Vathi: Albanians generally spend holidays on the coast, with fewer foreign tourists in the winter

Besnik Vathi, President of the Tour Operators Association and owner of the Tirana-based tourism company ATHS, states that Albanians often go skiing in North Macedonia and Kosovo, but most spend their winter holidays at one of the country's beaches. However, he notes that there are increasingly fewer foreign tourists visiting Albania during this period.

"Albania is a good place for a tourist visit because there are hotels along the coast, such as in Durrës, Vlorë, or in Korçë and Pogradec. These are popular destinations for many Albanians. Of course, they also spend holidays abroad. In the region, we can highlight Montenegro, with cities like Budva and Ulcinj. In Kosovo, people mainly go to the mountain areas to ski. Similarly, in North Macedonia," says Vathi.

He adds that even Greece expects a large number of tourists from Albania, but thanks to low-cost flights, which are cheaper this year than in previous years, people are also interested in numerous other destinations like Dubai, Istanbul, Egypt, and European cities such as Paris, Barcelona, Vienna…

Vathi points out that the number of tourists visiting Albania is increasing year by year, but visits during the New Year holidays are much lower.

"Probably, most will be Albanians living abroad with foreign passports. There will be more of them because prices have dropped, and the number of flights has increased. However, tourists of other nationalities visiting Albania during this period are decreasing. Mostly, these are people from the region - Bulgarians, Serbs, and fewer Italians. Other nationalities usually do not choose Albania as a place to celebrate during these holidays," our interlocutor explains.

He explains that the December holidays in the Western world are more family-oriented.

"People gather with their families. Even when they travel, they do so as a family or in large groups of relatives. This might be a reason why Albania does not attract many foreigners for these end-of-year holidays," Vathi believes.