Berat & Durrës

Itinerary

Times are approximate. The day adapts to you: more time where you like it, less where you don't.

1. Tirana → Durrës → Berat → Tirana

   1. 08:00

      Pickup in Tirana

      Pickup from your hotel and drive west on the motorway towards the Adriatic coast.

   2. ~45 min drive

      08:45

      Durrës Amphitheatre

      Built in the early 2nd century AD and rediscovered only in 1966, this is the largest Roman amphitheatre in the Balkans. Hidden in its galleries is a small Byzantine-era chapel decorated with mosaics.

   3. ~5 min on foot

      09:45

      Venetian Tower & seafront

      Walk past the Byzantine city walls to the Venetian Tower, restored as a heritage interpretation centre, then enjoy a coffee on the seafront promenade.

   4. ~1 h 45 min drive

      12:00

      Berat Castle & Onufri Museum

      Drive up to the castle, a fortress still lived in today, with cobbled lanes, small Byzantine churches and sweeping views over the Osum valley. The Onufri Iconographic Museum, inside the Cathedral of the Dormition of St Mary, displays icons by the 16th-century master painter Onufri.

   5. ~10 min drive

      13:30

      Lunch in Berat

      Lunch at a local restaurant with home-style Albanian dishes; the Berat area is also known for its wines.

   6. ~5 min on foot

      14:45

      Mangalem, Gorica & the Osum river

      Stroll through Mangalem beneath the castle, past the King Mosque and the Halveti Tekke, then cross the Gorica Bridge for the classic view of white Ottoman houses climbing the hillside — the reason Berat is called the 'city of a thousand windows'.

   7. ~2 h drive

      18:30

      Back in Tirana

      We leave Berat at around 16:30 and drive back to Tirana, with drop-off at your hotel.