Albania tourist information with details about
travel to and around the country. Where to stay and what to see is made easier with
insider tips and hand-selected Albania links, by dedicated editors and visitors to
TravelNotes.org - The Online Guide to Travel.
Albania is known as Eagle's Country, Shqipėri in Albanian.
Tiranė is the capital, with Durrės Albania's major port on the
Adriatic Sea.
Countries neighbouring Albania are: Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia and Greece.
Weather in Albania
View a graphical weather forecast for the week ahead in places around
Albania.
Shkoder
Weather, Tirana
Weather.
One of the smallest countries in Europe, Albania is also very
mountainous and little known to outsiders.
Predominately an Indo- European people, descendants of the ancient
Illyrians, the Albanians are divided into two main groups: the Ghegs to the north of the
Shkumbi River, and the Tosks to the south.
Rome conquered the Illyrian Kingdom in 168 BC, and went on to rule for
more than five centuries. Some of the emperors were even of Illyrian descent, as the
region became a major transit route through Byzantium.
As the Roman Empire declined, Goths, Huns, Bulgars, and Slavs all
tried to fill the vacuum. Then came the Normans and the Serbs.
After the collapse of Stephan Dushan's Serbian Empire, and the death
of Scanderbeg, the feudal lords were soon overrun by the Turks.
Albanian language and culture were suppressed for almost 400 years
during Ottoman rule, although the Turks were never able to totally control the people.
Ismail Qemal led a series of revolts against Turkey, and on November
28, 1912, Albania finally gained independence.
Albania underwent a cultural revolution in the mid-1960s, when Western
influences were scorned, Soviet and Chinese systems were followed, and hardly anyone could
enter the country.
Albania Country Study:
The US Library of Congress reference page for historical and economic developments in
Albania.
Travel Tips
Tirana Bank now has access to the Visa system. I withdrew some
Lek from a Skodra branch of Tirana Bank with no problems. It was a little un-nerving
to have a guard with a machine gun on duty 24 hours a day but much better than bringing in
hard cash.
Sent in by: Ian Lawrence.
Enter Albania:
Getting to Albania, and other information for tourists.
Albanian Culture:
Albanian language and culture were suppressed for almost 400 years during Ottoman rule,
although the Turks were never able to totally control the Albanian people.
Alb-Info:
General directory of links to Albanian websites.
Albanian
Yellow Pages:
The Albanian business directory.
Albanian
History:
For a better understanding of the history of Albania.
Books
on Albania Travel:
Browse Amazon's best-selling list of books on travel in Albania.
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