Vlore has a wall of mountains, isolating the city from the east and sea to the west. In Albania it is where the mountains meet the sea at equal beauty, ideal for hiking! When you climb up, it is full of locals going to feed the flocks of sheep and cows.
You will find clean water, and the beach is very beautiful. Also, you can get 300 sunny days during the year. That’s why the place is called Sunnyland.
This is the place where Albanian independence was won. You will find the iconic Independence Monument, designed by Mumtaz Dhrami, here. There are many histories and Albanian cultures in this place.
There is a museum you can visit in Vlore. Here you can enjoy the elegant 18th-century building that houses it as well as the traditional folk costumes and traditions of the city. You will get information about visiting other places from the museum, like Orikum Archaeological Park.
Also, you can go to the monastery on Zvernec. Where you will find a beautiful wooden bridge that cracks over the Narta Lagoon. You can visit the place on a half-day trip from Vlore. Zvernec is a real breath of fresh air.
Talking about food in Vlore, I can say a lot about Italian food and their sea food. You can take Italian pizza and, of course, ice cream.
Their local seafood is delicious. They use garlic and lemon in Italian seafood. The food prices are also cheap. There are some restaurants that are family-run. They specialize in langoustines and white fish. Expect a decent selection of crisp Albanian wines to go with your dish, too. You will also try Byrek, which is Vlore’s local food. It is a pastry filled with either field greens or just milky pie. Grilled meat is also found in all the restaurants in Vlore. Lamb meat from Karaburun is also cooked over fire in some restaurants. Another traditional food is yogurt. They produce it themselves, and it is totally different from the other yoghurt in Europe.
The mountains are cold and fresh air, hit by sea air, medium hiking difficulty, and excursions makes the path exciting, well accumulated as you move from spot to spot.
Some of these mountains have old historic villages, old architecture houses that are built stone by stone, testimony to an old mountainous
style of living condition and still populated by locals running traditional farms.
Hikes can last however long you want! Although make sure to know that these are virgin, and no one hikes in the areas. And not many hikers have gone through as most of Albania is undiscovered.
This villa that I found online has a fireplace with real wood and it can accommodate over 10 people, hike in a group! Close to the villa there is a small lake with fresh water source, 10 min walk, if you fancy the challenge of diving in cold- water straight from the tree branches this place will be to your liking and go for it.
You will also find various hotels in Vlore. From basic to luxurious, you can find all. Also, if you want, you can take private apartments and homes for longer stays of more than 7 days.
January and February the weather is amazing, and you can get this villa for less than 130 euros a night.
Close by is the archaeological site of Tragjas I vjeter, Lake Izvor, Mountain Cika, Mountain LLogara.
Unfortunately, there is no airport in Vlore. But you can go there by bus, boat, and taxi. By bus: you can take a bus from the bus station in Tirana. By taxi: from Bari with a ferry boat, which is very exciting. Also, you will find taxis from Bari.
