Albania

[AlfieMoon]

@Barney Rubble , and anyone else that wants to chip in.  (I remember you posting in lead up to Scotland playing there)

St. Mirren possible trip to play Vllaznia in Shkodër next week. Valur of Iceland currently tied at 2-2 with them from first leg and the 2nd leg in Albania on Thursday in high 30’s temperature! 
 

Any current tips for Tirana / Shkodër?  I’ve got provisional flights to Bari for a night then hop over to Tirana. Was thinking 1 night there, then 2 nights in Shkodër.
 

Other route I’d looked at was via Podgorica but I’d read that the city itself wasn’t as interesting as the region, although the road to Shkodër was maybe better. Overall I thought it would’ve been unfortunate to miss out on Tirana. 

Edited July 16, 2024 by AlfieMoon

[Barney Rubble]

Hi Alfie,

Ryanair do direct flights from Edinburgh to Tirana, so that could be a consideration for you rather than going Bari-Durres-Tirana-Shkoder. Tirana-Shkoder alone is about 3 hours by bus.

Podgorica would be easier from a logistical point of view as it is 90 minutes by car/bus to Shkoder and almost completely dual carriageway. Podgorica is certainly a much smaller city than Tirana and therefore considerably less vibrant. Still a pleasant enough place though. Shkoder itself id lively enough with a central pedestrian precinct with several good bars and excellent seafood restaurants. The castle is worth a visit too.

Tourism to Albania has gone viral since the end of the pandemic. I still visit every few months and it is noticeably busier with more foreign parties and tour guides etc throughout spring and summer. Big difference from when Motherwell played in Vlora 15 or so years ago.

Happy to help with any other questions you may have.

[AlfieMoon]

31 minutes ago, Barney Rubble said:

Hi Alfie,

Ryanair do direct flights from Edinburgh to Tirana, so that could be a consideration for you rather than going Bari-Durres-Tirana-Shkoder. Tirana-Shkoder alone is about 3 hours by bus.

Podgorica would be easier from a logistical point of view as it is 90 minutes by car/bus to Shkoder and almost completely dual carriageway. Podgorica is certainly a much smaller city than Tirana and therefore considerably less vibrant. Still a pleasant enough place though. Shkoder itself id lively enough with a central pedestrian precinct with several good bars and excellent seafood restaurants. The castle is worth a visit too.

Tourism to Albania has gone viral since the end of the pandemic. I still visit every few months and it is noticeably busier with more foreign parties and tour guides etc throughout spring and summer. Big difference from when Motherwell played in Vlora 15 or so years ago.

Happy to help with any other questions you may have.

Good man, cheers! 
 

The Icelandic team are still the bookies favourites for the 2nd leg, so we may still end up there instead but I fancy the Albanians. 

The direct flight from EDI is sold out for Monday which I found bizarre. I can’t imagine there’s enough buddies taking a punt on it to sell out. It also had availability for £145 one minute and I checked an hour later and it said sold out. 🤷🏻‍♂️ That was a few days ago. 

 

Good to hear nice things above Tirana and Shkodër. Flight from Bari across to TIA was only £30 so that was the planned transport across and means I get decent time in Tirana and Shkodër. Podgorica might have been more sensible given what you’ve said about roads, but I’ll maybe get there another time. 
 

Now just wait for the inevitable of us ending up in Iceland instead with huge price difference and nae tickets. 😂

[Barney Rubble]

Shkoder is one place St Mirren will not be visiting next week.

Valur 3-0 up before half time.

Would love to see the local betting patterns on that one.................

[AlfieMoon]

3 hours ago, Barney Rubble said:

Shkoder is one place St Mirren will not be visiting next week.

Valur 3-0 up before half time.

Would love to see the local betting patterns on that one.................

Alas, it’s not to be. 
 

Valur were favourites for both games and did look better in the first leg before Vllaznia got into the game. 
 

A wee bit disappointed as it would’ve been a good adventure to Albania and somewhere I hadn’t been. 
 

Onwards to Reykjavik again. 3rd visit to there. Hopefully positive results like the 2 Scotland games. 🤞

[Bzzzz]

On 7/16/2024 at 2:03 PM, Barney Rubble said:

Hi Alfie,

Ryanair do direct flights from Edinburgh to Tirana, so that could be a consideration for you rather than going Bari-Durres-Tirana-Shkoder. Tirana-Shkoder alone is about 3 hours by bus.

Podgorica would be easier from a logistical point of view as it is 90 minutes by car/bus to Shkoder and almost completely dual carriageway. Podgorica is certainly a much smaller city than Tirana and therefore considerably less vibrant. Still a pleasant enough place though. Shkoder itself id lively enough with a central pedestrian precinct with several good bars and excellent seafood restaurants. The castle is worth a visit too.

Tourism to Albania has gone viral since the end of the pandemic. I still visit every few months and it is noticeably busier with more foreign parties and tour guides etc throughout spring and summer. Big difference from when Motherwell played in Vlora 15 or so years ago.

Happy to help with any other questions you may have.

Last time we played Albania I hired a car from the airport at Podgorica and the drive was fine, the drive out of Tirana was less so but getting to and from Shkoder was easy enough. 

[slasher]

I’m planning a long weekend in Tirana next May. I’m thinking maybe a wee day trip to Durres with a possible overnight stay. Worth doing or is there somewhere else I should consider not too far from Tirana?

[Barney Rubble]

Hi Slasher - Durres is better done as a day trip IMO. It's 45 minutes from Tirana, and in my experience doesn't really have enough going for it to warrant an overnight stay, unless overdeveloped tourism is your thing.

For an overnighter, I'd suggest Berat (inland, but is a picturesque iUNESCO heritage site}, Vlora (on the coast, touristy but with good bars snd restaurants) or Shkodra (good mix of culture and hospitality). All are about 2-2.5 hours from Tirana.

[slasher]

On 7/24/2024 at 5:54 PM, Barney Rubble said:

Hi Slasher - Durres is better done as a day trip IMO. It's 45 minutes from Tirana, and in my experience doesn't really have enough going for it to warrant an overnight stay, unless overdeveloped tourism is your thing.

For an overnighter, I'd suggest Berat (inland, but is a picturesque iUNESCO heritage site}, Vlora (on the coast, touristy but with good bars snd restaurants) or Shkodra (good mix of culture and hospitality). All are about 2-2.5 hours from Tirana.

Cheers @Barney Rubble. 
 

What are the transport links like to Berat, Vlora & Shkodra?

[Barney Rubble]

3 hours ago, slasher said:

Cheers @Barney Rubble. 
 

What are the transport links like to Berat, Vlora & Shkodra?

Here's a comprehensive and helpful guide Slasher: https://sandaltanman.com/a-detailed-guide-to-albania-buses/

[slasher]

10 hours ago, Barney Rubble said:

Here's a comprehensive and helpful guide Slasher: https://sandaltanman.com/a-detailed-guide-to-albania-buses/

Cheers Barney 👍

[slasher]

No sign of Ryanair flights yet, I’m hoping they haven’t binned off the route 🤔

[slasher]

Needn’t have worried, flights came oot last night and just booked it. Feck it!

[Barney Rubble]

8 hours ago, slasher said:

Needn’t have worried, flights came oot last night and just booked it. Feck it!

Good on you!

You'll enjoy it!! Looking forward to your reports post-visit!