Albania, roads and advices please
 

Hi,
We are planning an adriatic shore tour from Trieste/Italy to Antalya/Turkey. And we plan to cross Albania from Budva-Montenegro to Igumenitsa-Greece. We have very little knowledge about road condition in Albania. Any advice is appreciated.

Albania
 

Main roads ok but driving very bad ,some B roads very bad found one on map used it became a track and then totally disappeared but on map said it continued. people I met were friendly .

Albania
 

Ohrid lake was a great place to overnight good campsite and some small hotels.

Agreed. Main roads are mostly fine, with some stretches of decent motorway - although the driving is terrible, especially on the major roads.
Allow good time as it's often quite slow going - single lane roads with carts and animals/livestock etc., even on roads marked on the maps as major roads.
Good luck on the trip

I did that exact route 2 years ago on my Honda ST 1100, which is a fairly heavy street bike.

The main Albanian roads are generally OK, and they are improving from year to year. On most sections of highway, I was able to ride at 80 to 100 km/h without any problems. Cities sometimes had potholes, but if you pay attention and avoid them, they are not a major problem.

The two problems you need to be very alert for are:

1) It is not uncommon for a road that has been in excellent shape (up to European standards) for the last 10 or 20 km to suddenly, without notification of any kind, turn into a dirt road with a substantial grade difference at the transition point. This means you have to constantly pay attention to what is ahead of you and not get lulled into complacency.

2) The drivers in Albania are awful - incompetent at best, downright dangerous at worst. 25 years ago, there were less than 5,000 cars in the whole country. Now, everyone has a car (many of them large luxury vehicles that have been stolen from elsewhere) and no-one at all has any driver training. I honestly don't think there is any form of driver licencing system in Albania... if you have a car, then that's your driver licence.

You will encounter drivers travelling at terrifying rates of speed, passing in the most unsafe manner, making left turns from the far right lane, and so on. Do not ever assume that the other driver is competent or even aware of you, otherwise you will wind up as roadkill.

Having said all that - the coast road is very beautiful, the people are quite friendly, and I felt quite safe in the country (except, of course, when I was riding the bike).

Michael

Hakan:

Just a post-script about drivers in Albania: I stated above that I don't think Albania has an effective system of licencing drivers. One consequence of this is that it is very possible that you might find a person with visual acuity of 6/30 driving a car or truck, simply because they have never had to pass a medical examination to determine if they are fit to operate a vehicle.

So, when you are on a two-lane road and you see a big vehicle coming from the opposite direction pull into your lane to pass, it is quite possible that the driver of that vehicle is not aware that you are using the oncoming lane because they simply cannot see you. You can flash your headlight all you want and it will make no difference.

You have to be prepared to drive VERY defensively in Albania. After you have been in the country for a few hours and have seen the enormous quantity of overturned and wrecked cars along the sides of the roadways, you will appreciate the seriousness of the problem.

Michael

Last year I did Vlorë - Sarandë.
Good road following coast. And I dont remember that it bad at all.
Town named Ohrid in Macedonia is worth to visit.

BTW!
Ruga e Kombit, Milot – Kukës is a new motorway what is built to connect Kosovo to the sea. If you like to drive fast in fast curves, try it. But be aware that all vehicles on the road are no going motorway speed. Like donkeys for example

Expect the unexpected is my advice. I have had similar experience as Pan European. The disappearing road thing is quite something. I had this travelling on a "motorway grade" road toward the capital when it just stopped, there were buildings in front ! No road? Just a bank to the right which I had to ride down ending up in some rabbit warren back street with a one-way system, actually no-way system would be more accurate.

Pay attention beyond 100% and you will be fine. Fabulous place/people. I parked my bike outside a hotel next to a night club and the doorman from the nightclub said he will watch it for me. He did as well, all night!

In the capital watch out for oil in the road it was quite bad, so bad that in stop start traffic I rear ended a VW golf (ABS kicked in) The driver got out it was none other than Albania's 25yr old Mr universe-tallest-most-muscle-bound-iron-man bloke, I'm not 100% sure what he said by my wife suggested I ought to agree anyway,................ I kept just enough cash for 2 coffees. Better that than test the €12 border insurance. Anyway he didn't look as if paperwork was his thing really....

According to g6snl
"In the capital watch out for oil in the road it was quite bad,"

Four years ago, on a similar route to Turkey, rosa del desierto and I rode through Albania on 2 G650gs BMWs. Perfect bikes for Albania - with ABS off...

From my notes on Albania, Buying motor oil in Albania - look for a garden hose braced up in an empty lot and spouting a stream of water skyward, with young men standing about smoking, or a young man spraying you with the garden hose as you ride by. This is an Albanian "car wash," they also wash trucks. Motor oil, car parts, even some bits and pieces for motorcycles can be found at each "car wash" or can be sent for by runners dispatched from the "car wash."

My favorite Albanian architecture was the multi floor buildings with the side facing the road sheered off and Albanians sitting with feet dangling from each of the open floors. We really enjoyed our ride through Albania, the people were very friendly.

While riding in Albania, please don't get distracted from admiring Albanian drivers by admiring the architecture, even if the legs dangling from one of the floors belong to one of the very beautiful women of Albania.

The cautions expressed here about unexpected changes in road conditions and unexpected driving habits of the Albanians should be heeded.

xfiltrate

Plodd 2014
 

Hi,

We did a very similar trip in our truck on our way from UK to Thailand, you can have a look at our web site at Plodd - A Trip of a Lifetime, one word of advice, on the outskirts of Terin (the capital) you will find a realy nice hotel (4 star) not expensive with camping/parking at the rear, a nice restaurant, you would be crazy if you dont stop and camp there or stay in the hotel.

On Plodd - A Trip of a Lifetime look at the Special Eggs section

The Hotel is called Nord Park Hotel.

If you have any questions that you think I maybe able to help you with don't hesitate to ask.

Dave
Plodd - A Trip of a Lifetime
www.overrlandersthailand.com

hknsky,

don't let yourself be put off - Albania is not as bad as most people from central Europe say ?c?

A few weeks ago I returned from Turkey via northern Greece (Ioannina near Igoumenitsa) and along the same coastal road you're planning to take through Albania. Let's put it this way: Traffic wasn't worse than in Turkey, so it will be a good prep for the kind of road rules to expect further east ;o)

Not so nice is that in the northern stretch between Skoder and roughly Durres there are several construction sites with heavy traffic jams. But travelling by bike gives you lots of possibilities to overtake. Further south traffic gets less, landscape becomes more scenic. Here the only rutty parts are to be expected in the town centres.

So, no need to get nervous, but do expect the unexpected....
As posted before, the coastal road from Vlore to Sarande is very beautiful, but the main road going south from Vlore is also quite scenic.

Albania is changing fast. Many pistes from a few years ago are tarmac roads today. And the major roads like the route north-to-south is also being revised, at least up to Durres and Vlore. But in the back-country the roads are often still beautiful tracks and pistes for enduro riders :D

Thank you all for your advices.
3 of us will send the bikes from Çeşme to Trieste, 3 of us will start August 17th or 18th from Antalya, via Athens, Meteora, Ohrid, Skopje, Sarajevo, Mostar (we will meet), Zadar, Split, Dubrovnik, Kotor, Budva, Ksamil, Igoumenitsa, Parga, Preveza, Patras, Korinth, Athens and Antalya again. Hopefully with good memories and fun. Peace...

"A good traveller has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” – Lao Tzu

Hi all,
Yesterday we are back, all safe.
Quick comment on Albania roads: No problem at all, some parts are with heavy traffic but as stated before nothin worse than here in Turkey :)
Highways are new and good quality. We stayed in Sarande, and I definetely recommend everyone to see the pass between Vlore and Sarande, Mount Çika. This is a must see place and beautiful riding experience.
Thanks again...
Hakan

Hi
About five years ago entered Albania from Greece. I asked immigration about insurance. He looked at me with sympathy and said.

" Sir you may be able to get insurance in the town about 20km north - but you would be the only vehicle in Albania that had it." So I did not bother

Nice country , people and beaches. Crazy drivers -the most popular film star was Norman Wisdom and there are more than 50000 machine gun bunkers. The paranoia of the cold war had only just receded about 10 years behind the rest of the world!!!

Driving hazards not that bad
 

Guys, its not that bad, seriously ;) of course i agree, that driving culture somehow differs from western standards, and i was truly confused at first, but iv got accustomed very quickly. As you will see, everyone is using horns to signal more dynamic maneuvers, and you should to. in the mountains, each time i was closing to an apex i was tooting like a madman ;) it was even quite fun experience ;) i sort of got a new habit. When i came back home, i realize that people react very nervously when you tooting just to signal that you passing by ;))
besides that, keeping a healthy dose of carefulness you should do just fine.