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Balkans off the Beaten Track – Discover Albania & North Macedonia

£1,995.00

Exploring the UNESCO-protected city of Berat, with Byzantine churches and Ottoman mosques hidden within the castle walls.

Unlock the beauty of the Balkans as you make your way through dramatic landscapes and culture-rich communities on this Albania and North Macedonia tour. Relatively undiscovered by UK visitors, you’ll be veering off the well-worn tourist trail – and your reward will be spectacular national parks, World Heritage Sites and centuries-old mosques, churches and monasteries. We’ll tick off the two capital cities, Tirana and Skopje, and meander through unspoilt countryside. In North Macedonia, we’ll base ourselves in Ohrid – a lakeside resort with a church-filled old town.

  • 10 excursions & visits
  • 22 meals
  • Active traveller pace
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Your itinerary

Day 1 – Tirana

Our door-to-door travel service collects you from home, for your flight to Tirana. On arrival our coach transfers you to our hotel.

Tirana International Hotel (4-star)

Today includes…

Dinner

Day 2 – Tirana

We begin with a guided tour of Tirana, Albania’s vibrant capital and a destination just emerging on the city-break scene. Ambling along the main boulevard, we pass the Presidential Palace and National Arts Gallery, before continuing to Skanderbeg Square, home to the 18th-century Et’hem Bey Mosque, the Palace of Culture and the Archaeological Museum. You’ve got the afternoon to explore on your own – perhaps take the cable car up to Mount Dajti National Park for forest walks and spectacular city views.

Tirana International Hotel (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Guided tour of Tirana (morning)

Breakfast and Dinner

Free time

The Skanderbeg Monument stands in Skanderbeg Square, in the Albanian capital of Tirana

Day 3 – Tirana

Today is free to do as you please. Alternatively, you can join an optional excursion to Shkodra. Settled on the shores of its namesake lake, Shkodra has history and culture in spades – founded in the 4th century BC, it’s one of the oldest cities in Albania and the country’s centre of Catholicism.

Tirana International Hotel (4-star)

Today includes…

Breakfast and Dinner

Old Mes Bridge, a historic stone bridge in Shkoder, Albania

Day 4 – Berat

The riverside city of Berat is on the agenda today. It has a fairly chequered history, with everyone from the Ancient Greeks to the Byzantines to the Romans leaving their cultural stamp. But it’s the Ottoman architecture that you’ll notice the most these days – and it’s what helped the city win UNESCO World Heritage Status in 2008. Explore the hillside houses and grand mosques, and tour the Byzantine churches hidden inside the walls of Berat’s castle. We make our way back to Tirana via a local winery, for the chance to sample Albanian whites and reds.

Tirana International Hotel (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Guided tour of Berat (morning)Wine tasting at Cobo Winery (afternoon)

Breakfast and Dinner

Looking up at St Michael&s Church, perched on a cliffside in Berat, Albania

Day 5 – Kruja

The medieval town of Kruja is our first destination today. We get a great insight into Albanian culture at the History and Ethnographic Museum (housed in a 5th-century castle), before ducking into the old bazaar to browse traditional crafts, silver filigree and colourful kilim rugs. Souvenirs sorted, we’ll return to the hotel. Please note: The History and Ethnographic Museum is closed for renovations. If this is still the case at the time of your visit, you&ll receive a bottle of the local drink (Raki) made from a mix of fruit, including plums, mulberries and blackberries.

Tirana International Hotel (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Visit Kruja History and Ethnographic Museum (morning)

Breakfast and Dinner

Looking up to centuries-old Kruje Castle, built on a hilltop above the traditional town of Kruje, Albania

Day 6 – Tirana – Ohrid

Bid farewell to Albania as we journey east into North Macedonia, making our way to the lakeside town of Ohrid, where we stay for six nights. Ohrid is one of the country’s prettiest places and the rest of the day is free to wander.

Hotel Tino Sveti Stefan, Ohrid (4-star)

Today includes…

Breakfast and Dinner

Free time

Church of St. John at Kaneo, overlooking the glittering waters of Lake Ohrid, Macedonia

Day 7 – Ohrid

We spend this morning visiting a number of its churches, including the photogenic Church of St Jovan Kaneo, perched on a clifftop overlooking the lake’s glassy waters. We also get a glimpse at the Icon Gallery – Ohrid’s collection of Byzantine icons is one of the most important in the world, and one of the reasons the area holds World Heritage Site status. The afternoon is free to explore Ohrid at your own pace. The old town is a jumble of frescoed churches and basilicas, with narrow, cobbled streets winding down a hillside to the lake and a delight to just wander.

Hotel Tino Sveti Stefan, Ohrid (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Guided tour of Ohrid (morning)

Breakfast and Dinner

Free time

Ohrid castle and Ohrid city skyline, Macedonia

Day 8 – Skopje

Today is devoted to North Macedonia’s capital, Skopje – a city destroyed by an earthquake in 1963, then rebuilt to its former glory. A guided tour in the morning leads us around some of the city’s old and new highlights, including the Old Skopje Bazaar and Macedonia Square. Once the tour wraps up, there is time to explore Skopje on your own. Perhaps take the opportunity to visit one of the many galleries or museums, or find a café for a strong, thick Turkish coffee and a feta-stuffed burek pastry.

Hotel Tino Sveti Stefan, Ohrid (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Guided tour of Skopje (all day)

Breakfast and Dinner

Alexander the Great Monument in Skopje - Macedonia

Day 9 – St Naum Monastery

A scenic boat ride takes us south along the forest-edged shores of Lake Ohrid to the Byzantine monastery of St Naum. We pass the villages of Pestani, Trpejca and Ljubanista, and stop off at the ‘Bay of the Bones’, a reconstruction of an ancient pile-dwelling settlement. After a visit to the monastery – which houses frescoes and iconostases dating back to the 16th century – you have some time at leisure. Perhaps enjoy lunch with a lake view or wander down to one of the two beaches beside the monastery for a paddle or swim.

Hotel Tino Sveti Stefan, Ohrid (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Boat trip to St Naum Monastery (morning)

Breakfast and Dinner

Saint Naum Monastery near Ohrid in Macedonia

Day 10 – Mavrovo

More stunning scenery is on the cards today as we travel around Mavrovo National Park. It’s home to the country’s highest mountains, as well as winding rivers, herb-scented meadows and dramatic gorges. Our route takes us past a trio of artificial lakes, including the spectacular Movrovo Lake – surrounded by forested hills and snow-dusted peaks. We also stop for a peek inside the monasteries of St Jovan Bigorski and St Georgi Pobedonosec.

Hotel Tino Sveti Stefan, Ohrid (4-star)

Today includes…

Excursions & visits: Excursion to St Georgi Pobedonosec Monastery, Movrovo National Park and St Jovan Bigorski Monastery (all day)

Breakfast and Dinner

Panoramic view across fields to Debar Lake and hills beyond, a scenic highlight of our Macedonia tours

Day 11 – Ohrid

Today is another free day. Go for a wander through the small bazaar, watch a demonstration at a traditional paper-making workshop, or browse the exhibitions at Cultura 365 gallery and cultural centre.

Hotel Tino Sveti Stefan, Ohrid (4-star)

Today includes…

Breakfast and Dinner

Free time

Items on sale at the Ohrid Bazaar, Macedonia

Day 12 – Ohrid – Tirana – Departure

Transfer to the airport for your return flight. Upon arrival, our vehicle will be waiting for the journey home.

Today includes…

Breakfast