Cycling in Albania

An excellent trip which exceeded expectations. The trip seeks out some of the more spectacular scenery that the country has to offer. The hire bikes were excellent, 30 speed, front suspension and disc brakes, necessary to cope with the sometimes poor surfaces. Arm

A great trip. Fascinating country and well planned and well organised throughout.

My husband and I have recently returned from cycling in Albania. What a fantastic adventure it was. Prior to going on this trip our bikes came out of the shed about once a year and since we are not in the flush of youth we had to go out cycling every weekend for the previous 5 months to make sure we were fit enough and boy were we glad we did. It was a challenging trip but we loved every minute of it. The scenery is fantastic, we could not fault the food and the hotels were a lot better than we anticipated and even quite luxurious at times. Armand is an excellent guide with plenty of local knowledge. He offered to run a kitty for meals and drinks and ordered a variety of food at every meal which made meal times so easy and enjoyable. It is a fast paced trip and we had to be up early every day for breakfast and be ready to leave by 8.30 every morning but we were glad of this because at least it was cooler when we set off and we always had a nice stop for coffee to look forward to after a couple of hours. It is a great way to see Albania and it was great to start inland and then move to the coast offering different scenery and a chance to have a swim in the sea. We enjoyed the cultural stops and the chance to learn about the history of Albania. The minibus driver was always there with extra water, bananas and snacks when you needed them and greeted us with a smile at the top of every climb. I would strongly recommend this trip to anyone but to enjoy it make sure you do plenty of hill training. We hired the bikes offered by Exodus and these were of good quality although we took our own saddles. We used the pedals on the bikes ie. no clip ons and managed it okay so if you fancy it go for it - you won't regret it.

A really good trip, ticked all the boxes - good cycling, stunning scenary, great weather, good food, great group to travel with and an excellent trip leader

What a fantastic week! We were lucky with the weather - although possibly too hot for cycling at times. There is a lot of climbing in this holiday- perhaps more than is really indicated in the description, and I found it harder than the other Grade 3 moderate trips I have done previously. The poor road surfaces make the cycling much harder. However- I managed, and the whole group had a great time. The variety of places visited, accommodation, food and hospitality were excellent and exceeded my expectations. It was also very cheap! I only managed to spend £80 during the week

This trip is a great way to see Albania and experience the local way of life. The scenery is stunning.

Absolutely loved this trip. I am more of a runner so I found the mountain climbs quite hard at times, but once at the top, I had the most fun cycling down towards the ocean. Had no idea that Albania was this beautiful!!

The country was wonderful - everyone was very friendly, the views were stunning, and the new roads made it perfect for cycling around. Don't be put off by preconceptions about Albania - we were all delighted to find it much more pleasant to be in than many other European countries, and will no doubt be full of tourists in the next 5-10 years. Definitely go before everyone else realises how good it is. It's very cheap too, especially in the more rural parts. My only complaint would be the repeated promises of ice cream, which mysteriously never materialised!

The tour is more challenging than I expected. I've done several Exodus cycling trips that were rated similarly, but this was tougher than those. Still, definitely worth taking on the challenge -- pace yourself and skip the tough hills if you need to (just don't miss the mountain climb on the last day). Beautiful scenery on quiet roads. Wonderful people -- strangers will see you riding by and give you fruit!

Very enjoyable holiday giving us a taste of life in the remote mountains and on the Ionian and Adriatic Coast with a very committed engaging guide. The participants were all good company, the locations for lunch and dinner well-chosen and well prepared (our guide always phoned in advance so they were ready having checked which of their dishes we wanted to eat). The cycling route was impressive: the views are extraordinary, with several long climbs, some quite steep, and some hairy descents on roads that were - in the South- the quality of off road. In the heat, cycling up these mountains can be daunting. Even very experienced cyclists found this trip challenging, and considered its "moderate" rating a bit of an underestimate.