Western Balkan is a region in the South East Europe, have always been considered as a bridge between east and west. It’s the region where once upon a time lived by the Illyrians and then the Greeks and Romans met and the Roman Empire split, creating the Byzantium Empire, both reigning for centuries on these lands. Ottoman Empire is the last of biggest empire controlling this territory for 500 years. All the occupations and wars have left their clear mark, visible still nowadays.

The culinary in the region replicates what we said above for the bridge between east and west, you will find here the basics of eastern traditional food and the recent influence of west flavors.

And last but not least the Mediterranean weather, spiced by the fragmented terrain creating local climates, enable us a wonderful weather for most part of the year.

Recently the region is emerging as a hot spot on the international tourism and we at Albania My Way are here to bring all our knowledge and experience of this region to you. Below you will find a brief description and curiosities for each country that we include on our tours.

Albania My Way as a tour operator is based in Tirana, the capital of Albania but our services cover our neighboring countries: Montenegro, Kosovo and North Macedonia, offering a full flavor experience of Western Balkans.

One of the oldest civilizations, Albania is a mosaic of multicultural experiences, a true piece of Balkan culture. With a rich heritage, many attractions and especially being closed to the public for a long time due to communism period, the country is among the most popular tourist destinations in the recent years. It covers an area of 28,748 sq. km with around 2,8 million inhabitants, extending from the Adriatic sea on the north to Ionian sea in the south, it has 2 big lakes and many rivers, very rich in water. We, Albanians stands apart from the rest of Europe being a very unique ethnic population with no relation to any other country, we have our own language, known to be one of the oldest indo European languages.

Geographically Albania is blessed with a Mediterranean weather with 290 sunny days per year, in as such a small territory you will find high mountains and many natural parks to hike, sandy and rocky beaches as per your pleasure and easy to reach other countries in a short time.

As you travel the country you are greeted by diverse nuances of cuisines, faiths, arts, nature, history and adventure sports. Albania has a unique conflation of the old and the new, living side by side.

1. Albanians are descended of Illyrians tribes, who populated the Western coast of Balkans from now day Croatia to the Albanian border with Greece. The earliest record of Illyrian is that of Enchele in the 8th century BC.
2. Shqipëria and Albania. We, natives call our country Shqipëri and ourselves as Shqipëtarë, while worldwide our country is known as Albania. Shqipëri means the land of the eagle. The name Albania comes from one of the Illyrian Tribes in our lands, known as Albans.
3. The Albanian language is very old and unique. It is an independent branch within the Indo-European languages and is not closely related to any other language. We are very proud of that.
4. Mother Theresa is of Albanian origin, she is born Anjeze Gonxhe Bojaxhiu. Mother Theresa was born in Skopje, North Republic of Macedonia and later her family moved to Tirana. During the Communism times Mother Theresa was not allowed to meet her mother and sister, they never saw each other again. She is the only Albanian to win a Nobel Price.
5. The country without Mac Donald’s. If you are looking for Mac Donald’s chain you are not in the right place, there is no Mac Donald’s in Albania. However there is plenty of local fast food who offers byreks, sandwiches, pizzas, gyros, etc. Albania is known for the fresh and delicious food.
6. Big curiosities from the communism time are around 750,000 bunkers, military fortification found all around the country. This is a testimony of the madness of our communist leaders.
7. Our most traditional drink is Raki and it is commonly served first to the older male visitor. Raki is a very strong eau de vitae normally made of grape but we have very good raki made of mulberry, quince, marre, plum and other fruits.
8. Regarding religion Albania is mostly Muslim country around 70%, we have around 15% Orthodox Christians and around 10% Catholic Christians. Albania is known worldwide for the peaceful relations between religions.

Montenegro is a Western Balkan country, located on the northern part of Albania and two countries share together the biggest lake of Balkan, Shkodra Lake.  A small beautiful Mediterranean country, only 13,812 sq. km, Montenegro is known for rugged mountains, medieval villages and a narrow strip of beaches along its Adriatic coastline. It is one of the fastest growing tourist destinations offering a variety of attractions all year round.

The Bay of Kotor, resembling a fjord, is dotted with coastal churches and fortified towns such as Kotor and Herceg Novi. Durmitor National Park, home to bears and wolves, encompasses limestone peaks, glacial lakes and 1,300m-deep Tara River Canyon.

Montenegro is confined with Croatia on North, Kosovo on East, Albania on South and Adriatic Sea on west.

1. Montenegro got its name from the dark mountain forests that cover the land. The name breaks down into two words, ‘monte’ and ‘negro’ (black, mountain), and dates back to the 15th century.
2. Montenegro has 117 beachesalong the Adriatic coast.
3. The country’s flagfeatures a golden lion. The flag is based on the flag that was in use during the reign of King Nicola I, who was king between 1910 and 1918.
4. The country has a diverse population. Native Montenegrins make up about 45% of its population while Serbs, Bosnians, Albanians, Muslims and Croats form the rest of the country’s population.
5. Montenegro’s population is mostly Orthodox Christian with above 70%, while around 20% are Muslims and the rest are minorities from different religions.

Kosovo is one of the youngest countries in Europe and the second Albanian country in Balkans, probably the least known and visited country in Europe.

Kosovo tourism is still unspoiled, the country is visited only by a handful of people who are not afraid of the unknown land. And that what makes it even a more attractive destination to visit as everything around feels just real, not made for tourists!

Kosov is characterized by archaeological heritage from Illyrian, Dardanian, Roman, Byzantine, Serbian and Ottoman times, traditional Albanian and Serbian cuisine, architecture, religious heritage, traditions, and natural landscapes.

1. The flag is unusual among national flags, as it uses a map of the country’s territory as a design element. Together with the Republic of Cyprus, Kosovo is one of only two countrieswhose flag doubles up as a geographic representation. The six stars on the flag represent the six major ethnic groups that live in the country: Albanians, Serbs, Turks, Gorani, Romani and Bosnians.
2. Albanians also refer to their country as Dardania, the name of a Roman province formed in 284 AD which covered the territory of modern Kosovo. The name is derived from the Albanian word dardha/dardā which means pear, for the country meaning ‘the land of pears’.
3. More than 70% of the country’s population is under theage of 35, which makes it the youngest country in all of Europe.
4. Kosovo while beinga Muslim dominant country is very secular. While some women dress modestly and wear hijab, others wear western clothes.

The Republic of North Macedonia is another one of the small countries populating Western Balkans, enriching the area with its heritage, culture, nature and culinary. So small and so close and yet so different, the 4 countries Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia make a basket full of wild, colorful and diverse destinations.

Republic of North Macedonia has the potential for many types of tourism, but the greatest interest is for the cultural, religious, active and rural tourism, then there is interest in food, wineries, as well as interest in visiting the biggest natural lakes – the Ohrid lake, Prespa lake whom we share with Albania, and the Dojran lake. Alternative and adventurous tourism has been emphasized, since there are excellent conditions in Republic of North Macedonia for them – gentle and steep mountains, ski slopes, calm and fast rivers, wide lowlands…

1. Alexander the Great, the once-king of the Kingdom of Macedonia was the world’s first conqueror, who extended an empire across Greece and Persia to India and Egypt. On an awkward note, his legacy is also claimed by Greece, which is why…
2. Without being drawn on where Greece begins and North Macedonia ends, the ancient kingdom of Macedon dates back to 808BC and was ruled mostly by the founding dynasty of the Argeads, though modern-day North Macedonia most closely relates to the ancient kingdom of Paeonia, north of the kingdom of Macedonia. Skopje, the capital, is said to be seven thousand years old.

3. There are more than 50 lakes and 34 mountains higher than 2,000 meters. It has the fifth highest average elevation of any country in Europe (741m), behind Andorra (highest), Switzerland, Austria and Turkey.
4. The country’s current flag has been in use since 1995 and displays a golden yellow sun with eight rays extending to the edges, but in 1992-1995 a smaller sun occupied only the center of the fabric. It will be of little surprise to learn that the flag change came about due to the usage of a symbol, the Vergina Sun that annoyed the Greeks, as they claimed it was historically Greek.
5. Thanks to its membership of the Ottoman Empire from the 14^thcentury, there are a number of remarkable mosques, including the multi-colored Painted Mosque, built in 1495 and said to be one of the most resplendent specimens of Islamic architecture in the world.
6. The Macedonian cuisine, owing to its geographical position, is inspired by Mediterranean, Turkish, and to a lesser extent, Italian, German and Eastern European. Tavče gravče, a multi-beaned stew, is seen as the national dish, while mastika, a liqueur seasoned with mastic, otherwise known as “Arabic gum” is its national drink.