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Albania 2026
  • Andrea and Luke French
  • Andrea and Luke French

Albania 2026

Traveling through Albania, into Corfu and back to Glasgow. Read more
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  • Trip start
    May 16, 2026
    Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: PastaMania

    May 17 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Spinach and ricotta ravoila with sage butter
    Aglio olio

    Delicious! Although we missed out on sitting on the roof terrace as we didnt realise it was there. Wondered why the restaurant was so quiet.

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler
    1

    Amphitheatre

    May 17 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    The amphitheatre was only partially excavated, and not in as good condition as others we have seen unfortunately. We were able to walk the access tunnels to the amphitheatre though, and see levels of architecture.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler
    2

    Venetian tower and city walls

    May 17 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Part of the ancient fortified walls, there was little parks and seating areas alongside the walls that were lovely to sit in. We ended up having a drink sat by the venetian tower, watching the pigeons trying to balance on the rounded walls.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Door of wishes

    May 17 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Kinda hard to find within the winding streets of Durres, we decided not to leave a wish here and just took photos instead!

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Roman Fort

    May 17 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Ruins of a roman fort, we surprised the locals by taking photos of the area! Right next to the area was a restaurant with a larger children's playground which was very popular. Nice to walk by!

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler
    1

    Bashkia Durrës

    May 17 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Lovely sunset looking out over sea, to presumably a shipping route as there was lots of large ships passing by!

    We enjoyed a drink while watching other tourists have photoshoots with the setting sun.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: White City

    May 18 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Pesto linguine
    Penne Salmon

    A lovely positioned and decorated restaurant, we enjoyed people watching as other tourists explored Berat. Luke described his dish as 'the best pesto I've ever had' (including in Genoa), while mine was a solidly nice pasta dish.

    Service was weird, as the waiter seemed confused why I was telling him I couldn't eat nuts, and he basically ignored us when we were wanting to pay and leave so it was good we were enjoying the view!    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Berat Castle

    May 18 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    After a relatively short but hard climb up in the sun we had lovely wander around the castle grounds. We were very surprised to come across a wild tortoise crossing the road on the way up too, we were far more concerned about it getting run over than it was i think.

    There were various churches to see, and view points to admire, along with shops selling 'traditional' carpets, and drinks/fruits.

    We bought figs from an elderly lady (that I think was telling me they would benefit my health) and some strawberries that we enjoyed while having a sit down.

    The final viewpoint was an almost 360 panoramic view that Luke was dubious about, but I loved looking down across the city and also managed to spot our accommodation.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: The Arches

    May 18 in Albania ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Byrek
    Fries
    Garlic bread
    Shish Kebab

    Really cute courtyard restaurant, we went for traditional food for our evening meal again and Luke tried restaurant byrek while I had chicken again. Much better cooked than yesterday's, flavour was lovely too and I even enjoyed the tzatziki. Luke enjoyed his but came to the conclusion he likes doesn't need posh byrek.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Berat

    May 18–19 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Berat was a lovely city to wander around, it was expansive but had a small town feel. Known as the town of a thousand windows, photos don't do justice to just how idyllic and adorable the old town was. Luke picked a lovely guesthouse which had a terrace, overlooking the other side of the old town. We enjoyed some drinks in the evening, and breakfast in the morning on the terrace to make the most of it.

    A highlight of Albania so far, this joins the ranks of San Marino and Carcassonne as places with castles that we have loved an overnight stay in.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Tradicional Odaja

    May 19 in Albania ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Stuffed peppers
    Qifqi
    Meatballs

    We went for a more traditional meal, finally trying quiqi which were delicious. I confused yet more waiters by trying to communicate that I have a nut allergy, but thankfully the meal was nice! Not the biggest portions, but enjoyable.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Gjirokaster

    May 19–21 in Albania ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    The views surrounding Gjirokaster were incredible, although the place itself was cute around the bazaar area I think we will remember the views more.

    Our accommodation was in the old town, and very in keeping with thr local aesthetic which was lovely. We bought a handmade (hopefully) rug from a local seller, and saw some traditional rug carving and coffee roasting.

    On our way up to the castle we walked through the cold way tunnel, very reminiscent of the one we walked through in Zagreb, Croatia, to a view point over looking the mosque against the mountains.

    One of my favourite places was a rooftop terrace bar we found that had stunning views, although it was a little bit windy the birds were enjoying flying around.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Gjirokaster Castle

    May 20 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    After a short walk up to the castle, nowhere near as steep as Berat, we got to the castle. It had a utilitarian feel as it was in use as a prison until the 60s by the communist regime.

    We enjoyed wandering around and exploring the place, there were musuems we could have visited but decided against as they were an extra cost. Although the castle was interesting to see, the views were amazing and definitely a highlight of the visit.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Komiteti Bar

    May 20 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Four cheese linguine
    Four cheese risotto

    After strolling around the castle we found a nice relaxing spot for lunch, we both chose to have the four cheese style with luke going linguine and risotto for myself. Was tasty but nothing amazing, which we kinda expected in a touristy location like Gjirokaster.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Bon Appetit

    May 20 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Pork with mustard sauce
    Pesto Pasta
    Qifqi

    Rated by us as the best meal we had a Gjirokaster. It was an amusing experience as Luke had his main course and ate it all before I actually got mine. Thankfully he had ordered a side of qifqi as well so was able to snack while I ate!

    The qifqi were more to Luke's taste in the previous place, but the rest of the meal was lovely.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Pomodoro Pizza

    May 21 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Pasta aglio e olio
    Pasta gorgonzola

    We arrived in Sarande ahead of schedule, so decided to grab lunch and found a place close to where we got dropped off by the bus. This was tasty and filled us up, although not that memorable a meal there was nothing wrong with it.Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Pizza Savos

    May 21 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Margarita pizza with tabasco sauce
    Skepasti with chicken

    After trudging to our apartment in the heat with the luggage we decided on not going back down to the centre to eat and found a pizza place at our level. It was tasty, mine was a huge portion and I couldn't finish it - definitely should have just got a wrap.

    We were amused as it seemed our entrance caused them to have to call the waiter into work, and we spent our meal watching another one of the staff show off his motorcycle to, presumably, passing friends.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler
    11

    Butrint National Park

    May 22 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Our visit to Butrint was a case of a shit sandwich. We woke up early to try and get an early bus there, missed one, waited half an hour for the next one which then didn't arrive for another 40 mins, and set off to Butrint for another 20. We realised on the journey there we had been waiting at the wrong bus stop.

    Eventually we got there, and it was well worth the wait. The actual ruins were cool to see, and fun to wander around - but as with other Albanian tourist sites we realised the views were the main spectacle. It was a hot day, but as wandering around in the speckled sunlight through the trees with a breeze it was refreshing. We sat and watched the nature and enjoyed the views for longer than wandering around the ruins. An absolute highlight of the trip.

    The other side of the sandwich was a small accident I had while running to try and catch the bus back, that the driver seemed to deliberately ignore us waiting to get. I tripped, fell on the gravelling floor and managed to get a cut on my knee that needed a trip to an Albania hospital for a stitch. Maybe I wouldn't have wanted the handmade rug from Gjirokaster if I knew I would come away with a permanent souvenir after all!

    A day of ups and downs but we survived thankfully!    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Rozmarine

    May 22 in Albania ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Bruschetta
    Linguine Pomodoro
    Seabass with potatoes

    We went to a more seafood based restaurant so I could enjoy some seafood, and this did not disappointed. The seabass was delicious, and I did much better with eating a whole fish this time (rather than Cambodia) as I understood how to take the bones out!

    Luke enjoyed his meal, the bruschetta was the highlight although the linguine wasn't something he would usually choose he still enjoyed it.

    We spotted some people we had prebiously seen getting the bus from Berat to Gjirokaster too, so definitely a small country but still a major coincidence!    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler
    11

    Sarande

    May 22–25 in Albania ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    We knew when we booked Sarande that we wouldn't love the place as much, but it would be a gateway to other places we wanted to see. We were definite on seeing Butrint National Park, but undecided to whether to visit the blue eye, which was another park we had come close to while travelling through on our way from Gjirokaster.

    My injury after Butrint, as well as the trouble we had with the buses and the increasing heat meant we decided against visiting the blue eye and just having a chilled day instead. The apartment we had was lovely, and came with a washing machine we used twice. It was quite far up the hill, so we only went into Saranda centre a couple of times, trying to enjoy the 'level' we were up on instead.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Nasto

    May 23 in Albania ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Bruschetta
    Fish cakes
    Pasta Aglio e olio
    Carbonara

    This place sold itself to me by having scallops on the menu, which they unfortunately didn't have, so I was gonna to have the crab cakes, but they couldn't guarantee nut free (points for understanding the issue), so I went with the fish cakes which we huge and I couldn't finish!

    I completely forgot to take more photos of the food, but was really enjoying the view. Meal was OK, great setting and I enjoyed chilling out looking over Sarande but the food was nothing special.    Read more

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Restaurant: Pierre

    May 24 in Greece ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    First time:
    Margarita Pizza
    Goats cheese and cherry tomato pizza

    Second:
    Margarita pizza
    Pepperoni pizza

    This pizza place was so delicious we went back twice! Great pizza, no notes.

  • Andrea and Luke FrenchAlbania 2026Traveler

    Corfu

    May 24–25 in Greece ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Corfu immediately felt more touristy than Albania, but in the best kinda of way as it was easy to navigate and understand the area. The prices also reflected how much more of a tourist location we were in!

    I loved wandering around the little cobbled streets, with shops full of reasonably priced temptations. The architecture was more of the Mediterranean style we are used to, with fantastic views out to sea towards Albania/main land Greece.

    Our first taste of Greece definitely left us hungry to explore more of the country and islands.    Read more

    Trip end
    May 25, 2026