Trips With Kids

Guide to Albania with kids

Our van was stuck up to the axles in the sand on an empty beach near the mouth of the Shkumbin River. It was over 40 degrees, and we were digging out the wheels with a camping shovel. That evening we pitched our tent on the same beach and had the sea all to ourselves. That was one of our days in Albania, the main goal of our Balkan road trip in August 2017.

We crossed into Albania from Montenegro and spent more than a week driving south, almost to the Greek border, and then back north along the coast. On the way we saw the castles of Berat and Gjirokastër, the Roman amphitheatre in Durrës, ancient Butrint, hot springs in the Langarica river canyon and the Llogara Pass. We slept mostly in a tent at campsites, and you can watch every day of the trip on our Bałkany 2017 playlist, and our other trips on our YouTube channel.

Albania with kids is a great choice for families who like camping and a bit of adventure. Be ready for slow driving and busy roads in the north, but in return you get a calm south, friendly hosts and a warm sea. The whole route through seven countries is in Balkans 2017 - a road trip with kids through seven countries, and below you will find everything about Albania.

Albania with kids at a glance

  • Our trip: August 2017, more than a week in Albania as part of a three-week Balkan road trip (29 July to 20 August, about 5,000 km).
  • How we got there: by car from Poland through the Czech Republic, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, with the last stretch through the Piva river canyon and Podgorica to Shkodër (To Albania through Montenegro).
  • Where we stayed: Camping Legjenda in Shkodër, Mali i Robit in Durrës, Berat Caravan Camping, Ksamil Caravan Camping, a night at the top of the Llogara Pass and the Pa Emer campsite in the Kavaja district, plus one night wild camping on a beach and a room at Hotel Bebej Traditional in Gjirokastër.
  • Kids: we travelled with our four children, and the youngest was just over a year old.
  • How much time to plan: more than a week was enough for us to drive from Shkodër to Ksamil and back. Plan for an average of about 30 km/h: the 100 km from Shkodër to the Rodonit Peninsula took us 3 hours and 15 minutes.

Practical info

Documents for kids

  • Polish citizens, like us, can enter Albania with a passport or a national ID card (as of November 2026). If you have a different nationality, check the rules for your own passport.
  • Every child needs their own passport or ID card (as of November 2026).
  • If only one parent is travelling, carry written consent from the other parent. Some countries outside the EU may ask for it (as of November 2026).
  • Albania is not in the EU, so expect your whole family's documents to be checked at the border.

Currency

Albania uses the lek (ALL).

Car and road tolls

  • Albania is outside the EU motor insurance area, so a car registered in the EU needs a Green Card from your insurer (as of November 2026).
  • Tolls are charged only on the A1 motorway between the Kosovo border and Tirana, in cash or by card at the toll booth (as of November 2026). At the very end of the road to the Rodonit Peninsula we paid a local fee at a barrier.
  • The Polish authorities advise against driving after dark because of potholes, stray animals, and cyclists and pedestrians without lights (as of November 2026).
  • At a roundabout, the vehicle entering it has priority (as of November 2026). In 2017 it felt more like the bigger vehicle always went first, as we describe in Rodonit peninsula.

When to visit Albania with kids

We were in Albania in the first half of August. It was very hot, and the most popular places, like Blue Eye and Ksamil, were crowded. We also met lots of people at the Langarica hot springs, but outside the summer holidays you can apparently have them almost to yourself. If you go in summer, choose campsites with a pool or by the sea.

Best places in Albania for kids

The north: Shkodër and the Rodonit Peninsula

Camping Legjenda in Shkodër

This small campsite at the foot of the hill with Rozafa Castle was our first stop in Albania, and its pool was the big hit: we spent the whole day in it. Still in Montenegro, we stopped for a swim in the turquoise Lake Piva. Watch our video from the lake. Read more in To Albania through Montenegro.

Rodonit Peninsula

We walked along the ridge of the peninsula to the ruins of a castle built by Skanderbeg in the 15th century, and today the sea is washing away its walls. On the beach we looked for crabs, but we skipped swimming because the sea brings rubbish there from the Mat River. Watch our video from Rodonit and read Rodonit peninsula.

Durrës and the Adriatic coast

Amphitheatre and archaeological museum in Durrës

This 2nd-century Roman amphitheatre held 20,000 people and lay hidden under the ground for centuries until it was found by chance in 1966. When we bought our tickets, it turned out we could also visit the nearby archaeological museum, where the air conditioning was very welcome in the heat. We show the amphitheatre in our video, and the story is in Amphitheater and archaeological museum in Durrës.

Wild camping near the mouth of the Shkumbin River

We drove our van onto the beach and got stuck in soft sand. Rubber mats and palm leaves under the wheels did not help, and only a 4x4 pulled us out. Our reward was a whole day by the sea with nobody around for hundreds of metres and a night in our tent on the beach. The full story is in Wild camp on the beach in Albania.

Pa Emer campsite in the Kavaja district

Probably the prettiest campsite we stayed at in Albania: right by the sea, with a tiny artificial island and a bar reached by a wooden bridge. The island stands in shallow water, so you can also just wade there through the sea, and we spent almost the whole day playing in the water. Read more in Kavaja, Pa Emer camping.

Central Albania: Berat and the Langarica canyon

Berat

The city of a thousand windows, where the houses on the castle hill look alike and all have lots of windows. Together with Gjirokastër it is on the UNESCO list, and its stone streets are so slippery that we noticed it while parking. We show the castle and the town in our video from Berat, and you can read more in Berat.

Hot springs in the Langarica river canyon

Near the village of Bënjë, water at about 30 degrees comes out of the ground, and you can bathe in it even in the middle of summer. Next to the springs stands the 18th-century Kadiu stone bridge, but the water was so low that you could easily cross the river on the stones. See Hot springs in the Langarica river canyon.

The south: Gjirokastër, Blue Eye, Ksamil and Butrint

Gjirokastër

A dark 100-metre tunnel leads to the castle, one of the largest fortresses in Albania. Inside you will find:

  • cannons, tanks and anti-aircraft guns lined up in a corridor,
  • the wreck of an American spy plane from 1957 on the upper terrace,
  • the cells of a former prison for political prisoners, which you can look into.

We stayed at Hotel Bebej Traditional, where the owner helped us get our van up the steep driveway, and in the morning a traditional Albanian breakfast was waiting for us. Read more in Gjirokastër.

Blue Eye

The spring of the Bistricë River is bright blue, more than 50 metres deep and only 10 to 13 degrees all year. In August, instead of the empty spring from Instagram, we found a long line of cars and a crowd of people, and swimming in the spring itself is not allowed. Watch our video from Blue Eye and read about it in Blue Eye / Syri i Kalter.

Ksamil

The southernmost town on our route is a resort with paid sunbeds, so we went for a swim at a wild spot where the waves crashed against the rocks. The small islands you see from the shore belong to Butrint National Park. See Ksamil.

Butrint

These ancient ruins on the UNESCO list lie right by the Greek border. Inside the fenced site we saw:

  • city walls and part of a Venetian castle,
  • a Greek theatre,
  • a baptistery, Roman baths and the ruins of houses.

At the entrance we got a map, and there are leaflets in many languages. We show the ruins in our video from Butrint, and there is more in Butrint.

The Albanian Riviera: the Llogara Pass

Llogara Pass

Driving north along the coast through Sarandë, Himarë and Dhërmi, we climbed almost 1,100 metres to the pass at 1,027 m above sea level and stopped for the night at the top. Since 2024 you can skip the pass through the Llogara tunnel. Watch our video from the pass and read Llogara pass.

All posts: Albania

Last updated: November 2026