Day trips from Berat

Four day trips from Berat ask four different questions. The Osum Canyon asks when, because the water decides everything. Apollonia asks how, since the road runs through Fier. Mount Tomorr asks whether at all, because no public transport reaches it. The wineries ask only how much taxi you are willing to pay for. Answer those and the day plans itself.

The Osum Canyon and the Bogova waterfall

The canyon lies 20 to 30 km south of town, near Çorovodë. Walls rise up to 150 m on either side of a river that behaves like a different one depending on the month. Go between April and June, when the water is high and the gorge looks the way the photographs promise. By late summer the flow thins out and you are mostly admiring rock.

A bus runs to Çorovodë in about 45 minutes, and from there you need a taxi to reach the viewpoints. Organised tours remove the question of transport altogether, and the canyon takes a full day. Prices: tours €35–49.

Bogova waterfall sits about 20 km east of Berat, a drive of 30 to 40 minutes, and no direct bus goes there. From the village it is roughly 2.5 km on an easy track. The water is cold, 6 to 10 °C, which sounds like a warning and feels like a reward after the walk. Tours that combine the canyon and the waterfall usually take around seven hours, so pick them if you want one booking rather than two taxis. Neither the canyon nor the waterfall has public transport to its end point.

Apollonia

Apollonia is the better choice if ruins matter more to you than rivers. It lies about 60 km west, roughly an hour away. Take the bus from Berat to Fier, which also takes about an hour and costs €2.20 by furgon, then a taxi or minibus covers the last 12 km. The site itself takes three to four hours.

Colonists from Corinth founded the city around 600 BC, and Octavian, later Augustus, studied here in 44 BC. The archaeological park opened in 2003, the site lies about 10 km from the sea, and the museum stands in the monastery of St Mary at Ardenica. A newer museum opened in December 2011.

Tomorr is a full day for people who already walk in the mountains, and a poor idea for anyone else. The park entrance is 25 km east of Berat, and it takes 45 to 60 minutes to reach the start of the trail, with no public transport on the way. The climb takes around three to four hours in each direction, to a summit of 2,416 m. The path is open from June to October, which is why this is a trip for the whole day and not for a spare afternoon. Each August the mountain fills with pilgrims, Christians on the 15th for the Dormition, Bektashis between the 20th and 25th.

The vineyards lie 5 to 20 km from town, 15 to 30 minutes by taxi, which makes them the easiest escape if the cobbles have won. Çobo, in the hills around Berat, offers a tasting of local wines with traditional products and a walk through the vines. Visiting costs nothing. A morning in the castle and an afternoon in the hills is a sensible split, while the canyon and Tomorr each want the whole day to themselves.

A price is given only for guided tours.

2 daysDay two of the two-day plan picks one of these trips, and the itinerary shows what comes before it.Berat in 2 days →

Getting aroundThe page on getting around covers the Tirana bus, the terminal and the walk to the old town.Getting around Berat →

When to goWhen to visit explains which months suit the canyon and which suit the castle.The best time to visit Berat →

Where to stayWhere to stay compares Mangalem, Gorica and the new town for a base between the trips.Where to stay in Berat →

FoodThe food page lists what to eat when you return from the hills.What to eat in Berat →