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Highlightsof AlbaniaTour durationHoliday typeSeasonality8 daysIndividual TourFully GuidedYear-roundThis individual itinerary introduces thehighlights of central and southern Albaniaand is ideal for the first-time visitor. Certainlyone of the lasting memories in Albania is thatof the stunning views, as you drive along theAlbanian Riviera with rugged mountains onone side and a sparkling coastline on the other.From the Bay of Vlora, travel through the Passof Llogora, where the landscape dramaticallychanges from Adriatic to Ionian. Where elsecan you visit an old fortress of Ali Pasha anda secret submarine base tunnelled into thecove by the Soviets?This tour includes a private car, driver andEnglish-speaking guide for the duration ofyour trip except for the free morning in Tiranaon day 8. You can extend your holiday with abeach stay in one of the many small hotelslocated on the beach, south of Durres.Day 1 Fly to Tiranafrom Corfu and Corinth, Apollonia was animportant port along the route between Romeand Byzantium. Continue to Vlora and stayovernight in hotel on Vlora beach. (B,L)Day 4 Vlora to SarandaContinue on the mountain roads along theAlbanian Riviera and through the LlogaraPass with its stunning views of the Ioniancoastline. En route, visit the 17th-centurycoastal fortress of Ali Pasha of Ioanina atPorto Palermo. Check into hotel in Sarandafor 2 night stay. (B,L)Day 5 Saranda and ButrintiVisit Albania’s most important archaeologicalsite, Butrinti, in the morning. Thisrediscovered city is a microcosm of almost3,000 years of Mediterranean history. Itsancient fortifications evoke the city’s militarypower and the 3rd century BC amphitheatresymbolises the rich culture of this oncethriving ancient city. Later visit the remainsof a monastery of the 40 Saints, from whichthe modern name of Saranda is derived. Restof afternoon at leisure. (B,L)to the abundance of windows in the city’sred-roofed houses. Built on the slopes of amountain, the old Turkish part of the town isencompassed by a medieval fortress and isincredibly picturesque. Discover the LeadenMosque, the King’s Mosque, the Bachelor’sMosque and the Alveti Tekke, a smaller shrinewhere the Dervishes once practised. Afterlunch, drive to Durres for a tour of the Romanamphitheatre. Depending on your choice youwill either return to Tirana for the last nightor stay in a hotel in Durres on the beach. Wecan add extra nights if you wish. (B,L)Day 8 Tirana/Durres to UKFree day in either Tirana or Durres beforetransferring to the airport for flights backto the UK. (B)Fly to Tirana and transfer to hotel for 2 nightstay.Prices from3-star hotel optionDay 2 TiranaPer person twin-share £1475Single room supplement £130Begin with a full day city tour. Tirana is locatedDay 6 Gjirokastra and Berat4-star hotel optionon the site of a Byzantine fortress and has beenPer person twin-share £1620the capital since 1920. With its bustling bazaars, Drive to the museum city of Gjirokastra, Single room supplement £195fashionable boutiques, café culture and spruced birthplace of the former iron-fisted dictatorup apartment blocks, Tirana is a city rapidly of Albania, Enver Hoxha. Gjirokastra is a Prices includerediscovering itself. Visit the Mosque of Et-hem strikingly picturesque town, perched on the • Return flights in economy class withBej, the Clock Tower, the National Museum, side of a mountain above the Drin River. TheBritish Airways direct from LondonNational Art Gallery, Skanderbeg Square, The tour includes the district museum, housedGatwickMartyrs Cemetery, Grand Park and various in the building in which Enver Hoxha was • All airport taxes and security chargesgovernment buildings. (B,L)born and the pre-Ottoman citadel, a former • Accommodation in 3/4-star hotelspolitical prison and now a weapons museum.with breakfastDay 3 Tirana to VloraWe also include a visit to the archaeological• Meals as specifiedsite of Bylis. Continue to Berat for anDrive to Kruja to visit the Skanderbeg Museumovernight stay. • Transfers and transportation(B,L)set inside the restored castle and wanderthroughoutaround the old Turkish Bazaar, which has aDay 7 Berat to Durres• Sightseeing with English-speakingwonderful selection of authentic antiquesguidesand souvenirs. Drive to Fieri via Ardenica Enjoy a half-day tour of Berat, Albania’s • Entrance fees on sightseeing toursMonastery and tour the archaeological centre second most important museum town, knownof Apollonia. Founded in 558 BC by settlers as ‘the city of a thousand windows’ owing9Call 020 7666 1244 | www.regentholidays.co.uk | visit your local travel agent