Motor Caravan to Albania

Ted44
Ted44 Forum Participant Posts: 7
edited June 2012 in Your stories #1

I once worked as an international HGV driver and have travelled through most of Europe and parts of the Middle East. However one country that we could not enter to make deliveries was Albania. It was a hard line communist regime state and all goods had to be unloaded at the border.  Now these days are long over, I decide I should like to add Albania to my experience list.
 I entered Albania from the Montenegro coastal road, which was winding and difficult in places. There are no listed campsites in any of my guide books, but I had been told about the Camping Hotel at Mali Robit on the coast road about 12 kilometres south of Durres, which is Albania’s principal beach resort.
This hotel has shaded parking to the rear of the hotel with electricity and a basic toilet block.  I was informed that campers could use a shower within the hotel and the price for my motor caravan and two persons was 15 Euros per night.  I negotiated a reduced rate of 12 Euros per night, and that we would use our own onboard shower. We also had free use of the hotel WIFI and a washing machine load of laundry for a modest charge.
The beach was not clean on our arrival but was cleaned up on the second day. We took excursions into Durres and the capital Tirana on the local buses that were inexpensive.  Cold drinks and ice creams where inexpensive away from the camping hotel.  We did not experience the local restaurant food, but self catered, getting cheap salad from the market and using canned meat or local fish. 
Durres was not a particularly attractive resort, but had a certain charm. Tirana is being developed big time, with many new buildings under construction and will be like many other Eastern European capital cities when completed.
I decided to return back into Montenegro via the main inland highway from Tirana to Podgorica (the capital of Montenegro).  Unfortunately the highway ran out of tarmac for around 35 kilometres before the Montenegro border and it was a tortuous slow and bumpy ride over stone chippings that gave my ageing Talbot Express motor caravan a real shake out.
To summarise, an interesting visit but having been there, I shall not go again. Montenegro has more to offer, but Croatia is better still. 

Comments

  • baggiemacca
    baggiemacca Forum Participant Posts: 1
    edited June 2012 #2

    Songs like a really good adventure / Holiday, i wouldn't mind trekking down to this coast, try and experiance something different but i think my annual 2 week leave miight be a bit prohibative. 

  • Ted44
    Ted44 Forum Participant Posts: 7
    edited June 2012 #3

    Hi Baggiemacca,

    Yes, you certainly could not do this trip in two weeks.  I guess you'll have to wait until you retired like me! Happy touring.

  • yorkshireman
    yorkshireman Forum Participant Posts: 10
    edited July 2012 #4

    great to hear of someone who is brave enough to go where no caravaners have gone....very interesting and practical item better than many you get in the caravan club magazine :-)

  • himself
    himself Forum Participant Posts: 5
    edited July 2012 #5

    Hello from another ex-truckie,did you work for astrans or perhaps the turkish trading company,stay safe.

  • Ted44
    Ted44 Forum Participant Posts: 7
    edited September 2012 #6

    Hello "Himself",

    I have been unable to reply earlier due to more motor caravan travel and internet access problems. I worked for the Asil Nadir group of companies. He ran his own trucks that connected London with his business interests in UK, Turkey, Cyprus, Iraq and other
    places. He was charged with international multi-million Pounds fraud after returning to the UK from 18 years of exile in Turkish Cyprus and is currently serving a prison sentence here!