Albania and Macedonia in a small group

Flight departure to Tirana ( intermediate connections). Arrival at the airport and transfer to the hotel in Berati, known as 'the city of a thousand windows' and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Vehicle journey: 115 km - 1.30 hours approx

In the morning, departure to Butrinto, following the rugged coast of the Ionian Sea, with panoramic views of the islands. Stop at one of the most famous beaches on the Ionian coast of Albania, Gjipe. The path goes down to the beach and takes about 30 minutes. Time to take a bath this time in the Ionian.
We continue to Butrinto to visit its archaeological remains before reaching Gjirokaster, a city that still retains its Ottoman appearance.

Butrint
It is one of the most important monumental and archaeological complexes in Albania and has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The acropolis, the baptistery, the theater and the early Christian basilica stand out. Inhabited since prehistoric times, Butrinto belonged successively to the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Venetians until the end of the Middle Ages, when its decline began. Today, you can visit the remains of the different eras.
Vehicle journey: 170 km
Walk: 1 hour

Breakfast. We will get to know Berati, testimony to the coexistence of different religious and cultural communities throughout the centuries. We will visit the citadel, still inhabited since the 4th century BC, and the Onufri museum, with its 16th century icons.
We continue to Apollonia to visit the archaeological remains.
Continuation to the Llogara National Park . Before arriving at the hotel, stop at some Adriatic beach to take a dip. Accommodation in the park.

Archaeological Remains Of Apollonia
This ancient Greek and Roman colony founded in the 6th century BC was an important economic and cultural center, where the young Roman Emperor Octavian Augustus was educated. The city was abandoned in the early Middle Ages due to a strong earthquake. Today you can see remains of the Odeon, Portico, Theater and the Medieval Monastery of Santa María, which houses the Archaeological Museum.
Vehicle journey: 140 km

After breakfast, visit the historic center , with its imposing citadel and its traditional houses.
Gjirokaster, built by the great landowners (17th and 19th centuries) around the old citadel, was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, and is one of the best preserved Ottoman cities. The city, with typical Balkan Ottoman architecture, is characterized by three-storey tower houses, called kulla (tower) in Turkish, some of them with interior decoration and ornamentation.
Later departure to the small town of Kruj a (3:30 hrs).
En route stop at the monastery of Ardenica (14th century), built on the ruins of the ancient temple of the Greek goddess of hunting Artemis.
Vehicle journey: 220 km

Breakfast and guided tour of the medieval city of Kruja , Ottoman-influenced bazaar and citadel, and museum of Scanderbeg, national hero of the 15th century.
About 4 hours on winding mountain roads, with spectacular views, take us to the hidden valley of Theth, in the heart of the Albanian Alps, with its alpine houses and steep roofs.
Dinner and night in a mountain lodge in the town of Theth.
Vehicle journey: 160 km

Day dedicated to exploring the hidden valley of Theth. We will take a walk around Theth, getting to know the most emblematic points of the town: the church, the Borshi family house built in the 18th century, which today houses the ethnographic museum.
We continue later towards the waterfall of Grumas which is one of the highest in Albania (30 m.) and the village of Nderlysa.
I return to Theth. Dinner at the lodge.
Walk: 4 hours
Slope: +200m -200m

Breakfast. In the morning we will hike for approximately 2 hours to the famous Ojo Azul spring in Kaprea , a place of impressive beauty.
Return to Theth and drive to Shkoder , the largest Catholic and cultural center in the north. A lively city with a friendly atmosphere.
Visit of the historic center with its elegant 19th century houses.
Vehicle journey: 70 km
Walk: 2 hours
Slope: +150 -150m

Departure for Koman to board the ferry and cross Koman Lake to the port of Fierze.
This spectacular route runs through blue waters flanked by a canyon with walls over 400 meters high.
The lake produces all the electrical energy needed in northern Albania.
Transfer by vehicle to Kosovo, the youngest country in Europe, unilaterally independent in 2008, border procedures before arriving at the Deccani Monastery (S.XIV), one of the most beautiful in the country.
Visit and departure to Prizren , a pleasant and lively city with a strong Ottoman influence, with its many mosques and Christian churches.

Time to walk around the city, considered the cultural capital of Kosovo.
Walk through the cobbled streets of the historic center that preserve its oriental flavor: Sinan Pasha 17th century mosque, the old stone bridge and its Christian churches.
Navigation: 2.30 hours approx

Breakfast. We leave for the Republic of Macedonia , one of the six former republics that belonged to Yugoslavia.
A few kilometers from the border is Skopje (2 hours from Prizren), the country's capital. Visit of Macedonia Square with its huge statue of Alexander the Great. Crossing the Ottoman bridge over the Vardar River, a symbol of the city, we enter the old town, with a strong Ottoman influence.
Then we continue between valleys and mountains through the interior of Macedonia arriving at Ohrid (3 hours), a beautiful city declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco, located on the shores of the lake. Known as the Jerusalem of the Balkans , it is home to 365 Orthodox Christian churches from different eras.
Accommodation.
Vehicle journey: 270 km

Breakfast. We will visit on foot the old town of Ohrid: the church of Hagia Sophia (11th century), the ancient theater of the Hellenistic period, the ruins of the ancient university of Saint Clement, founder of the Slavic Cyrillic script in the 9th century. .
We will then take a boat ride on the blue waters of Lake Ohrid.
Transfer by car to the Galichica National Park, located between the two largest lakes in the country: Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa.
Walk around the town of Elsani along a path with gentle slopes with views of the lake, mountains, forests and small towns at our feet.
Lunch in a rural house in the town of Elsani with specialties of local gastronomy.
In the afternoon return to Ohrid. Free time and accommodation.
Vehicle journey: 70 km
Walk: 1.30 h Slope: +100m -100m

Breakfast and return to Tirana , capital of Albania (3 hours).
Walking tour of the nerve center of the city with the immense Skanderbeg square, where some of the most important monuments are located, such as: the E'them Bey mosque (18th century), the clock tower and the National Museum of History. We continue towards Avda. of the Martyrs of the Nation, the old Blloku bourgeois neighborhood where the communist elite lived, and the boulevards where the Ministries, the Academy of Arts and the University are located.
Free time and accommodation.
Vehicle journey: 135 km