Berat
White Ottoman houses crawl up the hillsides of this “a thousand windows” town.
For us, with the amount of days we had in Albania, it was a toss up between Berat or Gjirokastër. Both towns are UNESCO World Heritage Towns, both have Ottoman style architecture, and both are surrounded by hills and overlooked by a castle. Ultimately, I chose Berat mainly because it was closer to the other areas we wanted to visit cutting down potential driving time, and also because I wanted to view the window covered hillsides. We stayed in Berat for one night before heading over to Osumi Canyon.
Berat
Berat Old Town is beautiful, made up of grey cobblestones and whitewashed walls. This area is mainly made up of thin pedestrian streets that weave amongst guest houses. Whilst this area is a great tourist attraction, there are not a whole load of shops or restaurants amongst these cobbled streets. Instead, the surrounding areas of the newer city are where you will find these.
Sitting above the town of Berat is Berat Castle, with is a functioning fortress or citadel that people still live in today. It is a short, but steep, walk up to the castle grounds where you will find restaurants, guest houses and museum guides. There is plenty to see once you are up here, and that's in addition to the 360 degree views of the surrounding valley. Most of the ruins are accessible (although be careful as there aren't any safety fences around the steep hill) and half-way up the hill is a viewpoint which stands a large Albanian flag. We only came up for sunset, but you could very easily spend a whole day up here.
Things to do in Berat:
Take a walking tour of Berat Castle and learn about the history of this citadel.
Watch over the city from Berat Viewing Point.
Visit a museum at Berat Museum Centre. The Ethnographic Museum in the Old Town was closed when I visited, but there is a sister museum in Berat Castle, The Iconographic Museum.
Taste local Albanian wine at a winery - Kantina Luani (if you’re looking for something near the city centre) otherwise Nurellari Winery or Kantina Pupa.
Hike or mountain bike Mali Partizan.
Cross Gorica Bridge and Ura e Re Bridge and explore the other side of Berat.
Stroll along Bulevardi Republika to grab a bite to eat or sit back and enjoy a drink.
Berat Old Town
Berat at nightKanionet e Osumit / Osumi Canyon
From Berat to Osumi Canyon it takes around 2 hours of windy road driving. The closest town from the canyon is Çorovoda, so use this stop to make sure you are stocked up on water, petrol etc. From here on you are driving along the canyon edge and there are various pull-in spots to take in the view.
We made a couple stops based on walking trails and accessibility to the canyon floor. You can find these stops on the map on my Albania Travel Guide page. The first stop we made was at a small campsite and restaurant, where it's a short walk into the canyon to a small footbridge. The canyon floor is accessible from here, and the water in this part is quite calm, so we hung out here for a bit of relaxing.
Our next stop was 10 minutes further along the road at a car park by a bridge. A car park would usually indicate either a viewpoint, some services, or trailheads, however there weren’t really any of these. We did walk along a dirt road that doesn’t have many views, but does take you down again to the canyon floor. Here the water was deeper and faster flowing and there were a couple of people fishing.
From the canyon, we were headed for the coast. Google Maps navigation led us along a route via Ballaban that turned into proper off-road terrain. Our rental car was not appropriate for this, so we had to turn back and instead take a longer route that involved driving all the way back to Berat and then round through Vlorë. Despite what Google Maps predicts, this took 5–6 hours due to the windy routes and some rougher terrain.
Things to do around Osumi Canyon
Ura Lapanit - carpark. You can walk along some trails / dirt roads here, either up or down towards the water.
Ura e Vjetër e Zabërzanit (park at Summer Bar campsite/restaurant) - short trail to a pedestrian bridge across the canyon. Also access to the water.
Osumi Canyon Bridge - vehicle bridge that gives great views of the canyon. There are also a couple trails you could walk from here.
Go rafting through Osumi Canyon.
Ujëvara e Bogovë - waterfall hike.
Pirogoshi cave.
Osumi Canyon
Osumi CanyonNeed to knows
There are not a whole lot of food options in Berat Old Town so prepare to go a little further afield for a meal out.
Special Recommendations
Food: Zgara Zaloshnja
Attractions: Osumi Canyon
Accommodation: Guest House Semani
R’s take
Berat is a beautiful and laid-back city, and I feel an extra day here would have been nice. Streets were a lot quieter in the evenings compared to other cities, and within the Old Town the streets are quite dark.
Small footbridge - Ura e Vjetër e Zabërzanit
Cobblestone streets of Berat Old Town
View from Berat Castle
Osumi Canyon
Berat
Berat
Where is Berat?
Berat is located in the north of the Southern region of Albania, amongst the hills and mountains of the Tomorri Mountain National Park.
What is Berat known for?
Berat is known as ‘the town of a thousand windows’. It is known for its historic Ottoman architecture, which is recognised as UNESCO World Heritage Site. Berat Castle is still a living and functional citadel and contains many important historic and cultural monuments.
How old is Berat?
One of the oldest cities in Europe, Berat is over 2400 years old.
How many days do you need in Berat?
Berat is a small town and you could visit all the main tourist sites in the Old Town in a day. I’d recommend staying at least a night if you can to experience a stay in one of the many windows Berat is famous for. With a couple more days you can explore the wider area around Berat. There are a couple vineyards in the area which would make a nice visit, alongside some great areas for nature and hiking. 3 days would be a good amount of time to explore Berat without getting bored.
How to visit Osumi Canyon without a car
Without your own transport, you will need to book onto a tour to visit Osumi Canyon. You can either try find a group tour, or book a private tour. This would include return transport and guide around the main viewpoints of Osumi Canyon.
1001 Albanian Adventures
What activities and tour guides are there for Osumi Canyon? - Rafting, kayaking, hiking
For rafting and kayaking, higher water levels are ideal and occur from the Spring onwards, when snow and glaciers in the mountains begin to melt. End of Summer and Autumn are typically drier, and during these times it’s possible to walk through the canyon floor. This is a generalisation, and the conditions will of course depend on the weather/climate at the time. Check with local companies beforehand as they will be able to give you better advice.