Recently, the operator of the Mt. Dajti cable car system changed their bicycle policy, prohibiting transport of bicycles up the mountain. The ride organizer reached out to me asking if I'd like to cancel, or potentially take a bus up instead. Taking a city bus is definitely a different experience but, for someone visiting Tirana for the first time, seeing how the bus system works was just as interesting to me so I accepted the offer. Riding from the meeting spot through the city to the bus was fun, and reminded me of riding in other busy cities. Though, this part of the ride might not be as enjoyable for someone that isn't accustomed to it. Squeezing the bikes in the 'trunk' of the bus, conversation during the ride up, and the amazing views all added to the experience. Because of the travel method and route change, we didn't reach the mountain top restaurant where the cable car terminates. If that's something you're particularly interested in, make sure to ask if it can be included. The weather was perfect, and the ride down was exhilarating and beautiful. My tour guide was very familiar with the route and knew the lines to take through the corners which made it extra fun to follow his lead. After the descent we followed a meandering route back to the center of Tirana that had us visit a lake where we stopped for lunch and relaxed conversation. Then through developing (expensive) neighborhoods, university neighborhoods, and eventually to the Grand Park of Tirana for another stop by the water. In the park there are paved trails and some mild off-road single track. At every break the tour guide checked in, and he always set the pace based on my comfort level. A good thing because I'm definitely as skilled a rider as he. The bike supplied fit me well and I got the impression, based on quesitons asked ahead of time, that if something different were needed the tour company could have provided. All in all, I have nothing but positive memories of the day and would do the same ride again in an instant. If I find myself back here again with others, I'll likely try to schedule a group tour of some sort. That is to say, it wasn't just a good experience, it was an experience so good that I'd like to share it with others.

Beautifully laid out history of Albania. Covers ancient history to modern day. Wonderful artefacts with excellent descriptions .

Fun museum to visit in Tirana. Albania has a very interesting history and this is a way to learn about some of it.

Such a big museum for a relatively small area. Mainly domestic data with about %40 English explanations. No leaflet no guide which is bad. Inside was much colder than outside. There were skips within the historical flow. Anyway should be seen. Demosthenes sculptor was touching.

This was our first hike ever. So my wife and I were a bit nervous. Some said hiking boots were essential others that you could do it without. We only had sneakers and my wife’s were a bit worn. As it turned out, mine was fine, but my wife’s were very slippey and though it wasn’t exactly dangerous it was sheer luck see didn’t fall on the small pebbles and hurt herself slightly. Then there is the question of cafes. Other hikers told us that only was was operating the day before but when we did it, one on each side was open with toilet facilities. Also there is mineral water running out various places readily drinkable. We are very cautious in that regard but everyone said it was perfectly safe which is was. Ice cold and delicious. We carried 1 1/2 l. each and it enought. This was in July and the tempersture was around 25 degrees. The view from the top is magnificent. Not much wildlife, bugs, etc. I would highly reccomend starting from Theth as the action starts right away. If you begin from Valbone you will walk for hours before anything gets interesting and by then you might already feel a little tired, which I suppose would be a shame. If you do start from Theth, as we did I would reccommend spending the 30 € we spend to be driven by 4x4 Jeep to the very start. We had booked the guest house fartest away from the trail and taking the drive made you stsrt at the actual action right away, which I thought was great. I thought 30 € was expensive until after the ride. It is definitely worth the expense. We downloaded the trail on maps.me in case we should get lost. Works without any internet connection. But we didn’t use it at all. The trail is clearly marked with red/white lines so we never had any doubts whether or not we were lost. And we saw old people in their 60’s who definitely looked out of shape, so there is really no excuse. A fine day in nature. We took it real easy with long stops to take it all in and we did it in around 9 hours. Enjoy!

Fantastic trip. The guides were really great and very informative. Good quality bikes. Cable car was good fun too. Would thoroughly recommend

I have travelled with one of my best friends to Albania in July and August 2021. I found the country very interesting. Last days of our trip, we stayed for one night in Gjirokaster which i found beyond charming. Probably you should consider around 2 nights if you want to have a thorough feel of the town. The prices are really attractive, the old ottoman town is classy, the view is great. You can go up on the hills and have a spectacular view of the valley filled with old ottoman stone houses. Far down on the bottom of the cauldron that mountains create, you can see the new town with quite communist buildings. On the other side, a spectacular landscape shows off - typical mountains, little covered with trees. The view is fantastic. I totally recommend this town for people that want to really want to take a break from the agitated western world. The city has the sweetest balkan vibe with grape arcades over the terraces of the restaurants, sweet breeze, figues, flowers. The ottoman vibe which is very authentic here (as it is in the city of Berat) makes the experience very exotic. Prices are very good so you can take advantage of lux hotels with magnificent views. Dont forget to eat their balls of rice with mint which are very good, a very interesting taste. I would definitely come back from time to time, for quality and low cost vacations here.

We did not pick Dorien Malaj as our guide in Albania; we were matched up by one of the travel industry’s many anonymous middle men—but the moment we actually met Dorien, we knew we had gotten lucky. He was quick to identify our particular interests and to adjust accordingly. Our focus in Albania was their “accursed mountains” in the north east. We expected that in getting from Dubrovnik to Albania, Montenegro would be little more than a “drive through”. However, Dorien took us on a stunning mountain route that included the two beautiful but very different towns of Kotor and Cetinje, which really put Montenegro on the map for us, an added bonus. Dorien was so well-informed and happy to share both the hard facts and the subtle cultural nuances we were observing. His interactions with local people were very interesting to observe, and his background in Psychology gave him an interesting perspective, greatly enhancing our experience. His personal interests were so varied and wide, and that made looking through his eyes very stimulating for us and made conversation very productive. There was no subject off limits—about either Albania or the US. Dorien has a nice sense of humor that seemed to match ours…so that we had lots of fun together, too. It was a very easy and open relationship.

Can’t say enough about how informative this tour was. It gave us a great understanding of Albania and the Balkans. If you are looking for a number of photo opportunities this may not be the trip for you; however, if you want to drive through a beautiful mountain land scape and have an in depth history lesson, book this tour. Highly recommend.

I have been in Albania, for some time only, last year...and now ,here I am, back to Albania ..in Durres , accompagnied by some friends! We had beautiful moments for ourselves , feeling special, the Adriatic Sea warmly inviting us to ..try it😏! The goldy warm softy sand, too! Not to mention any kind of tasty food ! Really great ..and worthy to visit it 😇

We couldn’t fault this day excursion. Pricier than other excursions but so many components made it a memorable day. Picked up 6:35an arrived back at hotel 8pm. Coach to Corfu Town (worth visit on it’s own by local bus. The old town is the place to see.) then boat to Albania took 70mins. Taken to Restaurant for refreshments. Price of drinks extra but relatively low cost compared with Kavos. Then on to an archaeological site with some lovely scenery. Ruins can be boring. The young guide we had was very well prepared and bought the place alive with descriptions and explanations of each area.Again the views were beautiful. We then went to lunch at the restaurant stopped at earlier. With exception of drinks, all food was included. Buffet meal which was excellent. Off to a castle then and spectacular views from the high vantage point. Back to the town for 75min free time. Very built up but, like Corfu, not many shops. Then back to port and Corfu. It was enough to make us want to visit this once war torn country again for longer time. €48/person plus €10/person like visitor tax.

I joined a walking tour in Albania and our guide Dori was brilliant; he has a wealth of knowledge and passion for Albania and he was able to show us a side of Albania that I don't think any of us on the tour could ever have imagined. He led us confidently on all of the hikes using his local knowledge and contacts to ensure we got an authentic taste of Albania. On the more cultural side of the tour he was able to give us so much information on the history of the country and could easily augment the information that was being given by the local guides. I would have no issue recommending Sondor Travel if you are planning a trip to Albania.

I went as an individual joining a group of other adventurers from UK and USA on a 9 day tour.... Most of us had no idea what to expect of Albania but we had a wonderful time led by the amazing Dori. We saw and trekked in, beautiful countryside; met generous, welcoming people; stuffed ourselves on fabulous food and stayed in great hotels/guesthouses in superb locations. The ethos of the company seems to be to spread the word about what a wonderful country Albania is - and I can only agree wholeheartedly

In March, 2016, I organized a trip for fourteen persons from Hong Kong to visit Albania, Meteora, Macedonia, Kosovo and Montenegro. The company we used was Sondor Tours, and our guide was Dorien Malaj, its owner. I don't normally rate travel agencies, but this is an exception. From our first correspondence to our visit, Dorien fulfilled our assignment with professional dedication, skill and charm despite the fact that his father had just passed away shortly before our visit. We went through and reviewed the entire itinerary, dissected each hotel and made some changes to our liking, rerouted the trip several times, and that entailed much additional work, as hotel dates had to be juggled every time we moved the itinerary. Not once did he complain. During the tour, he was patient, courteous, knowledgeable, succinct, punctual; he was also congenial and humourous, and his love of people and travel shows through the quality of his tour. His recommendations were 99% spot on - the one exception was that we ought to have stayed in Meteora for two nights instead of one, which he has now fixed for subsequent tours based on our shared experience. His choice of hotels was always the best in the area, and the restaurants he recommended were superb. His knowledge of history, politics and geography was also first class, and what's more, he was not afraid to share his views with us, as an Albanian, and yet with impartiality even when we were visiting the Serbian sights and discussing the recent events. Because of our group size, we found in the beginning that our travel bus was too small; no problem, he chartered a larger bus from elsewhere to arrive in Tirana on the day we started our journey so that we would be more comfortable, at extra cost, but it relieved us from twelve days of discomfort. The tour itself offers the travellers stunning visits to Meteora, Butrinti, Lake Ohrid, Kotor, the Valbona Mountains, the Visoki Decani, balanced with a visit to a Kosovo village that suffered from a recent massacre, and at a great value. For travellers curious for the offbeat places, this is a real gem. Go now, before Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia become overcrowded. https://en.tripadvisor.com.hk/ShowUserReviews-g294446-d10190845-r376037409-Travel_Albania-Tirana.html#