Quick Summary: Seven days is enough to drive Albania's southern loop properly: Tirana, Berat, Gjirokastra, the Blue Eye, Saranda, Ksamil and the Riviera, ending back in Tirana. The full circuit is roughly 600 km. None of the driving days are long, but Albanian roads are slower than the distances suggest, so the plan below keeps most days under three hours behind the wheel and leaves time to actually stop.
If you want the northern mountains as well, you need ten days rather than seven. There is a section at the end explaining how to add them.
Why This Albania Road Trip Itinerary Works in a Week
Albania is small on paper. Tirana to Saranda is about 280 km, which looks like a half-day drive and is not. Mountain sections, town crossings and coastal switchbacks pull the average speed down, and the temptation on a short trip is to book too many stops and spend the week in the car.
This route solves that by moving in one direction around the south rather than doubling back. You cover the three things most people come for, which are the Ottoman towns, the archaeological sites and the Riviera, without repeating a single stretch of road.
A car is not optional here. Buses connect the main towns but they will not get you to the Blue Eye, to Gjipe, or to the villages above the coast, and they run on schedules that waste half a day. If you are still weighing it up, is renting a car in Albania worth it goes through the trade-offs.
Before You Start
Pick the car up on arrival rather than after a night in Tirana. Airport collection saves you a transfer and means you are not paying for city parking on day one. The drive into the centre takes around 25 minutes and is covered in Tirana airport to city center.
Two practical points before you set off. First, check what documents you need, since requirements vary by nationality and by how long you have held your licence: what you need to travel to Albania covers it. Second, read driving tips for Albania before your first day on the road, particularly the sections on speed limits and mountain driving.
A compact or midsize car handles this entire route. Nothing on it requires a 4x4.
Day 1: Tirana
Collect the car, drop it at the hotel, and leave it there. Tirana is walkable in the centre and driving inside it on your first day is the least enjoyable part of the whole trip.
Spend the afternoon on Skanderbeg Square, the Bunk'Art museums and Blloku in the evening. If your accommodation does not include parking, the Tirana parking map shows where the paid garages and free zones are, and Tirana traffic explains which hours to avoid if you do need to move the car.
Day 2: Tirana to Berat
Roughly 120 km, about 2 hours.
Leave before nine to clear Tirana's morning traffic. The route is mostly flat and straightforward, and it is the easiest driving day of the week, which makes it a good first one.
Berat is the "City of a Thousand Windows", stacked up two hillsides either side of the Osum river. Park below and walk up. The old town's cobbled lanes are steep and narrow and are genuinely not driveable, so do not let your navigation talk you into trying. Tirana to Berat has the parking zones marked out.
Stay the night. Berat in the evening, when the castle lights up above the boulevard, is the version worth seeing.
Day 3: Berat to Gjirokastra
Roughly 150 km, about 2 hours 30.
The landscape changes on this leg as you move south into the mountains. Gjirokastra announces itself well before you arrive, grey stone houses stacked up the slope with the castle on top.
Same parking logic as Berat. Leave the car near the entrance to the old bazaar and continue on foot. Tirana to Gjirokastra covers the approach and where to stop.
Day 4: Gjirokastra, the Blue Eye and Saranda
Roughly 50 km total, under 1 hour 30 of driving.
The shortest driving day. Head south to the Blue Eye in the morning, before the tour buses arrive from Saranda. It is a karst spring, the parking is a short walk from the water, and the whole visit takes about an hour. Blue Eye Albania driving guide has the access details and what to expect at the entrance.
Carry on to Saranda for the afternoon. It is the base for the next two nights.
Day 5: Ksamil and Butrint
Roughly 40 km total.
Butrint in the morning, which is a UNESCO archaeological site about 20 minutes south of Saranda and considerably better than most people expect. Ksamil in the afternoon for the islands and the water.
Ksamil gets extremely busy in July and August, and parking is the main friction point. Arrive early or come late in the day. Tirana to Ksamil covers the area in detail.
Day 6: Saranda to Himara and Dhermi
Roughly 70 km, about 1 hour 45 with stops.
This is the Riviera, and it is the drive people remember. The road climbs away from Saranda and runs north above the coast through Borsh, Qeparo and Himara.
Stop properly rather than pushing through. Himara for lunch, then Dhermi, with Gjipe beach as a detour if you have the appetite for the walk down. The old villages above the main road are worth the ten minutes it costs to drive up to them. Tirana to Dhermi covers this stretch.
Day 7: Dhermi to Vlora to Tirana
Roughly 195 km, about 3 hours 45.
The one longer driving day, and it starts with the best part. North of Dhermi you have a choice between the Llogara tunnel, which opened in 2024 and cuts straight through, or the old pass over the top. Take the pass if the weather is clear. The descent toward the coast is steeper than the climb and the views from the top are the reason the road exists. Tirana to the Albanian Riviera explains both options.
Continue to Vlora, then inland and north to Tirana. The final stretch is straightforward highway. Tirana to Vlora covers it in reverse.
If your flight is early the next morning, consider dropping the car at the airport rather than in the city.
Route at a Glance
| Day | Leg | Distance | Driving time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tirana | Collection only | Under 30 min |
| 2 | Tirana to Berat | 120 km | 2 hours |
| 3 | Berat to Gjirokastra | 150 km | 2 hours 30 |
| 4 | Gjirokastra to Blue Eye to Saranda | 50 km | 1 hour 20 |
| 5 | Butrint and Ksamil | 40 km | 1 hour |
| 6 | Saranda to Dhermi | 70 km | 1 hour 45 |
| 7 | Dhermi to Vlora to Tirana | 195 km | 3 hours 45 |
Treat these as minimums. Add a buffer on the coastal and mountain sections, particularly in August.
Ending Somewhere Other Than Tirana
The loop above returns you to Tirana because most people fly in and out of the same airport. If you are leaving from Corfu by ferry from Saranda, or continuing into Greece, you do not need to drive back at all.
Dropping the car in Saranda instead of Tirana saves you the entire seventh day. One way car rental in Albania explains how that works and which drop-off points are available.
If You Have Ten Days: Adding the North
Three extra days lets you add the Albanian Alps, and they are a genuinely different country from the south.
Run them at the start rather than the end: Tirana to Shkodra, then up to Theth for two nights, then back down and into the Berat leg. The road to Theth is the one section of this trip that deserves real caution, with unpaved stretches and steep climbs depending on the season. Driving to Theth covers current road conditions and what car you need.
Do not try to compress the north into a seven-day trip. It turns two good days into three rushed ones.
What This Route Deliberately Skips
Korça, Pogradec and Lake Ohrid sit in the east and do not fit a southern loop without adding a long transfer day. The same applies to Valbona, which is reachable from Theth on foot but not easily by car.
Leaving them out is the point. A week in Albania done at a reasonable pace beats the same week spent watching it through a windscreen.
Practical Notes
Fuel stations are common on main roads and sparse in the mountains. Fill up before the Llogara section and before Theth.
Carry cash. Parking, small restaurants and site entrance fees frequently do not take cards.
Book accommodation in Ksamil and Dhermi well ahead in July and August. Both fill completely.
Download offline maps before you leave Tirana. Signal drops in the mountains and on parts of the Riviera.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is seven days enough for Albania? For the south, yes. For the whole country including the Alps, you want ten.
Can you do this itinerary without a car? Not as written. Buses cover Tirana, Berat, Gjirokastra and Saranda, but the Blue Eye, Butrint and the Riviera villages are difficult or impossible on public transport.
Which direction is better? Anticlockwise as written, ending on the Riviera. Running it in reverse means finishing with the inland towns after the coast, which is an anticlimax.
What kind of car do you need? A compact or midsize is fine for this entire route. You only need something larger for Theth. Renting a car in Albania covers the categories.
Key Takeaways
- Seven days covers Albania's southern loop comfortably at roughly 600 km total, with no day over four hours of driving.
- Move in one direction. Doubling back is what turns a relaxed week into a rushed one.
- Park outside the old towns in Berat and Gjirokastra. Their historic centres cannot be driven.
- Distances mislead. Albanian roads are slower than the kilometres suggest, so build in buffer time on coastal and mountain sections.
- Add the north only if you have ten days. Three extra days for Shkodra and Theth, not one.
- Consider a one way drop-off if you are leaving via Saranda or Corfu, which removes an entire day of backtracking.
Ready to plan the drive? Search available cars for your dates.
