Southern Albania has a natural shape and almost nobody follows it. There is one road down the coast, one mountain pass in the middle of it, one road inland from the far south to the stone cities, and one road back north to the capital. Drive them in that order and you get a loop that uses each road once, crosses the best pass in the morning, and finishes in the interior when the coast has started to feel like enough. Seven days is the working length.
The loop, day by day
Day one: Tirana to Vlore, with the Durres amphitheatre and Apollonia on the way.
Day two: over the Llogara pass in the morning, down to Himare, an afternoon on a beach.
Day three: the Riviera coves, Gjipe or Jal, by track and on foot.
Day four: south to Saranda and Ksamil, with Butrint in the afternoon.
Day five: inland via the Blue Eye to Gjirokaster, arriving for the evening.
Day six: Gjirokaster in the morning, north to Berat for the night.
Day seven: Berat castle early, back to Tirana.
What each stop is for
Vlore: breaking the drive, seafood on the front, and the start of the Riviera.
Himare: the best all round base on the coast, with beaches either side.
Saranda and Ksamil: the far south, the clearest water and Butrint.
Gjirokaster: the stone city, best in the evening after the day visitors leave.
Berat: the white Ottoman quarters and an inhabited castle.
Tirana: the airport, and the twentieth century if you did not do it first.
Practical notes
Add half again to every estimated driving time.
Be parked before dark, particularly on the coast road.
Cash for beach bars, small guesthouses and village restaurants.
Fuel before the Riviera stretch, where stations are sparse.
Book coastal nights early for June to September.
Butrint needs a morning rather than an hour.
Shortening or lengthening it
Five days: drop Berat and Vlore, and do Tirana to Himare in one push.
Ten days: add a second night in Gjirokaster, a hiking day and Permet.
Two weeks: add the north, which is a completely separate trip from this one.
Without a car: base in Himare and Saranda, and use boats and taxis.
With children: more nights on the coast, fewer stone cities.
In September: the same loop, warmer sea, half the coastal prices.
Where this fits in an Albania trip
The southern half of the country in a week, which is the classic first Albanian trip.
For the coast in detail and which village to base in, our Albanian Riviera guide covers the ground.
For the spring on the inland leg, our Blue Eye guide covers the stop.
And for the stone city that ends the loop, our Gjirokaster guide covers the visit.
The short version
Drive the loop clockwise from Tirana: down the coast to Vlore, over the Llogara pass in the morning, along the Riviera to Himare, on to Saranda and Ksamil with Butrint, inland past the Blue Eye to Gjirokaster, north to Berat, back to Tirana. Two nights each on the coast and one each inland, which is four beds rather than seven. One hire car for the week, picked up and dropped in Tirana. Add half again to every drive time and be parked before dark.
