Getting around Albania: transport and apps

Furgons

• The furgon - a shared minibus - is the national transport system.
• They leave when full, not to a timetable, from informal departure points that locals know and maps do not.
• Ask at your accommodation where the one for your destination goes from. This is genuinely the way it works.
• They are cheap and fast and the drivers are committed.

Buses

• Scheduled intercity buses run the main corridors - Tirana to Shkoder, Saranda, Berat, Gjirokaster.
• The Tirana to Saranda run takes about five hours.

Trains

• The railway is effectively defunct for practical purposes. Do not plan around it. In 2026 the only passenger service running is one weekly return between Shkoder and Gjorme; Durres-Elbasan is closed for works and Elbasan-Pogradec has been shut since 2012.
• A rebuilt Durres-Tirana-Rinas line is coming, but not yet. The operator is being tendered through late 2026 and service is expected around the end of 2027 - which is to say, not on this trip.

Driving

• Roads have improved enormously and the main corridors are good.
• Mountain roads are another matter - narrow, unguarded and slow.
• Driving standards are assertive. Overtaking on blind bends is normal and defensive driving is essential.
• The SH8 coast road is spectacular and worth the hire car on its own.