Hotels, motels and where to sleep
Restaurant, taverns and where to eat
Shkodër in Northern Albania is one of the most
unique and interesting places not only in Albania, but also in the
entire Adriatic basin. Its origin is unknown, but we know that it
was an important trading city during the Greek expansion in the
region. This is one of the oldest and most historic places in the
Balkan Peninsula, as well as an important cultural and economic
center. In classical times, Shkoder was known as Skodra and was the
capital of the Illyrian tribe of Labeits.
The region, which
today corresponds to the territory of Shkodër, was founded in the
4th century BC. ancient Illyrian tribes Ardaii and Labeytov. This is
evidenced by artifacts and inscriptions found in the
Rozafa Castle. At that time, the city was
known as Shkodër or Skodra. The city has historically developed on a 130-meter
hill strategically located in the outflow from Lake Shkodër to the
River Buna. The Romans annexed the city after the third Illyrian war
in 168 BC, when Gentius was defeated by the Roman army under the
command of Anicia Gallus. In the 3rd century AD, Shkodër became the
capital of the Praevulitans in connection with the administrative
reform of the Roman Diocletian. With the spread of Christianity in
the IV century, the Archdiocese of Shkodër was founded in Shkodër and
officially adopted in 535 by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I.
For many different eras, it has retained its status as a major
city in a wider region, due to its strategic location, close to the
Adriatic Sea and the Italian port cities, as well as land routes to
other important cities and towns in neighboring regions.
During different eras, it retained its status as a major trading
city due to its strategic position, close to the Adriatic Sea and
the Italian port cities, as well as land routes to other important
cities and towns of the neighboring regions. With a population of
77,075, it is the largest city in the north of the country, and in
the Shkoder district there are 215,347 people as of 2011.
Visitor information
Shkoder Tourist Info
Center, Rruga Teuta (Southeast of Sheshi Demokracia). Provide city
maps and can help with any of your inquiries, including bus time
schedules.
North of Albania Travel, Rruga Kolë Idromeno 145 (in
the pedestrian zone), ☎ +355 67 39 22 119. 07:00-21:00. Tourist
information, tour operator, hostel, transport services, bike and car
rental.
Kalaja/Rozafa Castle (2 km southwest of Shkodër, near the southern end of Lake Shkodër). Founded by the Illyrians, this fortress was rebuilt by the Venitians and the Ottomans. Rozafa is a woman buried in the ramparts, who supports the structure. The renovated museum inside the castle explains its history and that the area of the former city is now consumed by the rivers beside the castle. The museum costs 200 lek extra and there is a private guide you can ask about almost anything. There are amazing views from the highest point. 200 lek, 150 lek to enter the Museum.
Shkodër Historical Museum
Rr. Oso Kuka, no. 12, ☎ +355 22 243213. 09:00-14:00. 150 lek.
The Shkoder History Museum was established in
1949. It is based on collections collected by Jesuits and Franciscan
monks at the end of the 19th century, as well as donations from
private collections of famous families of Shkoder. The museum is
housed in a monumental 19th century building, the massive residence
of the Osa Cook family of wealthy businessmen. The building itself
is interesting not only for the rarities it contains, but also as an
architectural monument. Surrounded by fortress walls, this building
is a typical merchant's house, confirming the important role of
Shkoder as a citadel and an outpost of the merchant nobility, as
well as a dense population of people along the ancient trade route
between the Mediterranean Sea and Kosovo.
The Wasp Cook House
was built in 1815, has suffered some damage from time to time, but
has been restored to its original state. The internal exposition of
the museum acquaints visitors with rich guest rooms, an exhibition
of clothes, dishes, weapons and other exhibits. Of interest is the
lower floor with a small collection of archaeological finds from the
early Christian era, as well as artifacts from the Greek and Roman
periods. In the garden you can see a Roman tombstone and a Venetian
well.
Marubi National Museum of Photography, Rr. Kolë Idromeno, no. 34 (midway through main pedestrian street), ☎ +355 22 400 500, e-mail: info@marubi.gov.al. Mo-Su 09:00-14:00, 16:00-19:00. Albanian's only photo museum capturing development of Shkodër and Albania in general. Major part of the collection comes from three generations of Marubis. 700 lek.
Lake Shkodër. The largest lake in the Balkans. Take a taxi to the village of Shiroke. Alternatively ask around for the public bus which goes to the edge of the city, where it is a pleasant 5-km walk by the lake to Shiroke. There is a less frequent bus directly to Shiroke.
Mes Bridge (Albanian: Ura e Mesit) (in the village of Mes, about 5 km northeast of Shkodër)
The Mes Bridge, located 8 km from the city of
Shkoder on the Kir River, not far from the ruins of the Drisht
fortress, is a cultural monument. Built in 1768 by order of Mehmet
Pasha Bushati, the arched bridge served to connect the rest of the
region with Shkoder. As an example of Ottoman architecture in
Albania, it attracts many tourists. The length of the bridge is 108
meters, the width is 3.40 m. The peculiarity of the bridge is its
non-linearity, the angle of inclination is 14 degrees in relation to
the lower side, the span on the right is 5 m below the large arc. It
is noticeable that the structure was erected in two stages:
initially, the central arch and its foundations were built on the
left and right. In the second phase of construction, a road was laid
over the river and small retaining arches were built at each end. In
total, the bridge has 13 arches, the largest in the center. Their
arrangement is somewhat asymmetrical.
The material for the
construction of the base and vaults of the bridge is hewn stone, and
the roadway and sidewalk are made of stone slabs. An additional
attraction to the bridge is the picturesque surrounding area and the
river with rocky banks, rapids and clear clear water. The bridge
suffered extensive damage from time, earthquakes, weather changes
and river floods. Nevertheless, in May 2010, the restoration of the
bridge was completed and it is perfect for walking and cycling.
The Shkoder Theater
The Shkoder Theater, named after the Albanian poet and writer Milos Migeni, is located in the very center of the city. The building was built in 1958.
Drisht Castle (above the modern village of Drisht, 10 km northeast of Shkodër). A ruined castle, the earliest traces of Frost Castle's fortifications date to the late Neolithic era. The walls and towers date to 1396-1478 during the Venetian era.
Shurdhah Island (Albanian: Ishulli i Shurdhahit). It is in the Vau i Dejës Reservoir, which is fed and drained by the river Drin. It is accessible by tourist boat in summer from the Vau i Dejës dam or Rragam. It contains the ruins of the medieval town of Sarda. You can visit the ruins of the 11th-century medieval castle, which includes two rings of defensive walls and towers (some submerged in the lake), the remains of a Byzantine church and other early medieval walls. The setting on the steep rocks rising from the lake is especially impressive.
Five Heroes monument. This was "one of
Albania's best examples of socialist-realist sculpture".
Unfortunately, it was removed from there and replaced by a bland
contemporary fountain. The monument was temporarily dumped at the
city's garbage dump, only to be finally put back at the Dobrac
Roundabout in the northern entrance of Shkodër . The site is still a
useful reference point for finding your way around. Interestingly,
the fountain is surrounded by seating, in the centre of a busy
roundabout called Sheshi Demokracia (Democracy Square) with no
pedestrian crossings! Only in Albania!
Museum of Memory,
Bulevardi Skenderbeu. Museum dedicated to the crimes of the
communist regime in Albania featuring photographs, videos, and first
hand accounts of political prisoners from Shkodra.
Lead Mosque
The Lead Mosque is one of the most significant
monumental cultural monuments in Shkodra. Among the numerous
buildings built in the city by order of various rulers, the mosque
is the only building with an exact date of construction - 1773. This
is confirmed by a plaque installed on the main door of the temple,
engraved in Albanian letters. The inscription reads: "1187 is the
date of construction of the Great Mosque of Mehmet Pasha, the
benefactor", and below: "1280 is the date of the renovation of the
mosque." These two dates in the Islamic calendar correspond to the
years 1773 and 1863.
The peculiarity of this mosque is the
use of liquid lead as a binder solution between the elements. In
addition, it is multi-domed and there is not a single minaret in it,
which is a complete deviation from the standards for the
construction of religious buildings of Muslim architecture. From the
18th century and over the next centuries, the building was
repeatedly vandalized, and the lead domes were plundered more than
once. The mosque withstood even the massive destruction during the
communist regime.
For natural reasons (soft floating soils),
the building sinks into the ground and is now several levels lower
than it was originally built. The historical building is a 10-minute
walk from Shkoder, and you can also get to the mosque by car.
Abu Bakr Mosque.
The Great Mosque, or the Abu Bakr Mosque, was built in 1995 in the Ottoman style with funds from the Saudi Sheikh Abdullah Al Zamil. The central dome is 24 meters high, and the two minarets are 41 meters each.
Church of the Nativity of Christ
The Church of
the Nativity of Christ is the main Orthodox church in Shkoder. The
temple was built in 2000 on the site of a church that had been
damaged by an explosion two years earlier.
Shkodër Cathedral
Shkoder Cathedral is dedicated to St. Stephen, one
of the first martyrs, who is also considered the patron saint of the
still existing church of the ancient castle of Rozafa. According to
the memoirs of one of the famous Albanian historians and humanists,
after the siege of Shkoder and its capture by the Turks, Christian
believers decided to build a cathedral church by sending a request
for permission from the Sultan to Istanbul in 1851. Work began 7
years later, on April 7, 1858, during the administration of the
province of Ali Pasha. The delay was due to the lack of money to
finance the project by an unknown Austrian architect. The
construction was supported by influential clergy and famous people
at that time.
Shkodra Cathedral was named the Great Church,
since then it turned out to be one of the largest churches in the
Balkans. The temple was opened in 1865. The cathedral was in the
center of the battles with the Montenegrin army in 1912-1913, was
subjected to artillery attacks, despite the women and children
hiding in it. Several shells hit and the fire damaged the
southeastern corner.
With the onset of the 1967 "cultural
revolution", the temple was closed, like all churches in Albania.
The building of the Cathedral was given as a sports palace. In 1973,
it hosted a women's communist congress.
The revival of St.
Stephen's Cathedral began on March 7, 1991, when it was reopened.
The first Mass was celebrated by the House of Zeph Simonyi with
other priests in the presence of Mother Teresa and thousands of
believers. Since 1993, the statue of St. Michael and marble bowls
for holy water have been returned to the site. On April 25, 1993,
the Cathedral was visited by the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II
during a visit to Albania. In the presence of Mother Teresa of
Calcutta, he celebrated Holy Mass and ordained four bishops.
Franciscan Church
In 1947, an arms depot was
discovered in the Franciscan church of Shkoder. The priests pleaded
not guilty, but the church was closed. It was reopened in 1990.
Particularly popular are anti-communist paintings that can be seen
in the interior of this temple.
First settlement and Illyrians
The earliest traces of human
settlement date from the 2nd millennium BC. They were found south of
today's city near Tepe and can be classified in the Bronze Age.
At the time of its first mention in the 4th century BC Schkoder
was the seat of the Illyrian tribe of the Ardieans, who ruled over
an area between the present-day states of Albania, Montenegro,
Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. Numerous artifacts and inscriptions
in the city fortress Rozafa bear witness to this time. After the
Ardieans, the Labeates, also Illyrian, took their place and were far
more powerful than their predecessors. Queen Teuta, King Agron and
King Genthios were among the most famous personalities of the
Labeaten and had many silver coins minted, which mostly show their
names in Greek or their portraits.
Romans
The Labeatic
kingdom had long been a thorn in the side of the Romans; they began
in 229 BC for the first time with the dispatch of a Roman army to
Illyria. The First Illyrian War began, and before Shkodër , Queen
Teuta's Illyrian armies had to surrender to the Romans. The Labeatic
Kingdom fell apart and the dynasty only ruled over the city. 168 BC
It was also conquered by the Romans and the then King Genthios
interned in Iguvium in Italy. From the 1st century, Scodra was part
of the Roman province of Dalmatia. In the course of the
administrative reform of Emperor Diocletian, it became the capital
of the newly created province of Praevalitana at the end of the 3rd
century. With the spread of Christianity, the Archdiocese of Scodra
was founded in the 4th century and placed under the newly created
Archdiocese of Iustiniana Prima by Emperor Justinian in 535 - Scodra
was therefore downgraded to the diocese.
In the second half
of the 6th century, the ancient city of Scodra was conquered by
invading Slavs.
Middle age
In 1040 Shkodër was conquered
by the principality of Zeta. From 1360, the noble family of Balšić
(Albanian Balsha) ruled over Zeta and made Shkodër their capital.
Zeta, which has been part of the Serbian Empire since 1185,
unsuccessfully defended the city from the Ottomans in 1393, who
occupied it for a short time.
In 1396 the Republic of Venice
took power in Shkodër, which now became part of the Venetian
Albania. In 1403 there was a revolt of the Shkodrans against the
Venetian rule. During the rule of the Lion Republic, the city
flourished into a rich trading city.
Ottoman time
In 1479
Shkodër was conquered by the Ottomans after a long siege of Rozafa
Castle, and Shkodër became the capital of the Vilayets of the same
name. However, it took a long time for the city to recover from the
destruction and depopulation resulting from the Turkish conquest and
become a major trading center that benefited from exchanges between
the Ottoman Empire and the rest of Europe. In 1614 a French traveler
described Shkodra as a small town with barely 300 houses. The
Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi, on the other hand, describes it
about 50 years later as a flourishing trading town with 1,800 houses
(that corresponds to about 9,000 inhabitants, a little more than
Berlin had at that time) - up to this time Rozafa Castle had also
served as a residential area. By the end of the 16th century, almost
all of the city's residents converted to Islam.
In 1757 the
local feudal lord Mehmet Bej Bushati declared himself pasha of the
Shkodër region. He ran political affairs almost independently and
thus gained more autonomy from the Sublime Porte. The paschalik of
Shkodër only reached its heyday with his son Kara Mahmut, who
extended the borders of his sphere of influence to Kosovo and Berat.
In 1785 he attacked neighboring Montenegro and was able to conquer
the pirate bastion Ulcinj, whose fleet he set on fire. Western
Europe quickly became aware of him and Kara Mahmut asked the
Habsburgs for weapons and money in order to fight the Ottoman
Empire. This quickly sent their troops to Shkoder to be reconquered,
so in November 1787. But after three months of siege of the fortress
Rozafa, the Ottomans had to surrender to the superior soldiers Kara
Mahmut. In 1796 he made another attempt to attack Montenegro, but
this time he was defeated and was even beheaded. After his death,
his youngest brother, Ibrahim Pasha, succeeded him. However, he was
always an opponent of his brother's policies and was always loyal to
the Sultan. He administered the paschalik of Shkoder until his death
in 1810.
Time of the national movement "Rilindja"
In 1860 Jesuits
founded a seminary and in 1870 a theological grammar school of the
Franciscan order was set up with the help of Austria-Hungary. The
Austrians aimed to increase their influence in Catholic northern
Albania. However, the priests and pastors who worked and worked in
Shkodër did not have a good reputation among the local population.
They were accused of deriving only their own advantages from the
trade relations with Austria-Hungary and of betraying the local
small traders. The Muslim Shkodrans - and the Albanians in general -
were more than suspicious of the dual monarchy. In order to minimize
the Austrian influence in Shkodra as much as possible, Italian
schools were also opened in the city.
As the only significant
city in Albania that was not significantly influenced by other
cultures, it was an important place of the Rilindja, the Albanian
national movement, at the turn of the century.
20th century
In the turmoil of the Balkan Wars of 1912/13, Montenegrins and Serbs
claimed the city for their states (there were minorities of Serbs
and Montenegrins in the region, but these have largely been
assimilated or emigrated).
After the assassination of the
Ottoman commander Hasan Riza Pasha, the Montenegrin army occupied
Shkodra for some time. Under pressure from the major European
powers, it had to withdraw again in 1914, and Shkodra was assigned
to Albania, which had just become independent. During the First
World War from 1916 to 1918, the city was under Austrian occupation.
After the war, the French followed, handing Shkodër over to the
young state of Albania in 1920.
Until the upswing of the new
capital Tirana in the 1930s, Shkodër was the most important city in
the country (at times in competition with the port city of Durrës).
More than 40,000 people lived here in the 19th century. The many
Catholic residents had strong ties to Italy and Austria, which was
conducive to development. Catholic monks opened various schools. In
1879 a newspaper was published here for the first time in Albania
and in 1901 important meetings of the Albanian national movement
Rilindja (rebirth) took place.
Shkodër was the last city in
Albania to be evacuated by the occupying forces of the German
Wehrmacht in November 1944.
In 1990 the city was a center of
the uprising against the communist dictatorship. Four people were
killed in demonstrations. The Catholic priest Simon Jubani
celebrated the first service after over 30 years of religious
prohibition in the so-called old Catholic cemetery of the city and
thus heralded the end of this provision.
Get in
As in the whole of Albania there is no bus station per
se. Instead there are a few gathering points for buses/furgons
scattered around the city.
By bus
Buses departing to
Tirana and Durrës. Majority of buses depart from the main city
square with a fountain (called Sheshi Demokracia). This includes
buses/furgons to Tirana that leave every round hour; the journey
lasts for 2 hours (116 km) and costs 400 lek (2018). There are also
direct buses to Durrës (avoiding Tirana) for 700 lek.
Furgons to
Velipojë. 2 blocks south-west along Rruga studenti, about a 10-min
walk from Sheshi Demokracia there is a small furgon station from
where they depart to the nearby coastal village of Velipojë.
Furgons to Kelmend and Thethi. To catch a furgon to Albanian Alps,
head 2 km north of Sheshi Demokracia. There is a gathering point for
transport going to Kelmend and Thethi.
Furgons to Koman. This
also includes some other locations in an eastbound direction,
including Vau i Dejës dam.
To Montenegro
From Ulcinj
(Montenegro), buses cost €5 (plus €1 if you have baggage) and leave
at 06:00, 07:00, 12:30 and 16:30. If they are not available, you can
take a taxi to the border at Muriqan (€10) and after crossing the
border, take another taxi to Ulcinj (€8). However, the return ticket
from Shkodra to Ulcinj costs €5 and buses leave at 09:00 and 16:00
from the city center fountain.
From Podgorica, take public
buses to Tuzi, then hire a taxi either to the border or to Shkodra.
Minibuses to/from Hani i Hotit (the Montenegro border on the way
to Podgorica) run from around 300 lek. Taxis for this journey cost
€15.
To Kosovo
Buses from Gjakova go at 06:00 directly to
Shkodër via the highway from Prizren.
Get around
Finding
your way round Shkodër is complicated by the fact that all of the
roads have been renamed, and some of the old names have even been
re-used in different places! All roads have got new road signs.
Since all the maps and guides (including this one) give the old
names, finding your way round is a bit like being in a parallel
universe.
There are some public buses running inside city.
There is also infrequent bus to the nearby village of Shiroke.
By bike
Shkodër is the bike capital of Albania, because it's
flat. This is a heritage from the Hoxha era.
Budget
1 Hotel Rozafa (Hotel Turizmi) (Right in the city
centre, Rruga Marin Barleti close to Sheshi Demokracia). Old
communist-style hotel; clean; gentle and English-speaking personal;
nice view over the city if you book in an upper floor; 91 rooms; no
air conditioning. 2000 lek for a double room (2013).
Florian's
Guest House, Shkodër: shtoj i ri, reparti ushtarak. kodrajt (By car,
turn down from E762 road towards Shtoj i Ri. Pass a few local shops,
look and for sign on the right hand side of the road.), ☎
+355682335921, e-mail: fokodra@hotmail.com. This is a 12-bed
B&B/guest house run by Florian and his family, located amongst
orchards and vineyards. It is outside, but within walking distance
from the centre of Shkodër. Breakfast is included, and lunch and
dinner are offered for €4, serving Albanian cuisine made from
organic food farmed in the own garden. The family can help to
arrange tours of Shkodër and to get into the Albanian Alps or to
other cities in the country. €15, breakfast included.
2 Camping
Lake Shkodër Resort. Modern campsite 8 km from Shkodër with
restaurant, Wifi and access to the lake, organises tours to Thethi.
3 Belvedere Apartment, Bulevardi Bujar Bishanaku 16 (From the
main square "Sheshi Demokracia" follow a North-West direction onto
"Bulevardi Bujar Bishanaku" for 250 m.), e-mail:
info@belvedere.al. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. This is a holiday and short-stay
apartment near main square "Sheshi Demokracia". The apartment is
fully furnished and features a fully-equipped kitchen. The 80-m²
living space includes: one bedroom, one living room with open
kitchen, a bathroom, hall and a balcony. The balcony offers you a
great panoramic view over the city, castle and mountains. €40.
Mid-range
4 Hotel Kaduku (at Sheshi Demokracia, immediately
next to the Rozafa Hotel), ☎ +355 22 242216. Highly recommended -
friendly staff, large clean room with A/C, right in the city centre.
€50 for double, with breakfast.
5 Hotel Tradita (Tradita G&T),
Rr. Risto Siliqi, no. 25, ☎ +355 22 240 537. Check-in: 14:00,
check-out: 12:00. As close as it gets to being invited to the dining
hall, the kitchen and courtyard of the local Ottoman Pasha. €50.
6 Hotel Colosseo, Rr.. 14 rooms. Single: €50; Double: €60; Suite:
€70.
7 Grand Hotel Europa, Sheshi 2 Prilli, ☎ +355 22 241 211.
Prestigious luxury hotel. 50 rooms. From €123.
8 Hotel Argenti,
☎ +355 22 439 09. This is a modern hotel in the Velipoja area with
comfortable rooms furnished with A/C, TV, bathroom and showers. The
restaurant provides traditional Albanian and European cuisine.
Carp fish in Shiroke village
Restaurants
Lots of dining
options are available on the main pedestrian street - Rruga Kolë
Idromeno. There are also some nice restaurants and pizzerias on the
promenade near Buna River Old Bridge (Rruga e Molos street).
1 Restaurant, Rruga e Molos. This is ampscale restaurant by Albanian
standards, serving delicious food including fish. It has a nice
atmosphere and is in a small garden. 300 - 700 lek.
2 San
Francisco Bar & Restorant, Rruga Kolë Idromeno. A proper
restaurant's look and feel and an extensive menu are provided. Some
portions are huge, some aren't. The quality of food varies a lot,
from superb to simply uneatable. It has a second floor terrace. 300
- 1500 lek.
3 Green tavern, Rruga Kolë Idromeno. This restaurant
has a little bit of a club atmosphere, but is nonetheless very
ambient. Pizzas, pastas, and salads are provided. 200-350 lek.
Cafes
Shkodër is famous for its numerous patisseries where
you can eat delicious sweets, and it's possible to come to Shkodra
for this alone.
4 Cafe Oraldi (Pasticeri Oraldi), Parruce, ☎
+355 68 274 6492. Superb cakes. Definitely one of the best in
Albania. Extremely popular with locals. 80 - 150 lek.
Drink
Local beers "Korça" or "Tirana" and the famous Albanian spirit
called Raki.