Albania in Spring

Tour Code: ALB01

A pioneering 8-day holiday to a little-known Balkan country, focusing on the birds and other natural history of the Albanian Alps and the scenic wetlands of Divjaka-Karavasta National Park.

8 days from
£1,895
Land only price from
£1,745
book now

Highlights

Summary

Summary

Closed for so many years to the outside world, Albania has now opened its doors to become a rewarding tourist destination, with much to offer the visiting naturalist. After a direct flight to the capital, Tirana, we stay for the first three nights in a hotel next to the fabulous Divjaka-Karavasta National Park. From here we’ll explore this national park, and the 4,000-hectare Karavasta Lagoon where we’ll look for a host of waterbirds including Dalmatian Pelican and Greater Flamingo. Whilst in this area we will also visit Vjosë-Nartë, south of Karavasta, which is a magnet for migrating birds such as Black-winged Stilt, Avocet, Spotted Redshank, Kentish Plover, Little Stint and Marsh Sandpiper. Next, we drive to the north-east of the country and the spectacular Valbonë Valley National Park in the Albanian Alps, where we will stay for three nights in a traditional guesthouse beside the River Valbonë. The region is home to Brown Bear, Wolf and Chamois, although these are indeed ever-elusive, with Hazel Grouse, Rock Partridge and both Black and White-backed Woodpeckers amongst the avian delights, along with a range of special butterflies and wild flowers including Chequered Blue and Albanian Lily. Finally, we will enjoy a scenic ferry ride across Lake Komani and spend our final night close to Lake Shkodër and enjoy the wildlife this area has to offer before heading back to Tirana for our flight home. 

 

  • A wonderful array of migrant and breeding birds including Dalmatian Pelican and Flamingo
  • A fascinating country with a rich culture
  • Explore the breathtaking Valbone NP and varied habitats throughout the week
  • Take one of the world’s most impressive ferry journeys across Lake Komani.
  • Black, White-backed, Grey-headed and Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers possible, with Wryneck too
  • An array of orchids, butterflies, and reptiles
  • Explore a little-known and exciting country, stopping off in Kosovo too!

Grading

Grade A/B (except for some optional steeper walks in Valbonë Valley NP).

For so long, many of us will have had no more than a tantalising glimpse of Albania — perhaps from Corfu or the Adriatic Sea — its distant and rugged hills full of allure, but not opportunity. Shackled for so much of the latter half of the 20th century by the isolationist and atheistic policies of the regime of the then People’s Republic of Albania, followed by economic difficulties in the 1990s (post communism), only in the 21st century has the new Republic of Albania emerged from the shadows to become a tourist destination of great potential. Indeed, with its unspoiled beaches, wild mountainous topography, delicious cuisine and an archaeological heritage fashioned over millennia through successive Greek, Roman and Ottoman occupations, the potential for tourism is rich and varied. So too is its natural history, which we will be excited to discover and enjoy on this holiday.

We begin our holiday with a flight to Tirana, Albania’s capital city, before travelling to the coast to spend three nights near the wildlife-rich Divjaka-Karavasta National Park. During our time here, we will explore this superb and little-known national park with its 4,000-hectare Karavasta Lagoon, the largest in the country and, with 5% of the world’s breeding Dalmatian Pelicans, it is of international importance. Naturally, these special birds will be a highlight, however the park’s marshes and shallow pools are teeming with other life. Greater Flamingoes can be present in their hundreds, with Pygmy Cormorants, Marsh Sandpipers and Caspian Terns. In the surrounding pine woods we will look for Collared Flycatchers, Subalpine Warblers and Nightingales. The Vjosë- Nartë protected area, to the south of Karavasta, is a huge complex of saltpans and coastal dunes around the Nartë Lagoon. This magnet for migrating birds can offer some of the best wader-watching in Europe, with Black-winged Stilts, Avocets, Spotted Redshanks, Kentish Plovers, stints and sandpipers in abundance, and Slender-billed Gulls, Collared Pratincoles and Stone Curlews amongst other highlights. Bee-eaters and Hoopoes will no doubt add a splash of Mediterranean colour!

The second phase of our holiday will be spent exploring the Valbonë Valley National Park, the gem within the Albanian Alps. Travelling there via a lunch stop in Kosovo, we will enjoy daily walks with the aim of discovering the wealth of natural history in these wild and rugged mountains. They hold a healthy population of both Brown Bears and Wolves, though these are elusive and hard to see, as well as Chamois and such avian stars as Hazel Grouse, Rock Partridge and Black and White-backed Woodpeckers. One spectacular walk ascends through vast Beech woodlands to the meadows above, which may hold Ring Ouzels, Black Redstarts, Wheatears and Water Pipits. Nutcrackers are possible here too, whilst after rainfall there is always the chance of a Fire Salamander! Botanically this area is also wonderfully rich. The meadows are covered in Green-winged Orchids while the fascinating Coralroot and Bird’s-nest Orchids are common in the Beech woodlands alongside an array of other possible alpine species. As the trail climbs higher the landscape opens out to reveal breathtaking views of snow-clad peaks, with Maja Jezercë the highest of these at over 2,600 metres. Our guesthouse is located in the valley, beside the River Valbonë, and we will be served traditional cuisine here.

After three nights in the mountains, the time will come to bid farewell to this wild region and wend our way southwards, back towards Tirana. However, one more treat lies in store. The ferry journey across Lake Komani has been dubbed by travellers and guidebooks alike ‘one of the great boat trips of the world’! A trip of two hours or so will see us cruising between towering peaks and sheer cliff faces, across a region in which no roads or power lines connect its few hardy resident farming families to the outside world. We end the holiday with a night in Shkodër, allowing us to enjoy some excellent birding on the way and around the lake here, along with a visit to the castle. The following day we will be in easy striking distance of Tirana where we end our explorations of this wild and little-known land.

DETAILED INFORMATION
Itinerary

Outline Itinerary

Day 1
Fly Tirana and transfer to Karavasta National Park
Day 2/3
Karavasta National Park and Nartë Lagoon
Day 4
Transfer to Valbonë National Park via Kosovo
Day 5/6
Valbonë National Park
Day 7
Cruise Lake Komani to Shkodër
Day 8
Transfer Tirana
cloud_downloadDownload Full Itinerary
What's Included

What's Included?

  • Flights
  • Accommodation:

    Three small, comfortable guesthouses. All rooms have en suite facilities.

  • Food: All included in the price.
Reviews
Dates & Prices

Dates & Prices

2025

Departures Availability Cost
Wed 9th Apr – Wed 16th Apr 1 £1,895
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£1,745
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£245
Tour Leader:
Please note that, whilst we assign leaders to particular tours well in advance, we reserve the right to make changes if necessary
Neil Anderson
TL Neil Anderson

Tour Leader: Neil Anderson

Neil graduated from Newcastle University with a degree in Plant Biology. He has since followed a career in horticulture but a lifelong passion for natural history has occupied much of his spare time. Formerly a member of the council of the London Natural History Society, he has organised and led many field trips for the society and is their dragonfly recorder. His considerable skills as a communicator are also demonstrated during field teaching sessions, which he conducted at the London Wetland Centre. He has been on the management committee of an LNR in Barnes to advise on wildlife issues for over 20 years and a WeBS/BBS surveyor for 30 years.  Neil's enthusiasm for birds, flowers, butterflies, dragonflies and indeed every aspect of the natural world, make him an ideal addition to our team of Naturetrek leaders.

Wed 21st May – Wed 28th May 6 £1,895
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£1,745
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£245
Tour Leader:
Please note that, whilst we assign leaders to particular tours well in advance, we reserve the right to make changes if necessary
Neil Anderson
TL Neil Anderson

Tour Leader: Neil Anderson

Neil graduated from Newcastle University with a degree in Plant Biology. He has since followed a career in horticulture but a lifelong passion for natural history has occupied much of his spare time. Formerly a member of the council of the London Natural History Society, he has organised and led many field trips for the society and is their dragonfly recorder. His considerable skills as a communicator are also demonstrated during field teaching sessions, which he conducted at the London Wetland Centre. He has been on the management committee of an LNR in Barnes to advise on wildlife issues for over 20 years and a WeBS/BBS surveyor for 30 years.  Neil's enthusiasm for birds, flowers, butterflies, dragonflies and indeed every aspect of the natural world, make him an ideal addition to our team of Naturetrek leaders.

Tour Dates or Itinerary Don't Suit?

Allow our experts to create a private, customised itinerary with dates and prices to suit you.

Enquire

Prefer to Travel in a Private Group?

For any interested natural history club or society, we can arrange for a private departure of this tour.

Enquire
Why Naturetrek?

Why Naturetrek?

At Naturetrek we craft expertly-guided group and tailor-made wildlife holidays and cruises to all seven continents. On one of our holidays, you can be assured that our passionate team will enable you to experience and enjoy the best of the world's wildlife and natural spectacles in as comfortable and rewarding a manner as possible, caring as best we can for the environment in the process. We are proud to provide:

  • The widest choice of wildlife holidays worldwide
  • Tours managed and led by naturalists, for naturalists
  • Outstanding value and exceptional customer service

Furthermore, as a Naturetrek client, our office team are always to on hand to help you – so if you have any queries about your holiday, whether before or after you have booked, we will be delighted to answer them on the phone. Please just give our team a call!