Most visits to Albania
are now trouble-free. Tiranė and Durrės are quite safe,
but check with the Foreign Office's travel advice
website,
www.fco.gov.uk,
before visiting some parts of Albania, particularly the border
regions in the North-East of the country.
Page last
updated:
6 June 2010. Train times valid
from 13 June to 11 December 2010.
Visiting Albania
The statue of Skėnderbeg, Albania's national hero,
in Skėnderbeg Square in Tiranė
Albania, which Albanians
call Shqipėria or 'Land of the Eagles', was once the most
mysterious country in Europe. It became a Stalinist
dictatorship in 1946, and for decades it was almost
completely shut off from the rest of the world. But
things have changed. The Communist regime was
overturned in 1991, and in spite of well-publicised troubles
in 1992 and again in 1997, most of Albania is now quite safe
to visit - you can check with
www.fco.gov.uk.
Albania is easy to reach by train and ferry, and EU citizens
don't even need a visa - there is just a token
entry tax to pay. It's a fascinating country that will
challenge your pre-conceptions of things Albanian.
There are some photographs of what
you might see in Albania at the bottom of this page.
There are no international passenger trains between Albania and
the rest of Europe, and travel in
some of the border regions is inadvisable, so the fastest
and easiest way to reach Albania is to take a train to
Bari in Italy and sail overnight to Durrės on the daily
Tirrenia Line ferry. The journey from London to
Albania is quite straightforward and comfortable, and can
all be booked from the UK:
London ► Tiranė
Travel from
London to Paris by
Eurostar, leaving London
St Pancras at 14:04 and arriving in Paris Gare
du Nord at 17:26. By all means take an earlier
Eurostar if it has cheaper seats available or if you'd
like to spend some time in Paris. Cross Paris by métro to the
Gare
de Bercy.
Travel from Paris to Bologna overnight on the 'Palatino', leaving
Paris at 18:52 and arriving in Bologna at 05:58 next
morning. The Palatino has sleeping-cars with 1, 2 &
3-bed rooms, modern 4-berth 'comfort' couchette and
standard 6-berth couchettes -
click
here for an illustrated guide to on-board accommodation on
this train. The station buffet at Bologna serves
good strong coffee!
Travel from Bologna to Bari on a
modern,
air-conditioned Eurostar City train, leaving Bologna at
09:50 and arriving in Bari at 15:35. In Bari, it's a reasonable
25 minutes walk across town to the ferry terminal near
the old city, or you can take a taxi. Bari's old
town is well worth a wander, it was the birthplace of St
Nicholas (Santa Claus, no less!).
Sail from Bari to Durrės in Albania on the overnight
Tirrenia Line (formerly Adriatica Line) passenger ship. The ship sails daily from Bari
ferry terminal at 23:00,
arriving in Durrės at 08:00 next morning. A range of
comfortable cabins is available.
Alternatively, Agoudimos
Lines also sail overnight Bari-Durrės 3-5 times per
week, to a similar schedule. Another option is
www.venezialines.com, who operate fast ferries from
Bari to Durrės in only 3 hours 30 minutes, but these
may leave too early for train connections, or get you
to Durrės late at night, so see what's available.
There are
eight trains a day from Durrės to Tiranė (Tirana),
see the
timetable below. The 09:50 from Durrės will get
you to Tirana at
10:49.
2-berth
cabin with shower/WC aboard the 'Sansovino'.
Tirrenia Line (formerly Adriatica
Line) operates daily overnight sailings Bari-Durrės.
This is the 'Sansovino' at Durrės.
At sea in
the Adriatic...
Tiranė ► London
Sail from Durrės to Bari
overnight on the
Tirrenia
Line ship, leaving Durrės at
23:00 and arriving Bari at 08:30 next morning. A
range of cabins is available. Alternatively, try Agoudimos
Lines or
www.venezialines.com.
Travel from Bari to Bologna by
air-conditioned Eurostar City train, leaving Bari at
13:29 and arriving in Bologna at 19:14.
Special fare = Book at
least 14 days in advance for couchettes, 30 days for sleepers.
Limited places available at these prices, no refunds, no changes
to travel plans.
Normal fare = Refundable and flexible.
There are no senior or youth reductions.
Child fare = Child 4-11 years with own berth.
Return fare twice the one-way fare. Use an adult
special fare if it's cheaper! Children under 4 free, if
they share a bed with an adult.
Railpass fare: What you pay if you have
railpasses (Eurail, Interrail, etc) covering both
Italy & France. If your pass only covers one country,
there's a higher supplement.
Prices from
www.raileurope.co.uk..
Bookings open 90 days before departure.
On certain summer & other peak dates, 10-20% higher
fares may be charged.
Return
fare, including a basic cabin berth in 2, 3, or
4-berth inside cabin with washbasin: £82 low
season, £99 high season (July-September).
With a berth in a 2, 3, or 4-berth outside cabin
with shower & WC: about £125 return in high
season. 50% supplement for single
occupancy. With just a reclining seat, the
fare is about £75
return in the high season. Check current fares
at
www.tirrenia.it
or
www.agoudimos-lines.com.
How to buy tickets...
Above: The 09:30 to Durrės
at Tiranė.
Step 1, book the ferry
by calling Tirrenia Line's UK agents, SMS Travel & Tourism, on
020 7244
8422. SMS
Travel & Tourism have an online reservation system and can normally
confirm your reservation there and then. You can confirm prices and sailing times on the
Tirrenia
Line website,
www.tirrenia.it, but can't yet (except possibly in
Italian) book
online. Alternatively, you can book Agoudimos Lines and Venezia
Lines ferries online either at the
Seat61 Ferry Shop or at the operator's own websites, www.agoudimos-lines.com
& www.venezialines.com.
Step 2, book the trains from London to Paris & Paris to
Bologna. It's easiest and cheapest to book online,
following the detailed instructions in the
London to Florence section of
the London to Italy page and using either
www.raileurope.co.uk
(in English, for UK residents, tickets sent to any UK
address) or
www.voyages-sncf.com (for any user, in several
languages, English button at the bottom, tickets sent to any
address in Europe, fares in euro).
Step 3, book the Bologna to Bari train. The
easiest way is to stay on
www.raileurope.co.uk,
click 'continue shopping' and book it there. However,
you can save a pound or two by booking direct with Italian
Railways at
www.trenitalia.com, if you can get it to accept your
UK-issued credit card (some it accepts, some it doesn't!). You pay by credit card and
simply quote your reservation reference to the conductor on
the train. Before using
www.trenitalia.com, see
the advice on using
it. The Trenitalia website has been known to
struggle with some UK-issued credit cards, so if you have
any difficulties, try booking at
www.raileurope.co.uk.
Alternatively, you can book the trains by phone with any European rail
agency, such as Ffestiniog
Travel on 01766
512 340 or Rail
Europe on 0844 848 5 848.
Click
here for a list of
agencies and other information on how to book.
Above: The view from the train from Durrės
& Tiranė to Pogradec. Photo courtesy of Gabriel Chew
Travelling by train in
Albania is an experience not to be missed. Second hand
coaches from Italy, Austria or Germany hauled by Czech-built diesels clickety-clack across the countryside at about 35 mph.
Don't be surprised by torn seats or broken windows, but
then, what do you expect for 50p? You can check
these train times
at
www.hsh.com.al (if it's working), but please also
double-check locally. All trains are one class only.
Durrės ► Tiranė
Durrės
depart
06:10
08:45
09:50
13:00
15:55
17:30
18:35
Tiranė
arrive
07:10
09:45
10:49
14:01
17:01
18:30
19:35
Tiranė ► Durrės
Tiranė
depart
05:55
07:30
08:30
14:10
14:45
16:15
20:00
Durrės
arrive
06:53
08:30
09:28
15:08
15:42
17:12
20:57
Tiranė
& Durrės
► Shkodėr
Shkodėr
► Durrės
& Tiranė
Tiranė
depart
-
13:15
Shkodėr
depart
05:55
-
Durrės
*
depart
13:00
|
Milot
depart
07:31
-
Vorė
arrive
13:35
13:40
Vorė
arrive
08:45
-
Vorė
depart
-
13:45
Vorė
depart
08:57
08:54
Milot
arrive
-
15:02
Durrės
*
arrive
|
09:28
Shkodėr
arrive
-
16:42
Tiranė
arrive
09:21
-
* to / from Durrės, change at Vora.
Tiranė
& Durrės
► Vlorė & Elbasan
Elbasan
& Vlorė ►
Durrės
& Tiranė
Tiranė
depart
0555
1410
1445
Vlorė
depart
-
0540
-
Durrės
depart
0707
1525
1600
Fier
depart
-
0650
-
Rrogozhinė
arrive
0818
1638
1712
Lushnjė
depart
-
0748
-
Elbasan
arrive
0938
1755
|
Pogradec
depart
-
|
1250
Pogradec
arrive
1232
-
|
Elbasan
depart
0600
|
1555
Lushnjė
arrive
-
-
1745
Rrogozhinė
depart
0648
0822
1712
Fier
arrive
-
-
1843
Durrės
arrive
0828
0935
1820
Vlorė
arrive
-
-
1955
Tiranė
arrive
0945
1049
1935
Fares & buying tickets...
Fares are incredibly cheap -
Durrės to Tiranė one-way costs 70 Lek, or about 50p.
Durrės to Shkodėr is 160 Lek, about £1. Tickets are not sold in advance, but only for the next
train.
What are Albanian trains like?
Trains offer one class
only. Some trains use decrepit second-hand Italian coaches
with a side-corridor and compartments, like the ones
shown below on
the 14:15 train from Tiranė to Durrės.
Other trains use slightly newer second-hand Austrian
coaches with open seating, like these on the
09:30 Tiranė to Durrės. There are also now
many second-hand German suburban coaches too.
Above
left, the statue of Skėnderbeg, Albania's national
hero, in Skėnderbeg Square in the centre of
Tiranė. George Kastrioti (1405-1468) was an
Albanian who at a very young age was handed over to
the Turks as a hostage. The Turks converted
him to Islam and gave him a military education in
Edirne in Turkey, where he became known as
'Alexander' ('Iskėnder') after Alexander the
Great. He was made a lord ('bey') by the Turks
before he turned against them, driving them out of
Albania. 'Iskėnder' + 'bey' =
'Skėnderbeg'. Above right, the communist mural on
the front of the National History Museum on Skėnderbeg Square.
Above
left, the former residence of Enver Hoxha
(pronounced 'Hodja') in Tiranė. Enver Hoxha
was Albania's president and dictator from 1946 until his
death in 1985. Above right, the former Enver
Hoxha museum, now home to several cafes.
Albania aligned itself with the USSR from 1944 until
1960, when the two countries fell out over
Khruschev's demands for a Soviet submarine base at
Vlorė. In 1961, Albania broke off diplomatic
relations with the USSR and re-aligned itself with
the Peoples Republic of China.
Above: The mosque of Ethem Bey, dating from 1793, on
Skėnderbeg Square in Tiranė. The clock tower
next to it dates from 1830.
There
are some 750,000 of these small concrete bunkers all
over the Albanian countryside. The bunkers
were built on the orders of Enver Hoxha after the Soviet
invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.
The
Roman amphitheatre in Durrės, dating from the 2nd
century AD and first excavated in around 1960.
The
historic town of Kruja is 38km from Tiranė, and can
be reached by minibus-taxi in about an hour.
Skėnderbeg made Kruja his capital from 1443 to 1468.
The 14:15
train from Tiranė to Durrės calls at Vora.
'They went
that-a-way...' A statue in Durrės.
The Thomas Cook European Timetable
The
Thomas Cook European timetable
has train & ferry times for every country in Europe plus currency
& climate
information. Published since 1873, it costs £13.99.
It's essential for any serious traveller
and an inspiration for armchair travellers. Still
not convinced you need one? More information
on what the Thomas Cook Timetable contains. You can
buy the latest monthly edition online at
www.thomascooktimetables.com with worldwide delivery or
buy it in person from any UK branch of Thomas Cook (ask at the
bureau de change), or from W H Smiths in Victoria or Kings
Cross stations in London.
Or
buy the twice-yearly independent traveller's edition with
laminated cover from Amazon.co.uk:
Summer 2010 edition (June to December 2010)
The Thomas Cook Rail Map of
Europe is the best and most comprehensive
map of train routes right across Europe, from Portugal in the
west to Istanbul, Moscow & Ukraine in the east, from Finland
in the north to Sicily & Crete in the south. High speed
&
scenic routes are highlighted. Highly recommended!
Buy online
at
www.amazon.co.uk
(worldwide delivery).
See an extract from
the map.
You
can pre-book hotels in Albania using
www.hotelscombined.com, just use the search box
below. This is not a hotel booking website, but a free search tool
which checks all the main hotel booking sites for you (AsiaRooms,
Opodo, Expedia, Travelocity, LateRooms and many others) to
find the cheapest hotel rates on the net. Set up in
2005, it's an amazing system and probably the best place to
start for booking any hotel online in any country, worldwide.
For reviews an inside info, see
Tripadvisor.com's Albania page.
Never travel without insurance from a
reliable travel insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover. It should also cover loss of
cash (up to a limit) and belongings, and cancellation. An annual
multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip
policies even for just 2 or 3 trips
a year (I have an annual policy myself). Here are some suggested insurers.
Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these
links.
If you live in the UK, get quotes from
Columbus Direct or
Go Travel Insurance, or go to
Confused.com to run a price comparison on a whole range of
travel insurance providers for your dates of travel, seeing
their policy's features at a glance.
Don't expect travel insurance to bail you out of every missed
connection, but European international rail conditions of
carriage (known as the 'CIV') contain consumer protection
provisions that entitle you to travel forward by the next
available train if you miss a connection because of a delay to
the first train, irrespective of who operates which train, and
even if your ticket is in theory train-specific and
non-changeable.
Feedback from using
insurance for rail & ferry travel is always welcome.
If you're a
UK citizen travelling in Europe, you should apply for a free
European Health Insurance Card, which entitles you to free or
reduced rate health care if you become ill or get injured in
many European countries, under a reciprocal arrangement with
the NHS. This replaced the old E111 forms
as from January 2006. The EHIC card is available from
www.ehic.org.uk. It doesn't remove the need for
travel insurance, though.
Get a pre-paid euro currency MasterCard from Caxton FX...
You can save money on ATM charges and exchange rates using a
Caxton FX euro currency MasterCard, or indeed the
multi-currency 'Global Traveller' MasterCard.
Find out about these cards & sign up here.
Get an international SIM card...
Mobile phones can cost a fortune to use abroad, and if you're
not careful you can return home to find some huge bills
waiting for you. I've known people run up over £1,000 in
data charges just by leaving their iPhone connected during a
simple trip to Europe. However, if you
buy a global SIM card for your mobile phone from a company
such as
www.Go-Sim.com you can slash the cost by up to 85% and
limit any damage to the amount you have pre-paid. Go-Sim
cuts call costs in 175 countries worldwide,
and you can receive incoming calls and texts for free in 75 countries. It's pay-as-you-go, so no nasty bills
when you get home. It also allows cheap data access for laptops
& PDAs. A Go-Sim account and any credit on it doesn't
expire if it's not used between trips, unlike some
others, so a Go-Sim phone number becomes your 'global phone
number' for life.
If you live in the UK, get quotes from
If you live in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the
EU, see
If you live in the USA or Canada, see
