Cycling in Albania

Local bike hire

6 days cycling with full vehicle support

All breakfasts and two dinners included.

Food in Albania is quite varied thanks to the many influences on the country and particularly Mediterranean combining Turkish, Greek and Italian tastes. Dairy products, especially milk and yoghurt, are present in almost every meal, usually locally sourced.

Under the leadership of Enver Hoxha (the communist leader of Albania from 1944 to 1985), Albania became a self-sustaining country due to its isolation to the world. However, owing to the fertile valleys, fresh mountain springs and Mediterranean climate, they are still very much a subsistence culture and show very few signs of changing. In the countryside, expect your food to have been reared/grown not too far from your plate.

Breakfasts are typically eggs, fresh bread, jam, honey, and coffee or tea. For lunch and dinner, meat dishes are often goat or lamb, while fish dishes might include trout or whitebait. Courses often come in meze form, complemented by a variety of vegetables, salad, freshly baked bread, homemade cheeses, local wines and, of course, raki. Your guide will recommend the best options when in the towns.

vegetarian, vegan, meat

For the airport transfers and transfers to and from the activities we will use private minibuses.

Group normally 4 to 16, plus local cycling leader and driver.

On this door-to-door cycling adventure, we mostly stay in three- or four-star hotels and guesthouses. These are comfortable and well located for our adventure but, with tourism still developing in Albania, relatively simple. Below are a couple of hotels our guests typically enjoy.  

Gërmenj: Farma Sotira (night 2)

In a tranquil valley within Germenj-Shelegur National Park and with fresh water running down from the mountains, Farma Sotira is a simple, tranquil place to stay. It is also a working farm, so dinner is mainly created from homegrown produce and prepared using traditional methods. We sleep in two-room wooden cabins (each room has twin beds). Each cabin has a communal bathroom. 

Sarandë: Hotel Nertili (night 5)

The waters of the Ionian take centre stage at the beachfront Hotel Nertili, where all rooms have a balcony with sea views. There’s also a private beach area with sundecks and parasols, plus a bar and restaurant with a sea-view terrace.  

Worth knowing 

Single accommodation is available on request. Please note, single rooms may not be available in the guesthouses in Germenj and Benje due to a limited number of rooms. 

The hotels we use in Himarë (Hotel Prinos or Hotel Dhima) and Guesthouse Coli are simpler than the other hotels used on this trip. While basic, all are ideally located for our adventures (the Himarë options are by the beach and Guesthouse Coli by thermal springs).