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Best time to visit Albania

The best time to go to Albania is spring, early summer and early autumn, when you can avoid seasonal extremes and make the mots of walking and cycling trails. However, head to the mountains in winter and you’ll be greeted with Christmas card scenes, and the opportunity to snow shoe between remote villages for a real glimpse of rural Albanian life.

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Best time to visit Albania

TEMPERATURE & RAINFALL

April-June and Sep-Oct are the best time to go to Albania – you’ll avoid scorching coastal summer heat and bitter winter mountain cold, making these ideal for walking, cycling, sightseeing, watersports and flopping on the beach. If you're tied to traveling in the summer vacations, don’t fret; many beaches get a fraction of the visitors of their Mediterranean neighbours, despite being possibly even more beautiful. The crisp winter in the mountains is ideal for snowshoeing – though the rest of the country is cold and damp.

WHEN NOT TO VISIT ALBANIA

A MONTH BY MONTH GUIDE

December, January and February are very cold inland and in the mountains – and heavy rain can lead to flooding and disruption. If you’re after powder, though, this is the time to come – snowshoeing vacations take place from late January to mid March in the Albanian Alps.

Late June into July and August are fiendishly hot along the coast and inland – and these peak vacation months will also see the popular coastal hub of Saranda packed with Albanians escaping Tirana, and tourists heading over on daytrips from Corfu.

Outside of Saranda, Albania is actually a great summer Med getaway – as it receives just a fraction of the tourists of nearby Croatia, Greece, Italy or even Montenegro.

The mountains will be much cooler though – and walking vacations here run right through the summer until September.

April, May and early June are some of the best months to go to Albania, with great weather for walking and cycling – and you can still make the most of the Mediterranean beaches. Prices will be lower (avoiding Easter), the main attractions will be quieter, and the rural areas just as empty as always.

Late September through to mid October is another good season, before the weather really kicks in in November.

BEST TIME TO VISIT ALBANIA

RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL RECOMMENDS

Mark Huggins, from our supplier Undiscovered Destinations, shares his favourite time to visit Albania: “My favourite time in Albania is May-June and September-October. It’s best to avoid high summer as it can be excruciatingly hot.”

Olly Pemberton, from our leading Albania supplier Exodus: “I would say May is a fantastic time to go, because it is not baking hot and the locals from the city are not on their vacations so they beach towns are all but deserted. Plus when you are in the mountains there will still be snow on the peaks so it creates a very impressive backdrop.”

ALBANIA FESTIVALS & EVENTS

OUR PICK FROM THE ALBANIAN CULTURAL CALENADR

Did you know about…?

Spring Day, on 14th March, is a national vacation. This pagan festival is celebrated across the country – with a particularly large following in the central region of Elbasan, and in Tirana, where the park fills with musicians, acrobats and other performances. From 1st March you’ll see young people wearing braided red and white bracelets, which are hung on trees for good luck following the celebrations. Don’t miss the traditional “ballokume” corn flour cakes.

Photo credits: [Temp chart: Artur Malinowski] [RT recommends: Fation Plaku ] [Spring Day: Gerd 72 (talk)]

Written by Vicki Brown

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