Travel Itinerary

Start Day 2 with specialty beans roasted on site, then browse the adjoining concept store for limited-edition Albanian design pieces.

Explore a meticulously restored Ottoman home where modern photography exhibits highlight Gjirokastër’s urban evolution.

Taste modern twists on local dishes like wild-mushroom tashë while gazing over the slate sea of roofs below.

Follow ever-changing graffiti and wheat-paste portraits down to the 18th-century mosque—perfect contrast of old and new.

Descend into a converted cold-war bunker for Balkan electronic beats and occasional live indie gigs—Gjirokastër’s after-dark creative pulse.

Begin Day 3 at the Nobel-nominated writer’s childhood home, now a tiny museum celebrating modern Albanian literature.

Start a light winter hike along an old caravan path to the romantic 19-arch aqueduct.

Reach the 19th-century aqueduct for striking photos of arches against winter hills; unpack a packed byrek picnic before looping back.

Return to town for brunch at a boutique winery serving organic egg dishes and a crisp house white—urban rustic at its best.

Catch an indie Albanian short-film screening in an intimate Ottoman-style theatre café; perfect cultural send-off.