Day trips from Tirana

Each of the four day trips from Tirana comes down to a single question. For Dajti it is which day, for Krujë which terminal, for Durrës how close the sea really is, and for Berat when the last bus back leaves. Answer those four and the rest is a matter of getting up on time. Every fare is paid in cash, and every trip starts either on the Porcelan bus line or at a terminal northwest of the centre.

Start with the Porcelan line, the blue city bus that leaves from the Clock Tower beside Skanderbeg Square. The conductor takes the fare in cash, one way: €0.44 (40 lek). The ride to the lower station at Linzë takes 20 to 30 minutes, and the cable car then climbs for about 15 minutes to the top of Dajti at 1,613 m, where the whole city lies flat below you. Bring small notes, because conductors rarely have change.

Tuesday is the closed day, except when it falls on a public holiday, and a ticket is valid only on the day it is bought, so there is no buying ahead. The official advice is to arrive between 9 and 11 am, before the queues build. The cable car runs on these days and hours: Mon, Wed–Fri 9–18.30; Sat–Sun 9–19. At the top you find the restaurant Ballkoni i Dajtit, an Adventure Park and a mini golf course near the upper station. Tickets are sold as one way, return or combined with the park and the golf, and the price is paid at the ticket office. Bunk'Art 1 sits on Rruga Fadil Deliu, behind the lower station, and it is open every day. It was built as a shelter for Enver Hoxha and his inner circle, with five levels and 106 rooms, and it opened to visitors in November 2014. The mountain comes first and the bunker last, since the bunker is the stop you reach on the way down.

Krujë lies about 31 km from Tirana, and the bus leaves from the South/North Terminal. The trip takes 45–55 min one way, and a return ticket costs €2.20–4.40. The town stands at 600 m above sea level, so the last stretch of the ride is uphill, and the fare is paid in cash on board.

The fortress held out against sieges in 1450, 1466 and 1467, and the Skanderbeg Museum, founded in 1982, now stands in its courtyard. The old bazaar belongs to the same visit, so leave time for it as well as for the museum. Krujë is the better pick than Durrës when the day is meant for history, and half a day is enough.

Durrës puts you at the sea on a bus ride of about 35 min, with a return ticket at €3.30, and buses run from about 5 am until 9 pm from the terminal at Kashar. The amphitheatre dates from the 2nd century, held around 20,000 seats and was uncovered in 1966, and a chapel inside it keeps early Christian mosaics, the chapel from the 4th century and the mosaics from the 6th. Go to the stones in the morning and the beach after lunch. The sea is the part of the trip that justifies the bus.

Berat is the one trip that asks for a full day. The bus takes about 2 h each way, a return ticket costs €13–15, and about 20 buses leave daily between 6 am and 5 pm. Departures use the same South/North Terminal as the buses to Krujë and Durrës. The number to remember is the last bus back, which leaves Berat around 4 pm.

The bus terminal in Berat lies 2 km from the old town, so count the walk in and out of the afternoon. The town was added to the UNESCO list in 2008 and is called the city of a thousand windows, for the rows of white houses that look down on the river. The verdict is plain: take Berat only if you can reach its terminal in time for that last bus, and otherwise choose Krujë or Durrës.

GuideBerat, the city of a thousand windows, has a page of its own, with the town itself once the bus is behind you.Berat →

GuideGjirokastër, the city of stone in the south, is a trip of its own rather than a day out from Tirana, and has its own page.Gjirokastër →

3 daysDajti slots into the second day of the three-day plan, with Bunk'Art 1 as the afternoon stop.Tirana in 3 days →

Getting aroundThe page on getting around explains the terminals, the Porcelan line and the airport bus in more detail.Getting around Tirana →

BudgetAdd the fares to the rest of the bill on the budget page before choosing between the four trips.What Tirana costs →

When to goMonth by month, the weather page shows when the cable car and the Durrës beach make sense.The best time to visit Tirana →

Where to stayAn early bus to Berat or Krujë is easier from a bed in the centre, and that page names the areas.Where to stay in Tirana →

FoodBack in town after a trip, the food page lists where to eat a byrek or a plate of fërgesë.What to eat in Tirana →

MistakesTuesday at the foot of the cable car is the first mistake on the page of common errors.Mistakes everyone makes in Tirana →

Hidden gemsAnyone with half a day between two trips will find four places in the city itself on the page about places outside the main circuit.Tirana beyond the main sights: the Pyramid, Postbllok and Pazari i Ri →