Berat In Your Pocket

The stunning museum town of Berat is a well-preserved Ottoman city (perhaps the best in the Balkans) with a lively lower town and a beautiful medieval citadel district on top of the hill. It's certainly worth staying longer to visit all the sights, and to go hiking on wild Mount Tomorri.

What to see
In the lower town, visit the Leaded Mosque, so named for the roofing material, the Bachelor's Mosque, the Sultan's Mosque and the Ottoman han (inn).
Berat's highlight is the inhabited citadel (100 lek, includes admission to the churches), reached via a very steep road (best drive up or take a taxi). Once inside the walls, you can visit ruined mosques and several medieval Orthodox churches, all intact and with restored frescoes and icons. The famous Onufri museum (open 09:00 - 16:00, www.beratmuseum.net, www.beratmonument.org.al; 200 lek) is housed in a wonderful church and holds the best collection of Albanian icons anywhere, many painted by local artist master Onufri. There's a small shop and a café inside the citadel for buying drinks and snacks.

Where to stay
The lovely Rezidenca Desaret Hotel (Lagja 13 Shtatori, tel. +355 32 23 75 93, +355 693 03 74 80; 5 rooms from €10) offers great-value rooms and great views of town. Another option is the Berati Hotel (Lagja 28 Nentori, tel. +355 32 23 69 53, rooms €10-20), in a quiet alley off the main shopping street and lacking any views.
A fun budget choice is the Mangalemi hotel (run by Toma Mio and also know as the Tomi Hotel, Lagja Mangalem, tel. +355 32 23 20 93/ +355 68 24 29 803, hotel_mangalemi@yahoo.com, www.mangalemihotel.com; rooms €10-20), a cheerful family-run inn with simple air-conditioned rooms, wonderful rooms in an adjoining historical wooden house, a relaxed rooftop terrace and an excellent restaurant for both eating and drinking.
Across the river in Gorica, the Berat Backpackers Hostel (tel. +355 69 306 44 29, www.beratbackpackers.com, dorm beds €10-12, camping €5, open 1 April to mid-November) occupies a historic house beside the Orthodox church. Uphill, Castle Park (www.castle-park.com) has comfy rooms and is a good base for their adventure tourism trips.

Guided tours
The German-Albanian Berati Tours agency (tel. +355 69 20 65 239, info@berati-tours.com, www.berati-tours.com) is the driving force behind attempts to convince local authorities to offer more tourist facilities. Contact them for information, accommodation bookings, tours of the town, spectacular guided hikes in the surroundings and more. Ask for their Berat Discovery Weekend package which includes lodging, meals, and tours of the city and a nearby gorge - all for a great price.