Private 14-Day Albania Journey

Journey Through Albania and Montenegro - Guided Private Tour runs through Ventus Touristik GmbH. Rated 5.0 across 13 reviews. Runs 14 days. From $3603.

Overview

Fourteen days, two countries, one private guide. This journey from Ventus Touristik GmbH starts in Tirana and works its way south and west through Albania before crossing into Montenegro and finishing on the coast at Budva, with a final transfer to Tivat or Podgorica airport. Along the way it covers Berat, Korça, Gjirokastra, Saranda, Vlora, Durrës and Shkodra, then Podgorica, Žabljak, Cetinje, Perast and Kotor.

The pace is steady rather than rushed. Most days involve a transfer to a new base, a guided walk or site visit on arrival, and a night in a 3-star or 4-star hotel, with breakfast included each morning. Highlights along the route include the Blue Eye spring, Butrint National Park, the amphitheater at Durrës, a boat trip on Lake Skadar, Ostrog Monastery's cave church, Black Lake near Žabljak, and the island church at Perast.

It suits travellers aged 18 or above who want a structured, English-guided sweep of both countries without arranging transport or hotels themselves. Several optional activities carry extra cost, including a brewery lunch in Korça, wine tasting in Durrës, and a prosciutto and cheese tasting in Njeguši. Flights and insurance are not included.

What's Included

Itinerary

1. Days 1 to 4: Tirana to GjirokastraA Tirana city tour from Skanderbeg Square opens the trip, followed by Bunk'Art 1 and Berat castle with the Onufri museum. The route continues via Elbasan to Korça, then through the village of Rehova to Gjirokastra, where the afternoon in the garden pubs is optional and extra.
2. Days 5 to 7: Saranda, Butrint and the coastGjirokastra castle, the Church of Labovë e Kryqit and the Blue Eye spring lead down to Saranda. Butrint National Park, Porto Palermo fortress and the Llogara Pass viewpoint fill the next day, with a Kasmil lunch and an easy hike to Caesar Pass available at extra cost. Day 7 takes in Apollonia, Ardenica Monastery and the Durrës amphitheater.
3. Days 8 and 9: Kruja, Shkodra and Lake SkadarKruja Castle, the Scanderbeg Museum and Rozafa Castle precede the border crossing into Montenegro. Day 9 includes a boat trip on Lake Skadar, a family winery tasting, and a Podgorica city walk taking in Doclea and Stara Varos.
4. Days 10 and 11: Žabljak and the northOstrog Monastery and its cave church come en route to Žabljak, with a walk around Black Lake on arrival. The return leg visits the Tara Bridge of Đurđevića, Lake Biograd, a family-led souvenir workshop in Kolašin, and the Morača Monastery along the river gorge.
5. Days 12 and 13: Cetinje, Budva, Perast and KotorKing Nicholas the First's palace, a photo stop above Sveti Stefan and Budva's old town fill day 12. The final full day covers Perast, a boat trip to the island church and museum, Kotor's walls, and the serpentine road above the bay, with an optional prosciutto and cheese tasting in Njeguši.
6. Day 14: DepartureA transfer to Tivat or Podgorica airport ends the tour. Alternatives at extra cost include a transfer to Dubrovnik airport or a return train journey via Belgrade, Zagreb and Munich.

What To Expect From The Tour

This is a long, structured tour with near-daily hotel changes, so it rewards travellers who pack light and enjoy being on the move.

• Packing light. You change hotels most nights across fourteen days, so a manageable bag makes each transfer easier. Breakfast is the only meal built into the itinerary, leaving other meals open. Lunches and dinners are your own unless you join an optional food stop.
• Optional extras. Several appealing stops cost extra, including the Korça brewery lunch, wine tasting at the Gjergj Kastriot Skenderbeu cantina, the Durrës Archaeological Museum, and the Njeguši prosciutto and cheese tasting. Budget for these separately if they appeal.
• Walking every day. Nearly every day includes a guided walk through an old town, castle or archaeological site. The only hike on the itinerary is optional, roughly an hour and rated easy, at Caesar Pass in Llogara National Park. Comfortable shoes matter more than fitness.
• Language and age. Guiding is in English only, and the tour is limited to ages 18 and above. Families with younger children will need a different product.
• Crossing the border. Days 1 to 8 sit in Albania and days 9 to 14 in Montenegro, with the land crossing between Shkodra and Virpazar mid-trip. Bring a passport that covers both. The final day offers a choice of Tivat or Podgorica airport, so flights can match either.
• Accommodation tiers. The itinerary lists 3-star and 4-star hotel options in most Albanian stops, with named examples such as the Mangalemi in Berat and the Bougainville Bay in Saranda. All accommodations are subject to change, so treat specific hotel names as indicative.

Common issues. Only 13 traveller reviews back its 5 rating, a thin sample, so the honest detail comes from the listing itself. Flights, insurance and the optional activities are not covered by the base price, and every named accommodation is subject to change. The tour is restricted to travellers aged 18 or above, and guiding runs in English only, which rules out some visitors. Because it is booked through a multi-day tour platform, departure dates run on a fixed monthly calendar rather than on demand.

Which Tour Fits Your Trip