Albania Travel Tips: 20 Useful Things to Know Before You Go

Albania is an incredibly underrated destination offering everything from drool worthy beaches in the south to soaring mountains in the north and everything in between. 

After visiting Romania last year, I knew that I wanted to explore more of the Balkan countries, so I booked a long weekend trip to Tirana; the capital.

Located in Southern Europe, Albania shares its borders with Greece, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro. The country has a fascinating history of war and communism, but it is important to remember that Albania has only been a ‘free’ country since the 90’s and so it may not live up to the quintessential image we might have of European countries in general.

As Albania is such an underrated country to visit, I have put together some Albania travel tips for you. These are all useful things to know before you go; some of which I wish I had known in advance.

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1. Cash is King in Albania

Unlike many other European destinations, cash is widely used in Albania. Many restaurants, museums and tourist attractions don’t accept card payment at all, so ensure you take some cash with you. 

There are a decent amount of established restaurants and cafes that accept card payments in Tirana, but as soon as you venture outside of the capital, be prepared to pay in cash for just about everything. 

Speaking of which..

2. LEK is the official currency, but Euro is also widely accepted

Albania have a closed currency which means it is not possible to get Lek from outside of the country. Lek is the official currency, but Euro notes are widely accepted here too.

Watch out for the exchange rate though as it is never beneficial to convert your currency twice as you lose out on the commission. 

We had the foresight to take some Euros we already had at home, so paying in cash meant we paid that little bit more for things, but it was worth it to not have to exchange any more money.

It is best to take cash (Euros) which you can either use or convert in Albania. 

Your other option is to use a fee-free debit card like Revolut or Monzo to withdraw cash from an ATM – but be prepared for Albanian cash points that charge upwards of around £7 per transaction to withdraw money from.

3. There is no Uber in Albania

One of the biggest travel tips for Albania that I think you need to know ahead of landing at the airport is that there is no Uber or Bolt here. Thankfully we had a pre-booked taxi courtesy of booking.com when we booked our stay the Rogner Hotel.

If you do use a city taxi, it is worth knowing that they do not accept card payments either, so you really do need some cash on you from the moment you arrive in the country.

4. EU roaming doesn’t work here 

Another Albania travel tip to be aware of is that EU roaming doesn’t work here, which means you won’t have any data on your phone as soon as you land. 

We were only in Tirana for two nights so just relied on wifi in our hotel and restaurants/coffee shops. 

For a longer trip to Albania, you will likely need to purchase a eSIM and Airalo is the most cost effective, simplest way to do this. I have used this for numerous trips abroad in the past and it works really well.

5. Download offline maps in advance

As we didn’t purchase an eSIM for our trip to Albania, we had downloaded offline Google maps in advance to help us navigate the city and walk around without any problems. 

I would recommend doing this for every destination you visit, just in case you don’t have any phone service, regardless of whether you have data or not.

6. Tap water isn’t safe for consumption in Albania

Tap water isn’t safe to consume in Albania, but is safe to brush your teeth with. The UK government’s foreign travel advice recommends that you don’t drink it either, so you can only buy bottled water here.

We only visited the capital city of Tirana, but I have heard that tap water is safe to drink up in the mountains where it couldn’t be any fresher.

7. Albania is safe for tourists

Albania is a very safe country, even though it has a less-than-stellar reputation thanks to the fictional movie Taken. However you can rest assured that criminals are not lining up to kidnap tourists travelling in Albania.

I had read online that it was not always safe to travel in Albania, however my experience was very positive. I never felt unsafe (even at night) and I often carried my phone in my hand, in plain sight. 

Just take usual precautions that you would anywhere else in the world.

8. Albania is cheap

It is undeniable that Albania is one of the cheapest countries in Europe – certainly the cheapest country I have visited in Europe. 

This is great news for tourists, particularly if you are on a tight budget. The average meal in a restaurant costs €7 per person and the average cocktail costs around €7 too, for example.

9. Albanian cuisine can be hit or miss

Nobody raves about Albanian cuisine, and I can see why. It is pretty uninspiring; lots of meat pounded into patties or formed into sausages. All the stews. No seasoning. No spice.

I always try to seek out some traditional vegetarian dishes in every country I visit. I did the same here in Tirana and it really wasn’t for me. Aubergine stuffed with tomato and what I assume was more aubergine was the best of a bad bunch.

I couldn’t stomach the ricotta cheese after one bite – and this was a half portion as well.

Nope. Definitely not for me.

10. Don’t expect fast service in Albania

Everything moves at an incredibly slow pace in Albania, much to the frustration of those us who are accustomed to London life. You might have to ask for the bill in a restaurant a couple of times and they will take their time. 

One of my Albania travel tips would be to practice the art of patience ahead of your trip! And remember, you aren’t in London!

11. There is a strong Italian and Greek influence in Albania

You will notice a strong Greek and Italian influence in Albania, partly due to the close proximity of all three countries and also because the country was invaded by Italy in 1939. 

Almost a third of Albanians speak Italian and a quarter of the population speaks Greek. You’ll see Italian cars, Italian coffee culture and of course, pizza on almost every restaurant menu! Pizza is incredibly popular in Albania! 

The Greek influence is immediately evident too with the sheer amount of Greek restaurants and food stalls serving gyros and kebabs dotted around throughout Tirana.

12. Albania is a secular country

Around 50% of Albanians are Muslims, followed by Catholics, Christians and followers of other religions or non-believers. 

Though it is a largely secular Muslim country, they are not conservative and religion does not influence its government.

There is no dress code to adhere to and many Albanian Muslims eat pork and drink alcohol. I also didn’t see a single woman wearing a hijab.

The only way you’d know the prominence of Islam is that mosques are everywhere, and you will hear the call to prayer around the city. 

13. Coffee Culture is huge in Albania 

Speaking of Italian influence, you will notice the sheer amount of coffee shops on every street when walking around Tirana. Coffee culture is huge here, whether it is meeting friends or even for business meetings.

It might surprise you to see that it’s not unusual for people to grab coffee at 10pm either, all coffee shops are open late, and busy too.

Flat whites do not exist in Albania and your options generally are an espresso, latte, americano or cappuccino. 

I personally found that Albanian coffee is very much an acquired taste; it is always served lukewarm as apparently the locals don’t like their coffee hot. There are 2 chains; Mulliri and Sophie Caffe and we found the same at both of those places which was very disappointing.

14. Take your own oat milk!

Oat milk doesn’t exist in Albania and so the biggest of my Albania travel tips is to take your own – particularly if you are vegan. 

The chain coffee shops have soya milk as a dairy-free option, but I personally don’t like soya milk and found it too sweet here regardless. The independent places only serve cows milk as standard.

In fact, the only good coffee we had during our entire time in Tirana was at the breakfast buffet at the Rogner. This speaks volumes as hotel breakfast buffets generally serve very mediocre coffee in my experience. This was not the case here.

15. Communicating is easy 

Many Albanians speak good English; mostly the younger generation and in Tirana, at least. 

Albanian is a language like no other and it isn’t easy to try and say even the basics like please and thank you in Albanian. The Albanian alphabet has 36 letters – 10 more than the English alphabet, to give you an example of how difficult their language is!

Italian is the second most widely spoken foreign language in Albania.

16. Take care crossing the roads

Albanians have a reputation for their manic driving and crossing the road can be stressful in itself. 

Jaywalking is a thing here and people don’t cross when they see the road is clear. You have to stand and wait, and believe me, waiting for the green signal is quite a long process. 

Watch out for the bikes while standing on the street too! On some of the larger roads, there will be a bike path alongside it that isn’t always clearly visible. You need to stay off that as bike riders will just ride right up to you and stare at you until you move to let them pass.

17. Albanian people are very welcoming

I wouldn’t say Albanians are necessarily warm people, but they are welcoming to tourists. 

Although the country was almost cut off from the world until the 1990s, people here are willing to help and are very friendly when you approach them. I noticed a lot of similarities between the people here and those in Vilnius too.

18. Raki is (apparently) the answer to everything 

Good day? Drink raki. 

Bad day? Drink raki. 

Don’t feel well? Drink raki. 

Have something to celebrate? Drink raki. 

For Albanians, raki is the answer to everything and you will find it everywhere – but what is it? 

Raki is an intense aromatic liquor that’s very similar to grappa, as it is made from grape pomace. It is often flavoured with aniseed. You’ll find it throughout Albania and the Balkans.

Personally, it wasn’t for me. It has the liquoricey taste of ouzo and sambuca; all the things I am not keen on.

There are so many quirky bars in Tirana to discover. Try it for yourself and see!

In fact, I actually much preferred Žalios Devynerios in Lithuania closely followed by Riga black balsam in Latvia.

19. There are more Albanians outside the country than in it

This is a fact many locals took pleasure in telling us! Albania is a small country with around 3 million inhabitants and most of them are in the capital, Tirana. 

While Albanians are all very proud of their country, it’s evident that the younger generation are all desperate to move to neighbouring European countries in search of better jobs and higher wages. Visa restrictions mean they can only leave for 3 months at a time, and so they do.. frequently. 

I get the impression they feel as though they are ‘stuck’ in Tirana and love to tell stories of their time living in France, Belgium, Greece and stories of their relatives living in the UK.

20. Albanians might question why you’re actually there

“Why would you come here when you could go anywhere else?” Albanians kept asking us. From taxi drivers to waiters and retail staff, they were all incredulous that we were visiting their country. 

Not in a bad way.

The questions came more from a place of surprise – and there were lots of them.

Albanians simply appear to refuse to believe their country can be a tourist destination.

Is Albania worth visiting?

I’m going to be very honest here. I personally don’t think Tirana is a bucket list destination and it is not for everyone. I think you’d be happy regardless of whether visited here or not. 

Sure, it makes for a great cheap getaway from Europe. I never regret travelling to any country for my own perspective, so I am glad that I visited. 

I do however, think that Albania as a country is worth visiting for your own perspective; some people love it. I would like to explore more of Albania; namely the Albanian Alps in the north and the Albanian Riviera, Saranda and Berat in the south which are all meant to be stunning.

It’s difficult to judge a country as a whole when you only spend a long weekend in it’s capital city. However, for a lesser known destination, Albania is well worth visiting.

Do I need to dress conservatively in Albania?

Generally speaking, no, you can wear whatever you like in Albania. They are very relaxed here.

There are no specific guidelines to adhere to other than if you plan on visiting any mosques or churches, in which case you need to have your head and/or shoulders and knees covered.

When is the best time to visit Albania?

Due to Albania’s strikingly different landscapes with beaches, mountains and the city, the country experiences all four seasons but temperatures can also greatly vary depending on where you are in the country. 

The best time to visit Albania is during the warmest months; July and August, however these are coincidentally also the most crowded months and combined with European school summer holidays can make for a more expensive trip.

People will be flocking to the Albanian Riviera on the west coast in the summer, and I imagine it isn’t a pleasant time to visit as a tourist.

Where to stay in Albania

As Albania is such an affordable country, there are numerous affordable options available throughout the country. My favourite place to look for accommodation is on booking.com. 

We stayed at the Rogner Hotel in Tirana which was a lovely hotel, in a great location for exploring the city too.

One thing I will say though is that hotel standards do vary from country to country, and while this is one of the most luxurious hotels in Tirana, I have certainly stayed at nicer 5 star properties. Incidentally, the last hotel I stayed at was one of the best.

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Read more about Albania:

• 3 Of The Best Bars In Tirana You Must Visit (One Is A Hidden Gem!)
• The Best Traditional Albanian Dishes For Vegetarians