10-Day Balkans Road Trip: Dubrovnik → Kotor → Tirana (The Adriatic Route)

The Dubrovnik to Tirana road trip is the definitive Adriatic drive. In 10 days you travel through Croatia, Montenegro, and Albania — crossing into Montenegro via the Debeli Brijeg border south of Dubrovnik, then into Albania via Sukobin on the Bojana River. The route covers roughly 900 km of some of the best coastal and mountain driving in Europe: the Dalmatian coast, the Bay of Kotor, the Montenegrin Riviera, the Albanian Alps' foothills, and the cities of Kotor, Budva, Shkodër, Tirana, and Berat. You end with a flight home from Tirana Airport — or turn around and do it in reverse.

This is a one-way trip. M.A.C.K. offers one-way rentals from Dubrovnik to Tirana; the Green Card covering both borders costs from €38 and is arranged at booking.

The 10-Day Itinerary

1. Days 1–2 — Dubrovnik Pick up your car at Dubrovnik Airport (DBV) on Day 1. The airport is 20 km south of the city; the drive in follows the coast road through Cavtat. Two days in Dubrovnik is the right amount of time — walk the city walls on the first morning (go early, before the cruise ship crowds arrive), explore the Old Town streets in the afternoon, and use Day 2 for the Pelješac Peninsula: the drive over the Pelješac Bridge from the mainland is impressive, and the vineyards around Ston produce some of the best red wine in Croatia. Dingač and Postup are the names to look for.
2. Day 3 — Dubrovnik → Kotor (52 km, ~1h including border) A short drive but a significant one. The Debeli Brijeg border crossing is 5 km south of Herceg Novi — standard rental documents, no special permit needed for Croatia to Montenegro. Once through, the drive around the Bay of Kotor begins. The bay is a drowned river canyon — essentially a fjord — ringed by sheer limestone mountains. The road hugs the shoreline the entire way to Kotor. Check into your accommodation and walk the old town walls in the afternoon. Kotor's Venetian fortifications are intact and the views from the top of the city walls over the rooftops and the bay are one of the great Balkan panoramas.
3. Day 4 — Kotor: Bay of Kotor Loop Use Kotor as a base for a day loop around the bay. Perast is 12 km north on the inner bay — a tiny Baroque town with two islands visible from the waterfront. Our Lady of the Rocks (Gospa od Škrpjela) is the artificial island directly offshore; boats run from the quay for a few euro return. The island church has a remarkable collection of ex-voto paintings. From Perast, drive up the Lovćen serpentines — 25 hairpin bends climbing to 1,500 m — to the Njegoš Mausoleum at the top of Mount Lovćen. The panorama over the bay, the coast, and on clear days well into Albania is extraordinary. Return to Kotor for the night.
4. Day 5 — Kotor → Budva → Bar Drive south on the E65 from Kotor to Budva (23 km). Budva Old Town is the most compact and photogenic town on the Montenegrin coast — medieval walls, a small beach at the base of the fortifications, and a lively waterfront strip. Sveti Stefan, 5 km south, is the famous island-hotel on a rocky promontory connected to the mainland by a causeway. Continue south to Bar for the night — a working port town rather than a resort, but a useful base for the drive south to Albania the following day. Bar has an interesting ruined old town (Stari Bar) 4 km inland in the hills.
5. Day 6 — Bar → Ulcinj → Shkodër (110 km) The key day: you cross into Albania. From Bar, drive 50 km south to Ulcinj — the last Montenegrin coastal town, with a cliff-top old town and a 12 km sandy beach (Velika Plaža) stretching south toward the border. From Ulcinj it's 30 km to the Sukobin / Murićani border crossing at the Bojana River. Have your passport, rental contract, cross-border permit letter, and Green Card ready — Albanian border police check all four. Once across, the road runs through the flat Bojana delta and northeast to Shkodër, 35 km from the border. Check in to Shkodër for the night. The city is worth an evening walk: Rozafa Castle on the hill above the lake, and the old bazaar pedestrian street (Rruga Kole Idromeno) in the city centre.
6. Day 7 — Shkodër → Tirana (110 km, ~1h 20m) The SH1 dual carriageway south from Shkodër to Tirana is the fastest road in Albania — clean, modern, and well-maintained. The drive takes about 1 hour 20 minutes. Arrive in Tirana late morning and spend the day in the capital. Skanderbeg Square is the heart of the city — the National History Museum with its Communist-era mosaic, the Et'hem Bey Mosque, and the clock tower. The Blloku district south of the square is where the city's café and restaurant culture concentrates; it was the sealed Communist inner sanctum until 1991 and is now one of the more interesting neighbourhoods in the Balkans. The BunkArt museums (converted nuclear bunkers) are worth a visit if you have the afternoon free.
7. Day 8 — Tirana: City Day A second day in Tirana allows you to cover what you missed on Day 7 at a more relaxed pace. The National Gallery of Arts on Skanderbeg Square has a strong collection of Albanian Socialist Realist painting — worth 90 minutes if that era of art interests you. The New Bazaar (Pazari i Ri) reopened after renovation and is the best place in Tirana for local food: byrek (filo pastry), tavë kosi (baked lamb with yoghurt), and fresh produce. The Pyramid — a former Enver Hoxha museum now covered in graffiti and used as a skate ramp — is 10 minutes' walk from the square and a striking piece of recent history.
8. Day 9 — Tirana → Berat (120 km, ~2h) Drive south from Tirana on the SH4 toward Elbasan, then cut west to Berat. Berat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site — the "city of a thousand windows" — an Ottoman hill town of whitewashed houses stacked on a steep slope above the Osum river, with a Byzantine castle at the top. The Onufri Museum inside the castle precinct holds a collection of 16th-century icon paintings. The two main historic quarters — Mangalem on the west bank and Gorica on the east — are connected by a low stone bridge and both walkable in an afternoon. Stay overnight in Berat; the castle and facades lit at dusk are the best visual moment of the Albanian section of the trip.
9. Day 10 — Berat → Tirana Airport, Return Car Drive back to Tirana from Berat (120 km, about 2 hours) and return the car at Tirana International Airport (TIA). The airport is on the northern edge of the city, directly off the SH1, so you don't need to drive through the centre. If your flight is in the afternoon or evening, the drive from Berat is comfortable even with a mid-morning departure. If you have an early flight, consider returning to Tirana the night before and dropping the car at the M.A.C.K. city office.

The Two Border Crossings

One-Way Rental: Dubrovnik to Tirana

This is a point-to-point trip — you pick up in Dubrovnik and return in Tirana. M.A.C.K. offers one-way rentals on this route. A one-way fee applies and varies by season; it covers the logistical cost of repositioning the vehicle. Request the one-way drop-off and the Green Card together at the time of booking.

If you prefer a loop — returning to Dubrovnik instead of flying from Tirana — the reverse route follows exactly the same roads in the opposite direction. The Green Card covers both directions, so there's no additional paperwork.

Practical Notes