Balkans Four-Country Circuit: Albania, Greece, North Macedonia & Kosovo — Self-Launched

Land at Tirana Nënë Tereza airport and take the Rinas Express airport bus to the city centre (~200 lek / £2, runs roughly every hour until late evening) or a taxi (£15-20). Check into a hostel or small guesthouse near the Block or Rr. Myslym Shyri. Walk the pedestrian centre in the late afternoon: Skanderbeg Square, Et'hem Bey Mosque, the Pyramid and the colourful facades of the Blloku district. Grab a cheap dinner of tavë kosi or byrek (£5-7).

🚌Airport bus ~£2 or taxi ~£18

🛏Hostel or family guesthouse, central Tirana (~£16-22/night private double, dorms from £9)

• →Self-guided walk: Skanderbeg Square, Et'hem Bey Mosque, Pyramid
• →Blloku district evening stroll

Take a morning furgon or bus to Durrës (~45 min, ~150 lek / £1.30), see the Roman amphitheatre and the Byzantine walls, then continue by bus or shared minibus to Berat (~2 hrs, ~£4). Berat's Mangalem and Gorica quarters are a UNESCO maze of white Ottoman houses — walk up to Berat Castle in the late afternoon for sunset over the Osum valley, and duck into the Onufri Icon Museum inside the castle grounds (ticket ~400 lek / £3.50). Ask your guesthouse to point you to a local home for coffee and raki — many families welcome visitors for a small tip.

🚌Furgon/bus Tirana–Durrës ~£1.30; Durrës–Berat bus ~£4

🛏Guesthouse in Mangalem or Gorica old town, Berat (~£15-20 for a room)

• →Durrës Roman Amphitheatre (small entry fee)
• →Berat Castle self-guided walk
• →Onufri Icon Museum ~£3.50
• →Coffee & raki with a local family (tip £2-3)

Bus or shared minibus from Berat to Vlora (~2 hrs, ~£4). If you want to break the journey, ask the driver to drop you near Ardenica Monastery (a short detour off the main road) — otherwise see it on a local taxi round trip from Berat (~£15 return, split between two). In Vlora, walk the palm-lined promenade, visit the Independence Museum in the house where Albanian independence was declared in 1912 (~300 lek / £2.60), and see the 16th-century Muradie Mosque. Seafood dinner by the port is cheap and excellent (£8-10).

🚌Bus Berat–Vlora ~£4; optional taxi detour ~£15 return

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel near Vlora's old town (~£16-22)

• →Ardenica Monastery (optional detour)
• →Independence Museum ~£2.60
• →Muradie Mosque (external viewing)
• →Vlora promenade

Long but spectacular day — start early. Take a bus or shared minibus south along the Albanian Riviera via the Llogara Pass; stop at the Llogara viewpoint for the honey-and-yogurt-and-walnuts breakfast the tour raves about (~£2.50). Continue to Saranda or directly to Butrint National Park (~1,000 lek / £8.50 entry) and walk the Roman theatre, baptistery and lakeside ruins in about 2 hours. Swing by Porto Palermo fortress if your driver passes it. Then minibus to Gjirokastra (~1 hr, ~£3) and check in inside the old town.

🚌Bus/minibus Vlora–Saranda–Butrint–Gjirokastra ~£10-12 total

🛏Guesthouse in Gjirokastra's stone old town (~£16-22)

• →Llogara Pass viewpoint
• →Butrint National Park ~£8.50
• →Porto Palermo fortress (drive-by/quick stop)

Climb to Gjirokastra Castle early (entry ~400 lek / £3.50) to see the captured aircraft, the clock tower and the sweeping Drino valley view, then wander the bazaar and the Skenduli House. Cross into Greece by local bus via Kakavija to Ioannina (~3-4 hrs including the border, ~£8-10) — you'll need your passport and it can take an hour at the crossing. In Ioannina, walk the walled old town, the Fethiye Mosque and the Aslan Pasha complex, then take the little passenger boat to Nissi island on Lake Pamvotida (~€6 return) to see Ali Pasha's monastery.

🚌Bus Gjirokastra–Kakavija border–Ioannina ~£8-10

🛏Budget hotel or guesthouse in Ioannina old town (~£22-28)

• →Gjirokastra Castle ~£3.50
• →Gjirokastra bazaar
• →Nissi island boat on Lake Pamvotida ~£5
• →Aslan Pasha Mosque & old town

Bus or KTEL coach from Ioannina to Kalambaka/Trikala (~2.5-3 hrs, ~£12-14). Drop your bag and head up to the monasteries — six are standing on their rock pillars and 2-3 are usually open on any given day (€3 each, cash only). A local bus from Kalambaka runs up to the main parking area (€2-3) or you can take a taxi up and walk down. Grand Meteora and Varlaam are the big ones; Agia Triada has the best approach path. Stay for sunset at one of the roadside viewpoints — a short uphill walk from the road for the classic shot. Modest dress required: shoulders and knees covered, skirts provided at the doors.

🚌KTEL bus Ioannina–Kalambaka ~£13; local bus to monasteries ~£2.50

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Kalambaka / Kastraki (~£22-28)

• →Meteora monasteries entry ~£8 for three
• →Sunset viewpoint hike (free)
• →Optional walking trails between monasteries

The long transfer day: bus or combination of bus/shared taxi from Kalambaka to Bitola (~4 hrs via Florina, ~£12), stop to see the Heraclea Lyncestis mosaics (~150 MKD / £2), then local bus Bitola–Ohrid (~2 hrs, ~£5). Currencies change here — swap to denars or use a card at an ATM. Arrive in the early evening and walk down to the lake for the sunset over Kaneo. If energy remains, take a one-hour lake boat ride (~£5).

🚌Bus/train Kalambaka–Bitola ~£12; Bitola–Ohrid local bus ~£5

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Ohrid old town, two minutes from the water (~£16-22)

• →Heraclea Lyncestis mosaics ~£2
• →Lake Ohrid sunset walk
• →Optional lake boat ~£5

Self-guided day. Do the Church of St John at Kaneo, Samuil's Fortress (~60 MKD / £1) and the ancient amphitheatre in the morning on foot, then take a local bus or boat down the lake shore to Saint Naum (~£5 by bus, ~£12 by boat) for the springs, the monastery and the pebble beach. Back in Ohrid, dinner of tavče gravče and a glass of Macedonian Vranec for £8-10. Optional: a GetYourGuide Ohrid walking tour (~£15) if you want the historical context filled in.

🚌Local bus to Saint Naum ~£5 (or boat ~£12)

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Ohrid old town (~£16-22)

• →Samuil's Fortress ~£1
• →Church of St John at Kaneo
• →Saint Naum Monastery & springs
• →Optional guided Ohrid walk ~£15

Bus from Ohrid to Skopje (~3.5 hrs, ~£9-11) — break the journey at Tetovo if your bus stops there, otherwise take a local bus out to Tetovo and back (~£4 return, 1 hr each way) to see the extraordinary Painted Mosque and the Arabati Baba Teḱe. Alternatively make directly for Matka Canyon, 15 km west of Skopje: bus 60 from Skopje to the canyon entrance (~£1) and a short boat trip to Vrelo Cave (~£5). Evening in Skopje: Macedonia Square, the Stone Bridge and the Ottoman bazaar for a cheap ćevapi dinner (£5-7).

🚌Bus Ohrid–Skopje ~£10; local buses/taxi to Tetovo or Matka ~£5

🛏Hostel or budget hotel near Skopje old bazaar / centre (~£15-22)

• →Tetovo Painted Mosque (free)
• →Matka Canyon boat to Vrelo Cave ~£5
• →Skopje bazaar & Stone Bridge walk

Visit Gračanica Monastery on the edge of Pristina first if you route that way (bus Skopje–Pristina ~2 hrs, ~£8), or go direct Skopje–Prizren (~3 hrs, ~£9) and take a taxi or local bus out to Gračanica the next morning. In Prizren, walk the old town: the Sinan Pasha Mosque, the Church of Our Lady of Ljeviš, the stone Ottoman bridge and the Kalaja fortress above town. Dinner is the highlight — leqenik cornbread, flija and homemade rakia in a courtyard restaurant for £8-10. Swap to euros here.

🚌Bus Skopje–Prizren ~£9; local taxi to Gračanica ~£8 if chosen

🛏Guesthouse in Prizren old town with mountain views (~£15-20)

• →Prizren old town self-guided walk (free)
• →Kalaja fortress (free)
• →Gračanica Monastery (free/donation)
• →Traditional Kosovo dinner ~£9

Bus or shared minibus Prizren–Gjakova (~45 min, ~£3) to see the long Ottoman Grand Bazaar — one of the best-preserved in the Balkans — then cross back into Albania toward Bajram Curri and up the Valbona valley (~4-5 hrs with connections, ~£12-15; ask locally about shared 4x4/minibus transfers, which are the reliable option). The road up the valley is rough but the scenery is superb. Settle into a mountain guesthouse, eat a home-cooked dinner and walk out for the stars.

🚌Bus Prizren–Gjakova ~£3; shared minibus/4x4 to Valbona ~£14

🛏Mountain guesthouse in Valbona Valley (half-board ~£25-30)

• →Gjakova Grand Bazaar
• →Scenic drive into Valbona Valley National Park
• →Evening valley walk

Take the early Koman Lake ferry from Fierza to Koman (~2 hrs, ~£8-10 one way, seasonal — check the day before and bring cash), the highlight of northern Albania with its drowned valleys and cliff walls. From Koman, a minibus or shared furgon continues to Shkodra (~2 hrs, ~£6). In Shkodra, walk up to Rozafa Castle for the view over the lake and the Drin confluence (entry ~400 lek / £3.50) and wander the pedestrian old town and the Marubi photo museum if time allows (~£2).

🚌Koman Lake ferry ~£9; minibus Koman–Shkodra ~£6

🛏Budget hotel or guesthouse in Shkodra centre (~£15-20)

• →Koman Lake ferry ~£9
• →Rozafa Castle ~£3.50
• →Shkodra old town walk

Bus Shkodra–Tirana (~2 hrs, ~£4), then a local bus or furgon out to Kruja (~1 hr, ~£1.50). Kruja Fortress holds the Skanderbeg Museum (~500 lek / £4.30) and the old bazaar below it is the place to watch carpet weaving and buy a small souvenir. Back in Tirana for the afternoon: Bunk'Art 2 (the communist-era nuclear bunker museum, ~500 lek / £4.30), the New Bazaar for a last cheap meal, and a rooftop beer to finish.

🚌Bus Shkodra–Tirana ~£4; return bus to Kruja ~£3

🛏Hostel or guesthouse in central Tirana (~£16-22)

• →Skanderbeg Museum & Kruja Fortress ~£4.30
• →Kruja bazaar carpet weaving
• →Bunk'Art 2 ~£4.30
• →New Bazaar

A slow morning — coffee at a local bar (an Albanian morning ritual), last-minute shopping in the New Bazaar or on Rr. Myslym Shyri, then the Rinas Express bus to the airport (~£2, allow an hour). No airport transfer to arrange yourself beyond that unless you prefer a taxi (£18).

🚌Airport bus ~£2 or taxi ~£18

🛏—

• →New Bazaar shopping
• →Coffee & byrek breakfast