Albania – Kosovo – Macedonia

Meet with the guide at Tirana Airport. Depart for the ancient town of Shkoder in northern Albania, a few kilometers from the Montenegro border.  Once arrived, the group will visit the ancient fortress of Rozafa (fourth century B.C.) from which one can enjoy a marvelous panoramic view of the city. Shkoder has been inhabited since the Bronze Age and is built upon many historical civilizations (Illyrian, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman). The trip will take the group to the city’s Catholic Cathedral. Shkoder is the spiritual center of the Albanian Catholic Church and welcomed Pope Francis in 2015. Arrive at the hotel in the city center. In the afternoon, the group take a walk through the pedestrian zone “Rruga Kol Idromeno”, recently restored with colorful houses and vibrant bars.
Dinner of roast beef in a restaurant in the city. Overnight at Hotel

06.00 – Early breakfast in the hotel
06:30 – Drive to Lake Koman
09.30 – Arrive at the ferry terminal to board the ferry to enjoy the Drin River valley. Formed following the construction of the dam on the Drin river in 1978, Koman Lake is an artificial lake in a spectacular natural setting called the fjord of the country of the eagles.
12:00 – Arrive in Fierza and continue to the Valbona valley.  A stop in Bajram Curri Town for lunch at a local restaurant. Visit the National Park of Valbona valley  that extends for about 8000 hectares through breathtaking landscapes of the Albanian Alps in the midst of lush forests, waterfalls and crystalline torrents.
16:30 – Drive to the border with Kosovo to the town of Gjakova.
20:00 – Hotel accommodation and free time for dinner.

8.00 – After breakfast at the hotel, depart to Peç Monastery – the patriarchal monastery which is the spiritual home of the mausoleum and the archbishops and Serbian patriarchs. The guide will show you the temple of the apostles, Saint Dimitrio and Saint Nicola. Continue on to the Monastery of Deçan, another important temple of the Orthodox Church. This monastery, the first one of the Kosovo region as a UNESCO world heritage site, is considered as one of the most interesting architectural medieval Serbian Churches.
12:00 Depart Deçan for Prizren.
13:00 to 14:00 Free time for lunch in Prizren in one of the local restaurants in the old town. Visit the city, center of the Kosovar culture. Exploration of the old town, its Ottoman bridge, fountain, its mosques and Orthodox churches. The city is renowned for its rich culinary tradition.
16:30 Continue to Pristina.
Hotel accommodation and free time for dinner.

08:00 After breakfast at the hotel, meet with the guide and visit the city.
09:45 Drive to the Gracanica Monastery, belonging to the Serbian Orthodox Church, founded by the Serbian King Stefan Milutin in 1321.
11:15 to 12:30 Departure for Skopje
13:00 to 14:30 Lunch in the old town in Skopje.
14:30 to 17:00 – Visit the city. Hotel accommodation and overnight in Skopje.

08:00 After breakfast in the hotel meet the guide and departure to Ohrid via Debar. Visit the Mavrovo National Park. Lunch at a local restaurant in the Nationale Park.
14:30 Drive to Ohrid. Stop along the way to visit the Monastery of St Jovan Bigorski
16:30 Continue to Ohrid.
17:30 Hotel accommodation after a short visit of leisure through the town.

09:00 after breakfast in the hotel meeting with the guide and departure to St. Naum. Visit of the Monastery rich in the history of the Orthodox religion, founded by the namesake saint, a Bulgarian scholar and missionary in 905. Thanks to the efforts of St. Clement and St. Naum of Ohrid, the first pan Slavic University in Europe, the famous Ohrid literary school, was founded.
12:00 – departure from St. Naum to go to the city of Ohrid. Located on the shores of Lake Ohrid, the town was declared a UNESCO heritage. Visit of the church of S. Sofia (XI century) which is the most important medieval monument in Macedonia, with magnificent Byzantine frescoes, paintings, of St. Clement Church with its icon of the Annunciation. Visit St. Bogorodica Perivlepta, San Joan Kaneo, St. Patelejmon , the old bazaar, the fortifications of Ohrid, the fortress of King Samoil, the ancient theater, the museum of icons, the Mesokastro settlements, the settlements of Kaneo.
14:00 Depart for Durres.

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit of Durres, one of the most ancient cities in Albania that has the largest port in the country and is the second largest industrial center after Tirana. Durres is located on a small peninsula on the Adriatic Sea coast. The city was colonized by the Greeks in 627 B.C.. It was named Epidamnos, later becoming Dyrrachium.  From the Venetian Tower near the harbor, the medieval city walls take you to the Roman amphitheater (capacity 15,000 spectators), the largest in the Balkans, dated second century B.C., which contains a Christian crypt with a rare mosaic. Durres has Roman and Byzantine ruins.
11.00 Departure for Kruja
Visit of the historic town of Kruja located in northeast of Tirana, 560 m above sea level and. Kruja has been inhabited since the third century B.C.. It was accredited for the first time as a Christian religious center in the year 879. The famous English painter Edward Lear, who visited Kruja in 1848, wrote: “Kruja, a charming little town nestled in the sky.” Visit of the
castle, its typical Ottoman bazaar and the Museum of Skanderbeg.
Free time for lunch
Continue to Tirana. Visit of Tirana, the central town square with the statue of Skanderbeg, the Mosque of Ethem Bej, the Clock Tower and the main boulevard. Visit the Bunk Art.
Overnight in hotel.

After breakfast at the hotel departure to Mother Teresa Airport.