Tirana International Airport
Lasting Impressions....
"Don't plan to even "stop" there, if you don't have to!!!!!" (?)
"This is definitely the worst airport I have ever encountered in Europe. Tiny, dirty, foul, smoky, no place to sit and barely any space to stand. forget it." (Sean Rorison)
"Albania International Airport is basically two rooms. Think a small bus station somewhere deep in old USSR" (?)
"West educated friends, do not ever go to albania." (dimis)
Quick Reference Airport Guide
Here is some information that we've picked out of from your reviews. Be sure to read the review pages for the most up-to-date info:
- clean
- recent upgrades over the past few years
- plastic bucket seats
A few airport reviews from the archives
by Remmelt, 8/14/2009
Tirana airport is probably the cleanest and fanciest building in Albania (unless if you stay in the Sheraton hotel maybe). I spend a night in this airport waiting for my 05.10am flight to Budapest. During the night, all shops are closed. 2 cafs remain open all night. One of them has comfy couches, but they don't allow you to sleep on them.
The benches at the check-in area are few in number. This however is no problem at all. Since there are no flights from the airport between midnight and 05.00pm, the only people walking around were cleaning and security staff. All benches have four seats without armchairs, which makes it easy to lay down on them. Their surface is kind of hard which does make them slightly uncomfertable after an hour or so. The staff did not bother me at all and all looked very friendly (some of them even smiled at me).
The airport is really quiet at night. There are no people and no announcements, so hardly any noise at all.
by ?
Albania International Airport is basically two rooms. Think a small bus station somewhere deep in old USSR. The cement building has one booth for customs where a guy stamps your passport and you pay 10 to enter the country. You walk ten feet and wait by an open door where a guy throws your luggage from his cart that is parked outside.
You move to the second room that has an x-ray machine in the corner that doesn't work and a single table behind which a uniform officer stands and inspects your luggage for contraband.
Both rooms stink and are filled with cigarette smoke. If you must sleep here, go outside and walk to the end of the runway where the airplane graveyard is. There they have several 1940's and 50's planes that have been sitting there for years. They will offer some shelter and might smell better.
Across the dirt road is a little market stand where you can get some local food. Taxi service is spotty and taxies are 1960's Mercedes.
