantastic views across the valley. You can also see the Open Air Theatre, which is still in use today. Dinner and overnight in Gjirokaster.
Lunch: Have lunch in a traditional restaurant near Benja Village.
Menu: Beef, different types of traditional dishes, village salad and special white cheese. Dinner: Have dinner in a traditional restaurant in Gjirokastër near the fortress where you can have the view of the castle and the bazaar. Menu: Menu is based in vegetables pie, delicious desserts such as “Karnakaqet” traditional biscuits made only in Gjirokaster.
- Day 4
Visit the Blue Eye and Archeological the Site of Butrint.
After breakfast, meet the guide and start sightseeing of Gjirokastra There has been a settlement here for 2500 years, though these days it’s the 600 ‘monumental’ Ottoman-era houses in town that attract visitors. For Albanians, the town is also a synonym for former dictator Enver Hoxha, who was born here and ensured the town was relatively well preserved under his rule, though he is not memorialized in any way here today. After the sightseeing of castle and old town you will have some free time for buying souvenirs in the local market. After the visit Transfer to Saranda.
on the way to Saranda you will stop by the Blue Eye and visit of the beautiful place as surprisingly spectacular as the south coast of Albania is What you would expect to see, there are sites that are more reminiscent of the Mediterranean than the tropics . Arrival in saranda and After lunch start of the visit to the archaeological site of Butrint Inside: Butrint (Butrint in Albanian) from ancient Greek was an ancient Greek city and later Roman and a bishopric in Epirus. Inhabited since prehistoric times, Buthrotum was a city of the Greek
Chaonian tribe, later a Roman colony and a bishopric. It went into decline at the end of Antiquity, before being abandoned in the Middle Ages after a major earthquake flooded most of the city. Hotel check-in and free time by the sea Saranda is the unofficial capital of the Albanian Riviera, and over the summer months it seems like half of Tirana is moving here to enjoy the lively beach and the lively nightlife along its crowded seaside promenade.
Dinner and overnight in Saranda.
Day 5
Visit of Llogara National Park and Vlora independence City
After breakfast, departure for Vlora. Drive on the spectacular Albanian Riviera towards Vlora. The Llogara Pass is a high mountain pass within the Ceraunian Mountains along the Albanian Riviera. It connects the Dukat Valley in the north with Himarë in the south. You will have a
short stop for pictures of the amazing Albanian Riviera. Where the Adriatic and the Ionian Seas meet, begins the journey towards the Llogara National Park. The lush forests of pines and oaks are only the beginning of this “mountain of panoramas,” which is beautifully surrounded by numerous mountain ranges and the majestic Ionian Sea.
Located only 40 km southeast of Vlora, the Llogara National Park is one of the most visited natural parks in Albania, home to a rich flora and fauna and some of the most exceptional food in the country. Though the park stays open throughout the year, it is most visited during the summer, as a cooling-off stop and a literal rite of passage to the southern Albanian Riviera. You will pass by the national park and you can have a nice walk or short hike. By the time you will arrive in Vlora you will pass by the waterfront The Monument of Independence is a monument in Vlorë, Albania, dedicated to the Albanian Declaration of Independence and worked by Albanian sculptors, Muntaz Dhrami and Kristaq Rama. It is found in the Flag’s Plaza, near the building where the first Albanian government worked in 1913. You will have one 10 minutes stop on this historical center of Vlora. Zverrneci Island Sitting at 30 meters above sea level, this picturesque island is named after the village of the same name, located about 13 km from the city of Vlora. Famous for its stunning forest of tall pines extending along nine hectares of land, the fairly small island also hosts the well-preserved 13th-century Byzantine Monastery of St. Mary. While Zvërnec is indeed compact in size, at approximately 400 meters in length and 300 meters in width, the island packs a magical experience.
Your Gastronomic itinerary for Day 4 Dinner: Have dinner at Primavera restaurant in Vlora. Menu: The menu is based mostly in seafood, pasta, and rice. The food service is amazing and the food is delicious. The desserts are fantastic. You should try brownies with ice cream and soufflé.
Dinner and Overnight in Vlora
- Day 6
Berati – National Park of Karavastas – Tirana
After breakfast and check out you will depart to the National Park of Karavastas. The Karavasta Lagoon (Albanian: Laguna e Karavastasë) is the largest lagoon in Albania and one of the largest in the Mediterranean Sea. The lagoon is situated in the west of Albania and the largest town found near the lagoon is Lushnjë. The lagoon is cut of from the Adriatic Sea by a long sandy bar. The Karavasta lagoon has many pine trees and small sandy islands. The lagoon is famous for the rare Dalmatian Pelican which nests there: In fact, 5% of the world’s population of this type of pelican is found in this lagoon.
The Karavasta Lagoon is within the List of Ramsar wetlands of international importance and part of the Divjake-Karavasta National Park. There is a Mediterranian Pine Forest near the Karavasta lagoon, and it contains one of the most interesting faunas of the country. Divjakë-Karavasta area provides the special conditions for accommodation of a number of plant communities and animal species,
among which many of them are at risk of extinction in the world such as Pelican (Pelecanus Crispus Bruch).
After the visit and typical lunch in the National Park you will depart to Tirana. Dinner and overnight in Tirana. Your gastronomic itinerary for day 7 Lunch: Have lunch at Pelikan restaurant. The restaurant and hotel is very nice. The staff is friendly and very polite. The seafood its great. I suggest trying it. The rooms are wonderful. Comfortable rooms. The place is good for photo.
Menu: The menu is based mostly on seafood, pastas and vegetables. Dinner: This is the time that you will start you cooking classes, how to make the most interesting dish (you can choose the dish that you prefer) guided by a professional
Albanian cook. This is a way for you to have a souvenir of Albania. By the end of the tour you will have also the recipe for that dish.
Dinner and overnight in Berat.
- Day 7
Tour of Tirana Transfer to “Mother Teresa” Airport.
Last day of the Tour you can enjoy the city of Tirana Here we will visit the national Historic Museum; the Mosque of Ethem Bey built in 1789 and Tirana’s historic Clock Tower. You will see the along the main road the
Opera House, the Town Hall and Government buildings. Free sightseeing around the city.
This is the end of our Service
