Balkan 3-day Round Trip

Pick up from your hotel – Sightseeing tour of the city. The tour starts from the Citadel, from where you have an excellent panoramic view of the city center, followed by a visit to “Mustafa Pasha“Mosque from the 15th century, and entering the second largest Turkish bazaar on the Balkan. The tour continues to the central city square, where the dominant site is Alexander the Great fountain. Walk through Macedonia Street, towards the old Railway Station, a witness of the 1963 earthquake.
Continue the trip to Pristina – tour of Pristina start with visit – Kosovo National Library, Mother Teresa statue, George Kastriot Skanderbeg statue, Open Air Archaeological Park, Kosovo Museum, Academy Building, Clock Tower, The Great Hammam, Ethnographic Museum. We drive to second city in Kosovo – Prizren which includes the attractive Ottoman Old Town, the ham-mam, the Museum of Prizren League, the Helveti Tekke, Sinia Pashaka Mosque and the church of Our Lady of Ljevis. Prizren has the largest number of preserved Ottoman buildings in Kosovo, simply wandering the old cobbled streets admiring the town houses.

Drive you up to Kruja town, where you’ll experience a step back in medieval history by visiting the castle and Scanderbeg Museum. Kruja was the most important town for the Albanians during the 15th century which withstood successfully to at least 3 major sieges by the Ottoman Empire. The medieval hero Gjergj Kastrioti called “Scanderbeg” is considered not only by Albanians as a symbol of resistance and savior but also by ottomans who believed that a supernatural force dwelled in him. Therefore after his death they destroyed his tomb and took parts of his bones to keep them as a charm for good luck. Walk in the Old Bazaar full of old shops that sell traditional handmade items.
Next will drive you to Tirana, the capital of Albania. As you walk around the Scanderbeg square, you’ll see an interesting complex of building which reflect the periods that have influenced Tirana’s architecture. Only the Clock Tower and Et’hem Bey Mosque remain as reminders of the city’s Ottoman past. The communist government left its own footprint by destroying the Ottoman Bazaar and building the new Opera and Ballet House on the site.
The next stop on the itinerary is Et’hem Bey Mosque, where you’ll learn about the difficulties faced by the clergy especially after 1967 when freedom of religious expression was prohibited. The mosque was built in 1821 by Et’hem Bey in a typical Turkish style. Continue to King’s Palace and National Martyrs Boulevard. Here you’ll get to know a piece of daily life of former dictator Enver Hoxha, by visiting the pyramid, meant to be a museum for his life and the “Bllok” zone where he and other communist leaders lived in. The area that was once prohibited for people is now the most favorite neighborhood for young people, businesses and coffee shops. In the end, around 3:30 pm, we will take you back to Scanderbeg square, in the center of Tirana city, where we started our day and here your wonderful tour is over.

After breakfast – Ohrid City tour –  visit the old part of Ohrid  – St. Sofija, the ancient theatre, upper gate, archaeological place Plaoshnik, Samoil’s fortress, magnificent St. Kaneo, drive with catamarans, after that visit St. Naum complex,  – enjoying in the view to the national park Galichica and the  Bay of Bones – “museum on the water” in Gradishte. Visit the spring area of the river “Crn Drim” ; short boat tour thru the springs. After the tour – continue to Skopje