Albania: country facts, travel advice and health

Google Maps: intercity bus routes and times for planning trips.WhatsApp: for contacting bus drivers and companies directly.OsmAnd: hiking trails and maps based on OpenStreetMap.Mapy.cz: hiking trails and maps based on OpenStreetMap.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Cards or cash

Mostly cashMostly cards

Step 2 of 5: Cash and cards are both used, but many cafés and restaurants take no cards.Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Money in Albania

Albanian Lek · ALL

Avoid restaurants that show no menu or prices; they tend to present inflated bills.

Ask for a ticket or receipt at official sights, where reused tickets have been reported.

At cash machines, refuse the offer to convert into a home currency; the rate is rarely favourable.

Every cash machine charges a fee that varies by bank, so compare before withdrawing.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Collect Albanian Lek in CointryOur sister app for coin and banknote collectors · cointry.appOpen

Public holidays in the next 12 months

Mon, 30 Nov 2026 · Independence Day Dita e Pavarësisë

Mon, 30 Nov 2026 · Liberation Day Dita e Çlirimit

Tue, 8 Dec 2026 · Youth Day Dita Kombëtare e Rinisë

Fri, 25 Dec 2026 · Christmas Day Krishtlindjet

Fri, 1 Jan 2027 · New Year's Day Viti i Ri

Mon, 4 Jan 2027 · New Year's Day Viti i Ri

Mon, 8 Feb 2027–8 Mar · Ramadan (expected date)

Tue, 9 Mar 2027 · Eid al-Fitr (expected date)

Mon, 15 Mar 2027 · Summer Day Dita e Verës

Mon, 22 Mar 2027 · Nowruz Dita e Sulltan Nevruzit

Sun, 28 Mar 2027 · Easter Sunday Pashkët Katolike

Mon, 29 Mar 2027 · Easter Monday E hëna e Pashkëve Katolike

Sun, 2 May 2027 · Easter Sunday Pashkët Ortodokse

Mon, 3 May 2027 · Easter Monday E hëna e Pashkëve Ortodokse

Mon, 3 May 2027 · May Day Dita Ndërkombëtare e Punonjësve

Sun, 16 May 2027 · Eid al-Adha (expected date)

Mon, 6 Sept 2027 · Mother Teresa Day Dita e Nënë Terezës

Source: Nager.Date · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗Source: Umm al-Qura calendar (computed with ICU) · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

02Free

Safety today

Germany, the US and the UK publish their travel advice openly. Here is what those that cover Albania say, side by side, checked daily.

German Foreign Office says

No travel warning

Calm ●

Caution

Serious

Don’t go

Source: Auswärtiges Amt
Updated 16 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

U.S. Department of State says

Exercise increased caution

Calm

Caution ●

Serious

Don’t go

Level 2 of 4

Source: travel.state.gov
Updated 25 Aug 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

UK Foreign Office says

No advice against travel

Source: GOV.UK
Updated 15 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Countrywise is a summary. The official page is authoritative.

03Free

Health

Routine vaccines including measles (MMR), plus hepatitis A and B.

Vaccinations

Hepatitis A and hepatitis B, plus routine vaccines including measles (MMR).

Talk to a travel clinic 4–8 weeks before you go.

Source: CDC
Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Summarised from the CDC’s Travelers’ Health pages. Using them does not mean the CDC endorses Countrywise.

04Travel layer

In the app: the travel layer

The travel layer

Read a country like someone who’s been there.

What’s different from home, and what’s the lawMust-see places, free entry and World Heritage sites20 words to remember, with pronunciationStrange and surprising factsThe anthem and national symbolsSaved for offline use

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Must-see · 1Tirana

Mountain-ringed capital with city views from Mount Dajti

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Strange & surprising · #1

Albania was the only Nazi-occupied country to end the Second World War with more Jews than before it.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

National anthem: Himni i Flamurit. The lyrics, translated, and the story are in the app. Source: Wikidata · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

4 World Heritage sites in Albania, each with a photo and its story, in the app. Source: UNESCO World Heritage List

05Free

Deep facts

Economy
GDP	≈ $30.5 billionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Per person	≈ $12,998Source: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Top exports	garments, footwear, electricity, crude petroleum, iron alloys (2023)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Population
Population	2.3 millionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Median age	37.9 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Life expectancy	79.9 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Religions	Muslim 56.7%, Roman Catholic 10%, Orthodox 6.8%, atheist 2.5%, Bektashi (a Sufi order) 2.1%, other 5.7%, unspecified 16.2% (2011 est.)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · 2011 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Geography
Area	28,748 km²Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Climate	mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetterSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Terrain	mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coastSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Government
Type of government	parliamentary republicSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Calling code	+355Source: libphonenumber · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

About the data

Written from the sources we link, and checked against them before each release. Countrywise summarises public sources. We are not an official source. For safety and entry rules, always follow the official page we link to.

From your foreign ministry when it publishes its advice openly (Germany, the US, the UK). Otherwise we show those three side by side. Checked daily, with the date next to every entry.

CDC · 24 Oct 2026 ↗GOV.UK · 24 Oct 2026 ↗IANA Time Zone Database · 23 Oct 2026 ↗libphonenumber · 23 Oct 2026 ↗Nager.Date · 23 Oct 2026 ↗The World Factbook (archive) · 23 Oct 2026 ↗U.S. Department of State · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Umm al-Qura calendar (computed with ICU) · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Unicode CLDR · 23 Oct 2026 ↗Wikidata · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikivoyage · 24 Oct 2026 ↗World Bank · 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Flag artwork from flag-icons (MIT licence).