Ethnographic Museum
Ethnographic Museum
3.5
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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3.5
187 reviews
Excellent
42
Very good
70
Average
48
Poor
22
Terrible
5
T-SGlobetrotters
Preston, UK3,804 contributions
Sep 2023 • Couples
The building and museum is relatively new but the individual room segments seemed quite disjointed and random. Despite the availability of copious information in each room in English (a little too much to absorb in truth), the displays did not really engage with us, several rooms were quite bare, several media displays were not working and a purported Childrens’ display area was completely empty. At 500 lek , it is also the most expensive of all local attractions and other traditional houses in the village provide much better value for money.
Given this is a relatively new museum, the outcome is disappointing.
Given this is a relatively new museum, the outcome is disappointing.
Written September 30, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
robbe91
Stockholm, Sweden16 contributions
Aug 2017 • Couples
Worth a visit if you're in Gjirokaster since the history about Enver Hoxhas is very interesting and tells you a lot about the history of Albania as well as the current situation. The building was nice to walk around in, in my opinion not very spectacular. If you go here be sure to have a guide since this was by far the best and most interesting part of the tour.
Written August 20, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Travel Man
Crewe, UK350 contributions
Jun 2019 • Solo
Where the dictator Enver Hoxha was born now the local museum showing how middle class people lived. About a dozen rooms to see and good views over the city
Written June 12, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
springbank
Greve, Denmark3,901 contributions
Oct 2018 • Couples
The Ethnographic Museum stands on the site of the home where the former communist dictator Enver Hoxha (from 1944 to 1985) was born. The museum building was constructed in 1966 after the original house was destroyed by fire. The reconstruction was designed as a model traditional Gjirokastra house with many classic features known to have been copied from particular houses around the city.
Therefor the house no longer contains Hoxha’s specific items or original furniture but shows the interior and traditions of the 19th century Albanian high class society. Displays clothing, kitchenware, tools and other cultural artifacts. The museum has different rooms which indicates very clearly the traditional lifestyle of Gjirokastra. They are arranged as they would have actually been used and are decorated with numerous household items, folk costumes and cultural artefacts typical of a wealthy Gjirokastra family of merchants or Ottoman administrators living in the 19th Century.
But be aware of limited written information given, just labels for the rooms but no descriptions, no explanation whatsoever.
The ground floor, predominantly built in stone, was used for the winter. The first floor has traditionally low ceilings and small windows while the second floor, higher than the others and worked mostly in wood, houses the guest room. The third floor holds the most beautiful room of the entire house, called a cameretta: a big, open space with high ceilings, where women chatted and looked out onto the town.
The entrance fee is 200 lekq.
Therefor the house no longer contains Hoxha’s specific items or original furniture but shows the interior and traditions of the 19th century Albanian high class society. Displays clothing, kitchenware, tools and other cultural artifacts. The museum has different rooms which indicates very clearly the traditional lifestyle of Gjirokastra. They are arranged as they would have actually been used and are decorated with numerous household items, folk costumes and cultural artefacts typical of a wealthy Gjirokastra family of merchants or Ottoman administrators living in the 19th Century.
But be aware of limited written information given, just labels for the rooms but no descriptions, no explanation whatsoever.
The ground floor, predominantly built in stone, was used for the winter. The first floor has traditionally low ceilings and small windows while the second floor, higher than the others and worked mostly in wood, houses the guest room. The third floor holds the most beautiful room of the entire house, called a cameretta: a big, open space with high ceilings, where women chatted and looked out onto the town.
The entrance fee is 200 lekq.
Written October 21, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Katrien S
Ghent, Belgium1,944 contributions
May 2018 • Couples
This is the house in which Enver Hoxha was born, and as such was planned to be a museum about him during communist times. As a result some of his objects are still in the house. In the meantime it has become an ethnographic museum, displaying several typical objects in a rather late, and not very sumptuous decorated traditional house. There is no information whatsoever, not even in Albanian. The persons keeping the museum open only speak Albanian, so you will need to guess what items were for, or be lucky that there is an official visit by foreigners.
Written June 15, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tom V
Antwerp, Belgium140 contributions
Aug 2017 • Couples
Happily we visited Skenduli House afterward, otherwise the ethnographic museum would have been disappointing... Now the Skenduli House was the "finishing touch", the crescendo !!!
Written September 9, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Francois v
Nuremberg, Germany135 contributions
Aug 2017 • Family
The museum has been moved to the Hoxha house. Unfortunately, we did not have someone fluent enough to explain the different purpose of the rooms (summer/winter/wedding/cooking/ Muslim treatment of woman/ ....)
As this Is a central museum, IT would be nice to equip them with, at least, English speaking guides.
One more of the main Gjirokaster's houses to visit.
As this Is a central museum, IT would be nice to equip them with, at least, English speaking guides.
One more of the main Gjirokaster's houses to visit.
Written August 1, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LMOverby
Columbia, MO1,769 contributions
Jun 2017 • Solo
Doesn't compare favorably with either the Ethnographic Museum in Berat (which is much better curated) or the nearby Skenduli House (which provides an interesting guided tour). Here you are just left to wander through by yourself, without any guidance or display descriptions.
Written June 25, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Edna_M0de
Loughborough, UK171 contributions
Sep 2016 • Solo
I only visited Gjirokaster for a brief period but it is a delightful place to explore with its winding alleyways and cobbled streets. I was just wandering around fairly aimlessly when I saw the signs for the Ethnographic Museum. I headed in the general direction which is uphill and entered a different world. There is an entrance fee which was negligible and then you step back into the heritage of Albania and Gjirokaster which is fabulous. It is a simple place and like most places I visited in Albania it is total understated. I just kept thinking WOW this is incredible to keep the memory and the heritage of the place alive in such a real but simple setting. If you want entertainment then this is not the place to go but if you like to 'feel' the history in the places you visit then this is definitely a place to visit
Written November 17, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Robin F
Nelson Bay, New South Wales, Australia304 contributions
Aug 2015 • Couples
It was our first visit to an ethnographic museum in Albania and so we were pretty impressed (we saw other museums later that were better). We visited with a guide which was helpful as there were no explanations or brochures to give any explanations. The guide was able to give us the history of the house and to whom it belonged as well as how it was used by the family. In addition I had read a wonderful book "Chronicle in Stone" by Ismail Kadare who was an inhabitant of Gjirokastre and gives the reader an excellent overview of life in one of these houses during WWII.
Written November 12, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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