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The Cold War Tunnel

The Cold War Tunnel

The Cold War Tunnel
3.5
About
The Cold War Museum (also called the Color War Tunnel) is an underground bunker that served as an emergency shelter in the latter part of Albania’s communist era (1944-1990). This bunker, and the innumerable small bunkers found throughout the country, reflects the paranoia of Albanian’s communist dictator, Enver Hoxha. He feared a foreign invasion, especially after Albania’s breakup with Soviet Union in the early 1960s. Built in secret in the early 1970s, the bunker is 800 m long and has 59 rooms. Unlike Tirana’s bunker museum, Gjirokastër’s bunker has been left in its original state, making it less informative but much more atmospheric and genuine. This bunker was designed to accommodate many different functions in case of a nuclear attack. There are rooms for government ministries, local government, interrogators, and party elite, as well as places for sleeping, power generation, and water storage. Much of original furniture was looted from the site in 1990 but pieces still remain.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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  • Annie L
    Edmonton, Canada25 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Perfect
    For 200 lek a person this tour was a nice 30 min info session with a guide that tells you things you wouldn't otherwise know. we had read some people saying it wasn't worth it, but we thought it was perfect. I recommend this is tour if you like history.
    Visited June 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written June 18, 2024
  • Jennifer B
    53 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Well worth a visit!
    Well worth going to see if you’re in gjirokaster. 200 leke per adult, and our 4 and 1 year old were free. Tour took about 20-25 minutes, and tour guide was informative. Also very cool in there compared to mid-day sun!!
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written July 11, 2024
  • PBJ1977
    Walsall, United Kingdom108 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Albanian travels
    Really interesting insight into the exploits of the Albanian leaders during the Cold War. Great value for money at 200 Lek and well worth a visit. The tour takes 30 minutes.
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written July 25, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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.

Popular mentions

3.5
3.5 of 5 bubbles107 reviews
Excellent
32
Very good
30
Average
29
Poor
11
Terrible
5

These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
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Annie L
Edmonton, Canada25 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2024 • Couples
For 200 lek a person this tour was a nice 30 min info session with a guide that tells you things you wouldn't otherwise know. we had read some people saying it wasn't worth it, but we thought it was perfect. I recommend this is tour if you like history.
Written June 18, 2024
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.

Tomas O
Dubai, United Arab Emirates9 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Friends
Tour took 7 mins from start to finish. We were basically walked through and told “this is an important room”, “this is the kitchen” etc with no context or information. The building itself is very cool to see but the tour left a lot to be desired.
Written July 16, 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.

Jennifer B
53 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
Well worth going to see if you’re in gjirokaster. 200 leke per adult, and our 4 and 1 year old were free. Tour took about 20-25 minutes, and tour guide was informative. Also very cool in there compared to mid-day sun!!
Written July 12, 2024
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.

Cesar D
28 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2022 • Couples
The bunker is so interesting but the guide makes that the visit doesn't worth. A guy that explain in 10 second, walk fast, doesn't give time to explore or takes pictures, just walk faster and faster to the exit. The bunker has a lot of possibilities, but not in this way
Written July 12, 2022
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.

PBJ1977
Walsall, UK108 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Couples
Really interesting insight into the exploits of the Albanian leaders during the Cold War. Great value for money at 200 Lek and well worth a visit. The tour takes 30 minutes.
Written July 25, 2024
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.

The Rists
21 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Couples
From reading the mixed reviews, I think it must be luck of the draw whether you get a good tour guide or not. We were unlucky, and got one with no enthusiasm and little information. Bunk d'Art 2 in Tirana was much better. At least it was reasonably cheap and not too long.
Written August 2, 2024
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.

Catherine G
Nice, France2,133 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2024 • Couples
We visited this monument of history. This is only possible on a guided tour. It’s gloomy because everything has remained as it is without renovation. And it's rather chilling. The visit is interesting and I understand better why we can't do it alone. It’s a real maze… and it’s slippery because it’s very humid.
Google
Written June 14, 2024
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.

Ellen M
Hong Kong, China27 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2018 • Solo
If Besian is the same person, that’s very weird !!!
I go by myself with the guide, claimed Besian at 16:35, come out at 16:44.
He reads the names of room, starts to tell me not taking many photos when I just take the first one, unwilling to answer questions or just gives very short answer, shows no incentive to guide but runs, basically, throughout. He is in a rush of what??? I read several people comment him very well. But to me, travel through 52 countries and follow many local tour before, I have never experienced such thing before. I even asked him if I could slowly walk inside which obviously indicate his impatience.....
I am very disappointed. If there is a choice, I prefer to pay 500-800 lev to have a 30 minutes clear explanation and free asking tour.
Recall I did 5 hours local tour in Serbia and Bossina, both are very professional young guys with enthusiasm, everyone (I guess) give great tips.
I show happy face all the way, why this guide behaves this way?
Written July 23, 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.

Lorena
Tirana, Albania120 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2019 • Couples
For everyone attracted by the Cold War and the history of the dictatorial regime in Albania, the cold war tunnel is a must see attraction. Opened for the turists in Gjirokastra, is a place where you can get in touch with the past and experience a very important place of the history of the stone city.
Written June 30, 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.

Pontus H
Lund, Sweden33 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2018 • Family
We had guide that knew a lot about the tunnel and it's purpose but he was quite bored. When entering he asked if we had lights in our phones due to lack of working light in the tunnel. It was only broken light bulbs so it seems that the don't care about the tunnel. The guide didn't have any light. It felt quite poor in presentation eve if he knew when you asked.
Written July 23, 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.

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The Cold War Tunnel, Gjirokaster

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