Arriving in Tirana

Arriving by plane
Tirana's gleaming Nënë Tereza (Mother Teresa) airport, 17km northwest of Tirana, is a 30-45 minute drive from the city centre. Beside the baggage carousel in arrivals there's an ATM, a BKT currency exchange office with so-so rates and the airport's tourism information desk. Buy a local SIM card at the Vodafone or Eagle Mobile shops. Ignore the taxi drivers harassing new arrivals, but take an official yellow airport taxi to the centre for 2000 lek, or 2500 lek at night. Alternatively, hop on the Rinas Express airport bus (250 lek) to Skanderbeg Square, departing every hour between 08:00 and 19:00.

For a map of the airport, click here.

Arriving by train
Albania has no international passenger trains. Weary rail arrivals from Shkodra, Durrës and Pogradec will find themselves deposited at Tirana's garden shed train station, at the northern end of Blv. Zogu I. It's a 15-20 minute walk down this boulevard to Skanderbeg Square, a short taxi ride, or hop on any bus heading that way from the bus stop across the street.

For a map of the train station, click here.

Arriving by bus
Tirana has skipped the ‘build a bus station’ stage of urban evolution, and buses drop off passengers at various points along the ring road; from there you’ll need a taxi or city bus to get to the centre.

For a map of the Durres and Shkodra bus station, click here.

Arriving by car
Driving to Albania is an option now that roads and safety have greatly improved - but don’t expect to get there quickly. Coming from Greece, expect long queues and grinding bureaucracy on both sides of the border. The Kakavija and Kapshtica crossings are open 24hrs; Qafë Boti near Konispol and Tre Urat near Permet open till 22:00.
From Macedonia, Qafë Thanë is the main crossing, though the Tushemisht crossing near Pogradec is quieter, has beautiful scenery and few delays. Together with the Bllade crossing near Peshkopi they are all open till 22:00; the Gorica crossing near Lake Prespa is open till 19:00.
From Kosovo, you can quickly cross over at Qafë Morina and Qafë Prush, from Montenegro at Han i Hotit and Muriqan.

Arriving by ferry
Arriving by ferry from Italy is perhaps the most relaxed way of entering the country. There are ferry lines from several Italian cities to the ports of Durrës, Shengjin and Vlora. Flying to Corfu and using the daily ferry to Saranda or the summertime hydrofoils to Saranda/Himara is often the cheapest way to reach South Albania (see www.ionian-cruises.com).