It was a clear, sunny Saturday morning last September. I was lounging on a picture perfect beach in Halkidiki, Greece, looking out on turquoise waters with an ouzo lemonade in hand… but wishing that I was back in Albania instead.
Like many Americans, I had long harbored Mamma Mia style fantasies of a young woman’s solo adventure around Greece’s pristine coastline. While I didn’t expect crowds of extras to pop out of windows singing ABBA songs, I did expect… a lot more than what I got.
I was ready for hillsides overflowing with cinematic white houses adorned with blue shutters; for some of the best beaches in the world; for fresh seafood and moussaka; for a peaceful getaway of a lifetime.
Instead, I got overpriced, overdeveloped, overcrowded, and influencer-saturated disappointment.
Of course, the trip wasn’t all bad. I met some lovely people and learned alot about Greek history and culture.
In the end, two weeks bopping about Greece culminated in cutting the trip short. I found my sweaty self packed inside a ferry of similarly red-faced tourists leaving Skopelos with a ticket in my pocket that cost more than a luxury sea view hotel room in Sarandë, marinating in serious regret that I hadn’t just stayed in Albania.
While I was tempted to blame my admittedly romanticized expectations, that honestly wasn’t the real issue.
The problem was that Greece simply couldn’t follow Albania.
Here are five reasons why my trip to Albania was way better than Greece:
Untouched Beaches
The crystal clear waters of the Greek islands just didn’t live up to the hype when the price tag on a beach chair was over $100 and I couldn’t move two feet without bumping into another American tourist. Give me the Albanian Riviera over that anyday.
What Albanian beaches lack in notoriety, they make up for in untouched beauty.
Of course, the peak summer season from June to September draws more locals and tourists to the beaches, but you’d still be hard-pressed to feel genuinely crowded.
Travelers who prefer undeveloped beach paradise won’t have any trouble getting off path here. While Greece has very few secrets left, Albania’s coast is still a paradise playground waiting to be explored.
The most popular beaches are:
- Durrës – preferred for its easy 30-minute drive from Tirana and ferry access to Italy.
- Dhërmi – home to countless music festivals.
- Vlorë – beloved for its palm tree-lined boardwalk and refreshing pebble beaches.
- Himarë – great for backpackers, off path adventurers, and families.
- Sarandë – offers something for every kind of traveler, up and coming with digital nomads, and serves as the ferry access point to Corfu.
- Ksamil – known for its white sandy beaches and affordable luxury, great for romantic getaways or getting your friends together.
Travelers willing to venture further off path for undeveloped beaches and minimal company can head to some of my favorite hidden gems: Karpen, Llamani, Drimadhe, Buneci, Gjipe, Spille, and Borsh.
Friendlier Locals
I’m not out here to offend any Greeks, but Albanian hospitality has no competition.
I’ve been offered free safe rides between cities, meals at grandmothers’ homes, refilled plastic bottles of homemade raki, places to stay the night, tours of local’s hometowns, and so much more. I felt safe every waking minute of my 10 months in Albania, which I can’t exactly say about Greece.
Some of this likely comes from Greek local’s exhaustion at dealing with decades of overtourism and neverending waves of (likely irritating) visitors. While I completely understand the sentiment, I just didn’t feel as welcome here compared to in Albania.
Superior Coffee Culture
I had heard all about briki, the traditional Ottoman-inspired Greek coffee, before heading off on my trip. Unfortunately, I found that I much prefer its cousins, Turkish and Bosnian coffee.
Most of the coffees offered on my Greece trip were actually frappé style anyway.
Now, I know what you’re thinking – but this is not a Starbucks-style frappuccino.
The frappé is made with instant coffee shaken in cold water (whose genius idea was that?) with ice, milk, and loads of sugar. The grainy texture wasn’t exactly pleasant, and the low quality instant coffee reminded me of college all-nighters rather than an idyllic vacation.
The only decent cup of joe I enjoyed in Greece was from an Aussie-run café in Thessaloniki, and there was nothing Greek about it.
On the other hand, Albanian coffee culture was the perfect fit for me. I never had a bad cup of coffee in my 10 months in this Balkan country, from the third wave coffee shops of Tirana to the tiny roadside cafes of the Albanian riviera.
You can get a solid quality espresso literally anywhere in this country. It’s like some sort of magical coffee spell was cast inside Albania’s borders, I swear.
No matter how quickly you can finish your black magic, you’re encouraged to do as the locals do: spend a few hours enjoying life or connecting with friends over one little espresso cup.
More Affordable Luxury
Remember Mamma Mia’s “Money Money Money” song? I found myself humming along to it walking along sunbleached Greek cobblestones after dropping more on one simple meal than I spent in an entire weekend on the Albanian coast.
A simple coffee and pastry in the Sporades islands set me back double what a full breakfast plate with java and mimosa cost on the beach in Himarë, Albania. The price difference widened as the day went on. By dinner, I was paying 250% more for the same meal of grilled fish and a glass of wine at a similarly casual restaurant.
Albania’s superior value extends to accommodation and transportation. Here’s a breakdown of my costs in Albania vs. Greece:
- Hostels – $9-11/night in Albania, $28-35/night in Greece.
- Nomad-equipped Apartments – $25/night in Albania, $55/night in Greece.
- 4-star Sea View Hotel Room – $53/night in Albania, $160/night in Greece.
- 5-star Sea View Resort Suite – $100/night in Albania, comparable options were $350 in Greece, which I didn’t take.
Because the Greek islands and coastal towns are a lot more spread out than the Albanian Riviera, a 3-stop trip in Greece can also easily run you a few hundred dollars more in transportation than an Albanian adventure with double the amount of stops.
Crowds Of Tourists? Where?
We all know the iconic Instagram shots of Mykonos and Santorini. But have you seen the reality behind them?
It’s a never-ending serpentine line of monochrome white vacation ‘fits, sprinkled with a few daringly bright ensembles. As the golden hour slips away, increasingly hangry and irritable pseudo-influencers slowly lose it.
I had a front row seat to the implosion of more relationships and friendships in these jam-packed hotspots than you would believe.
And don’t even get me started on trying to get seated in crowded Greek restaurants and beach clubs as a solo traveler in overcrowded destinations tailored to couples. What a nightmare!
Sure, Albania is booming in popularity, but most of its beaches still remain pristine and its amazing UNESCO world heritage sites don’t have a large crowd in sight. Even the most popular vacation spots in this Balkan gem are affordable and not yet overdeveloped, making it the clear choice for your next European beach vacation.
