Hike the Coastal Trails of Albania

This was my first trip with MBA and I was really happy with how it went. The itinerary included some really nice hikes and beautiful swimming spots. The group was great — everyone got on well and the atmosphere was relaxed and friendly.

The hikes were easier than I expected, but still enjoyable. It was a good mix of activity and downtime.

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the hotels — all were nice and comfortable.

As a vegan, I didn’t expect a lot of food options, but it was fine and I always had enough food. I’d recommend bringing protein bars or powder if you’re on a plant-based diet though.

Overall, a well organised trip and a good experience. Would definitely consider booking with MBA again.

Albania is a beautiful country with lovely welcoming people. Our trip was amazing with a stunning vista at every turn. The trip was well organised with really comfortable accommodation and food was a very good quality. It was a wonderful experience despite the heat and rocky terrain being a challenge sometimes. For this reason I would say that a reasonable level of fitness is required. Our guide Tes was excellent and led our group in an organized and efficient manner and always with a smile. Overall this was a fantastic trip and we visited some amazing places, met lovely people and made wonderful memories.

This was our first experience of MBA and we were not disappointed The locations are stunning and we were lucky to have great weather to enjoy the unspoiled coastline and mountains of southern Albania Our guide Tess was excellent and was responsible for creating a great group dynamic Fellow group members were as expected Like minded travellers concerned with the environment and interesting companions

Three of the walks were spectacular, particularly enjoyed the walk through the mountains to the hilltop town. Accomodation far exceeded expectations and the food was so so so good!!! Especially the dinners. Guide was super lovely and group was fantastic.

My first MBA and it won’t be my last, incredible experience and the local guide Reni’s was hospitable and knowledgeable.

Had a fab time, thank you! Loved Albania. Such lovely people, stunning walks and great company. All the hotels were clean and lovely. First one wasn’t quite as nice as the others. Loved Solive in Himare, great spot off the main road. Art Hotel was lovely too. Food was good, first night was okay, second was delicious. Loved the seafood in Himare. Driver and guide were so lovely. Majority of the walks were at really good pace, great stops, beautiful landscape, I loved it!

I would highly recommend this trip to anyone who loves hiking and exploring the outdoors. Albania is a beautiful country with friendly people, amazing food, beautiful scenery and sunshine. The hikes each day were all different and some included beach swims in clear blue water bays. I met amazing like minded people on my trip and our guide Kreshnik was so helpful, his passion for his country and the stories and history of Albania he told us were so interesting. This trip has inspired me to visit the North next time I come back. Thank you muchbetteradventures for an incredible trip, looking forward to booking my next hiking trip.

What a great trip in a beautiful country! I loved the fantastic hikes everyday led by our wonderful guide Kreshnik. He was interesting, entertaining and funny and he went above and beyond for us. He is also absolutely passionate about his country. There were lovely people in our group ranging from 28 to 58 years old and we all seemed to get along well. We had lots of tasty food, especially if you are fond of cheese and fish. I am so glad I plucked up the courage to go away on my own; I have already started looking for my next trip.

A diverse landscape of forest, hills, and rocky trails. Our guide Nik was rightly proud of his beautiful country with many stories and historical facts. The Albanian people were friendly and food /accommodation basic but better than expected for cost of trip. We also found a great buzzing bar in final night in Tirana. Definitely recommend

Great trip - a lovely fun group of people, an amazing guide Krishnik - with the best laugh - who shared so much about the chequered history of this scenic country and went over and above, yummy food, super walks in varied landscapes, plus time for chilling in the Ionian sea… I spent an extra day and a half in Tirana prior to meeting the group and personally loved the vibe of the city. It was a super trip away !

This trip was everything I wanted it to be! Utterly beautiful scenery and a varied mix of hikes.

Our guide, Kreshnik, was so passionate about Albania and could not have looked after us better. Even after our final dinner he continued to show us around his hometown of Tirana.

I found the hiking more difficult than expected but that was more to do with me than the trip itself. It's not that I haven't hiked before, I do so fairly regularly in Spain, but the terrain was much more rocky and uneven underfoot than I am used to.

Igli our tour leader was fantastic he really knew his stuff and he was very good to me when I had a wobble on one of the hikes. I would definitely recommend him as a future leader.

The hotels chosen were fine, but I was rather annoyed that the first one, Hotel Sofo would not turn on the heating even though it was cold at night. I was very cold in bed and was told to put on an extra blanket, not a great deal of customer service where that was concerned. However the food was good and plentiful and the showers were hot and had great pressure. The other hotels were fine, they were clean and all had comfy beds and good showers.

Personally, I wouldn't do a hiking holiday again but that is not the fault of MBA.

I would use them again and am currently looking at the trip to Mexico as it is classed as Easy not Moderate like the trip to Albania.

Our second MBA tour and as good as the first. The group dynamic was great and our guide, Igli, looked out for each of us and did a superb job. Thank you also to our driver, Klajdi. Strongly recommend this trip. Peter& Nikki

Igli our guide and Klajdi our driver were excellent. They were friendly and kind and made the experience of visiting Albania a memorable one. Igli was very experienced and led the group well, going out of his way to make the group happy, help people feel supported and also created a memorable video document of our trip. The group was mixed in age and got along very well, choosing to eat together during free time and it was lovely to meet kind people from different backgrounds and countries.

The hiking was very beautiful with varied landscapes (mountain, sea, towns). I would say if you are used to hiking this may be more on the easy side, rather than the moderate rating. For context I am 30 and I go on long walks once or twice a month and I found the hiking to be on the easier side.

The accomodation was nice and food was much better than expected. I am vegetarian and I was very well catered for, with lots of options and generous portions.

It was a great trip and lovely to visit a new country.

Beautiful hikes in the mountains and along the coastline. Highlights for me were the picnic lunches in the mountains (in particular the final one), the beach swims and the chats on the trails with our gang.

Our guide Igli and driver Reshat did a wonderful job looking after our group.

If you love hiking, then this trip comes highly recommended - but don’t underestimate the moderate rating.

A-mazing and memorable trip.

L-ovely group of very supportive and interesting people.

B-rilliantly planned and varied walks matching the ‘moderate’ description.

A-ccommodation exceeded expectations.

N-atural beauty with fantastic fauna and flora (the wildflowers were a highlight for me) as well as swimming in the azure sea.

I-gli our guide was incredible ! Very knowledgeable, organised, calm and creative with his ‘Plan Bs’ when things didn’t go exactly to plan! For example Albanian dancing !

A-bundant and delicious food everywhere we ate.

ALBANIA is an amazing country. Go and see for yourself !

Very well organized, but the guides used their best judgment in making adjustments as needed. Nice accommodations, great food, beautiful hikes. Guides and our travel mates put it over the top. But you’d best be in hiking shape.

I had an amazing time on this trip! Our guides, Kreshnik and Renis were a lot of fun and super knowledgeable about the local culture and history. We had a different hike each day, and you would think it would be fairly similar scenery, but no- our guides knew the area really well and each day revealed a hidden gem. If I had to chose a favourite hike, I would be torn between the day we walked along the rugged coastline, stopping for swims at stunning beaches along or the day we followed a shepherd's trail up to a picnic lunch among wildflowers and a view of the surrounding mountains. With lot's of sunshine we certainly worked up a sweat every day but it was a lot of fun!

A great overall experience with awesome scenic views and access to little known locations, which would have been overlooked as difficult to find on a self-guided tour.

I had really high hopes for our trip to Albania and it didn't disappoint. The hiking was simply fantastic and I would say accurately described as moderate. We had some amazing hikes in the mountains and down to some beautiful beaches. The accommodation was good and was exactly what was needed after a long day hiking. Our guides were fantastic and shared a wealth of local knowledge. All in all a great trip and I look forward to my next MBA experience.

This was my first trip with MBA and it didn't disappoint. Seamlessly organised, stunning scenery and a wonderful group. Already looking to book my next trip!

I’m lucky to be able to do several trips per year but of all the trips I’ve ever taken, none was as well organised as my hiking trip in Albania. From beginning to end absolutely everything either went to plan or exceeded our expectations. The 3 hotels we occupied were exceptional and we were treated like Royalty. There was endless availability of excellent food (I miss the tomatoes) and our rooms were well equipped and comfortable. The scenery is breathtaking and we often had beaches completely to ourselves. What made the trip exceptional though was our 2 guides and our bus driver. They couldn’t have been more helpful or more patient. Mende was so knowledgeable on the history and culture of Albania- it was like bringing Google up the slope. Igli helped us get going with a little yoga in the mornings and some warm-downs after our hike. The two of them made perfect hike leaders. I will be eternally grateful to Richard, our driver, who carefully steered our bus along some very narrow steep mountain roads. There were 14 guests in our group and we got on really well together, I suspect we will remain friends for many years to come. I couldn’t recommend this trip highly enough.

What an amazing trip. I met the best people on my first trip with MBA and this tour doesn't disappoint. There are the right level of mountain hikes, short rest stops and beach swims. I will say that while it's rated moderate, you are required to have a good level of fitness so as not to hold others in the group up, which happened with ours. It didn't detract from the trip though, just pushed back the departure/arrival times. Overall everything was fabulously organised, the food, service and guides were spot on. Thanks MBA! I'll be booking again soon. 😀

What a fantastic trip! It was my first trip with Much Better Adventures and it really exceeded all my expectations. Albania is a beautiful country with a very interesting history, and our guides Menduh and Igli were so enthusiastic and eager to share their knowledge. Along with our driver Reshat, they really went above and beyond to give us the best possible experience. As we were not there for the busy tourist season, we had beautiful beaches to ourselves and the weather was very good, which made it even more enjoyable. The hikes were lovely, and moderate as described. The group of 14 all got on very well together, and lots of fun memories were made. Thank you so much Menduh, Igli and Reshat for such a wonderful trip. I would recommend to anyone!

This trip exceeded all our expectations- we were a group of fourteen, from four nations, but we all bonded very quickly. Menduh, our group leader was an absolute star- not only thoughtful and very patient, he was very knowledgeable about the history, architecture, fauna and life of Albania. He really did make the trip special. The same can be said of Igli and Rishard our very safe and humorous driver. The accommodation was nicely chosen - small hotels, always clean and welcoming. There was some stiff walking in places, but I think the description as “moderate” was accurate. We were the only couple on our trip, so I wouldn’t hesitate to book if you’re worried about being a singleton. .

This is such a well organised and considered tour. Tesi and Deni are fantastic guides and hosts: both are so focused on ensuring that everyone has the best time, feel comfortable and see the very best that Albania has to offer. Each day presented us with a different hiking experience. The countryside is just beautiful. . . hiking in spring through wild flowers and herbs was perfect. I cannot recommend this holiday enough. I would advise taking some hiking poles if you can fit them in your luggage - they were definitely useful in places.

Felt very privileged to experience and learn about Albania before mass tourism takes off (likely v soon given the amount of construction). Enjoyed getting to know more about this country and its pretty coastal landscapes - benefitting from sunny weather up until it was time to get a taxi to the airport. The trip was very much in line with what's described online - moderate hikes and the accommodation was better than expected. Our guides were great, sharing lots of insights on culture, history and Albanian society and the trip was well organised.

Stunning countryside, full of flowers at this time of year. The hiking was fantastic and really well led by Mend and Igli (who were super knowledgeable and made a great team). Hotels were comfortable and we had plenty of good food and wine and shared great company

This was my second MBA tour and it has been by far my favourite tour. I was very lucky to have Mend (Mendi) as our main guide, and Igli to support our group. Mendi is so knowledgeable about his country and loves sharing information during walks and on the bus rides. I would say the first two hikes were “easy” and the third “moderate” - mainly due to the steep uphill and then the loose stones. The other two were mostly easy with moderate sections- but we took lots of breaks and the Mendi and Igli really looked after the group. I really can’t recommend this tour enough. Food was amazing and vegetarians were all catered for. We laughed so much and cried when we said goodbye. I think what made this special compared to my other MBA tour, was that it felt like a holiday - the guides didn’t rush us just to go back to the hotel to be done with the group- we had coffee stops, beer stops, leisurely picnics and we enjoyed the group experience together. We had a large group of 14, but it just meant we had lots of different people to talk to, which was great. A special mention to Richat (who drove us) as he was so safe and also joined in with some of our silly fun! Such a fascinating place and I would love to see more of the country.

Fantastic trip, good company and led by our amazing guides Tesi and Deny. The views were stunning and wildflowers were everywhere. Albania is a hidden gem, shhh don’t tell anyone!