Undiscovered Balkans

This small-group holiday with Explore Worldwide threads through the Balkans from Tirana to Durres, taking in Albania, North Macedonia, and Kosovo. Starting in Tirana, you’ll find a city where Communist relics sit alongside bustling markets and a growing café scene. The pace varies from a three-hour hike up Mount Dajti to relaxed strolls through cobbled streets and lakeside towns.

The route includes stops on ancient Lake Ohrid with its Byzantine and Ottoman architecture, a boat trip to Saint Naum monastery, and a long day driving to Skopje with its mix of Soviet rebuilding and Ottoman heritage. Kosovo offers striking contrasts too, from Pristina’s concrete library to the dusty pathways of Peja and alpine hikes in Rugova Gorge.

In Albania’s Valbona Valley, there’s time on mountain trails with the option to sip tea with shepherds, finishing by the Adriatic Sea with a visit to Durres’s Roman Amphitheatre. The itinerary offers a measured pace with an honest look at a region still finding its place in Europe.

These are the places the trip visits, in order. Explore Worldwide publishes the day-by-day itinerary on its own site.