Airport

Tirana International Airport (TIA, tel. +355 4 38 18 00, lost & found tel. +355 69 206 66 26, www.tirana-airport.com) is officially named Nënë Tereza or Mother Teresa airport, but is also known as Rinas. The airport is 17km northwest of Tirana. The new access road and passenger terminal that were opened in 2007 have catapulted the airport into the 21st century, and passing through is a pleasant experience.

A  taxi to the airport costs about €20, call a yellow Airport Express Taxi (ATE, tel. 223 34 19, 068 204 95 98, 068 207 03 11) and pay 2000 lek, or 2500 lek at night. A trip to the airport usually takes 20 minutes. Parking at the airport is free for 15 minutes, 150 lek for an hour, 720 lek for a day and 3000 lek per week.

The Rinas Express airport bus (tel. 069 209 89 08, 069 205 40 02) departs every hour between 07:00 and 19:00 from beside the National Museum on Skenderbeg Square; tickets cost 250 lek and the trip takes under an hour. Buses from the airport to the centre depart every hour between 08:00 and 19:00.

Airport facilities include free wifi and an Adrion press shop (open 03:00-21:00) selling newspapers, books, Albania T-shirts and In Your Pocket city guides. Vodafone and Eagle both have shops selling SIM and recharge cards. There's a tourist information desk in the arrivals area only. The small departures area has fashion, jewellery and duty-free shops (www.albaniadutyfree.com, tel. +355 42 38 19 48, open 07:00-23:00; carton of cigarettes €21), and a small Adrion press shop. Smoking is banned in the terminal, except for a small room in the departures area.

For a map of the airport, click here.

To download a PDF file (500kb) with the 2010 Tirana flight, train and bus schedules, click here.