TIRANA Walking Tour: Discover the ever-changing capital city

The complexity of Albanian history can be witnessed first hand at the very heart of the capital city of Tirana - the famous Skanderbeg Square, which takes its name by our national medieval hero. Constantly changing its urban face, this tour of the Skenderbeg square will offer a fantastic understanding of the Albania's layered historical development of the 20th century. We will share facts and curiosities about the main buildings that surround the square: The National Historic Museum, The National Opera House, the Old Clock Tower and the Et'hem Bej Mosque.

Opened to tourists in 1996, only 90 steps is what it takes to reach the top of one of the cultural monuments of the capital city of Tirana. Build in 1840 during the times of the Ottoman Empire, even though this landmark building is currently surrounded by the ongoing construction of high raisers, it still offers a rare panoramic of the city center. Standing 35 meters tall, it used to be Tirana's tallest building until 1970.

Et'hem Bey Mosque its the only religious monument to date that survived the viscous Albanian Cultural Revolution. Build in 1823 it remains as one of the most distinguished landmarks of the Tirana's city center. Tourists and believers can rejoice at the newly restored floral patterns and vivid frescos. The tour guide will share insider information and curiosities on the nuanced history of Islam religion in Albania.

A walk to the Tirana Castle is perfect for every time of the year! Recent excavations during the years 2001 and 2008, reveled traces of Tirana's castle walls dating back to the Emperor Justinian's period of IV – VI of our era. Sadly little remains to be seen of the castle walls given that it has seen many wars and destruction to date. Yet, nowadays its highly frequented by all ages for it has become the hearth of arts and artisans, beaming with lovely cafés, restaurants and art galleries, worth visiting at any time of day and night, all year around.

Ura e Tabakëve aka The Tanners' Bridge is an 18th-century Ottoman period stone footbridge located near the Albanian Parliament. Once a vital bridge that linked Tirana with the eastern highlands, it stands as a testimony of Tirana's area fine bridge construction. It was mainly used by farmers to bring produce and livestock, hence its name "tabakë" in Albanian - the profession that includes both butchering and tanning. The Tabakëve bridge crossed the Lana stream until the 1930s when the river was diverted, and than the historical bridge sadly fell into disrepair. A testimony of Tirana's urban development in the 18th century, Ura e Tabakëve is considered as one of the most important cultural heritage monuments of the city, and in the 1990's it underwent a serious restoration. In addition to showcasing the bridge's foundations, cleaning up and restoring its original stones, an artificial pond was recreated on both sides of the bridge which has since remained in use by pedestrians only.

​The Albanian National Gallery of Arts - GKA was established on January 11th, 1954 and it is a treasure trove full of formidable social realism masterpieces and the best that figurative arts of Albania has to offer worldwide. While temporary closed for its deserved expansion, it still offers a great opportunity to observe its sparse and minimalist design from the outside, and especially the well hidden social realist statues of the Eastern Europe Communist leaders like Stalin and Lenin in its vicinity. In front of the Albanian National Gallery of Arts stands REJA ​aka​ The Cloud, designed by the famed Japanese architect, S​ou F​ujimoto, that has become the beloved home of late night film screenings, performative arts festivals, as well as live concerts.

Everything one has heard or read about Tirana's Blloku it is true as it is the city's must-visit gravitational pole with its remarkable face-lift, now blooming with hip bars and cafes, a nightlife to be envied, full of trendy restaurants, luxury boutiques and upscale residential units. Yet before this hot spot gave the capital a feeling of La Dolce Vita, during the Communist rule, Blloku as its name suggests, was a closed-off precinct for the party elite, with the modest, modern style villa of Albania's long-ruling dictator Enver Hoxha in its heart. Beside the infamous house where the fate of so many people during the regime was sealed, the same area is also home to the monumental Presidenca e Republikës - the office of the Albanian president.