- Drive in daylight, and treat the dark as a different roadOfficial advice is that road surfaces are poor, especially in rural areas, and that at night you are watching for unmarked roadworks, potholes and vehicles driving without lights. Power cuts affect street lighting in towns, and elsewhere, even on major routes, there is none. The corridor pages on this site say the same thing from the other end.
- Stay at the scene of an accidentEven after a minor one, the advice is to remain until the police arrive. Leaving early can bring charges under the Albanian Penal Code and a fine. This is the road rule that catches people out, because it is the opposite of the exchange-details-and-go habit a lot of drivers arrive with.
- Carry the right paperwork for the carA green card is required as proof of vehicle insurance to drive your own car in Albania, and the UK's advice is that a 1968 international driving permit is useful alongside the licence. That is separate from the cross-border fees on a hire car, which the driving guide carries.
- Follow the warning signs on the northern borderUnexploded landmines remain in some remote areas around hill towns on the northern border with Kosovo. The advice is to take care when hiking, follow any warning signs, and neither walk on uncultivated land nor step off the marked paths. Staying on the marked route is what every hike page here tells you to do anyway.
- Carry cash, and treat it as the defaultCash is the primary payment option, and more so outside Tirana and the main tourist towns. Public transport cannot be paid by card. ATM withdrawals are usually capped somewhere between 75,000 and 100,000 lek a transaction, which makes fewer, larger withdrawals the cheaper habit.
- Agree the taxi fare before the car movesThis site publishes no fare table and no metering rule for Albanian taxis, because it could not verify either. Settle the price first and carry small notes. That is a procedure rather than a figure, and it is the only one this page can honestly give you.
The figures
| What | Value | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| Night driving | Road surfaces are poor, especially in rural areas; at night, watch for unmarked roadworks, potholes and vehicles without lights. Power cuts affect street lighting in towns, and elsewhere even major routes have none | 2026-08-26 · UK FCDO, Albania travel advice: safety and security |
| After a traffic accident | Remain at the scene until the police arrive, even after a minor accident; leaving early can bring charges under the Albanian Penal Code and a fine | 2026-08-26 · UK FCDO, Albania travel advice: safety and security |
| Unexploded landmines | Still present in some remote areas around hill towns on the northern border with Kosovo. Follow warning signs, do not walk on uncultivated land and do not step off marked paths | 2026-08-26 · UK FCDO, Albania travel advice: safety and security |
| Vehicle paperwork | A green card is required as proof of vehicle insurance for your own car; the UK advises a 1968 international driving permit alongside the licence | 2026-08-26 · UK FCDO, Albania travel advice: safety and security |
| Cash, cards and ATMs | Cash is the primary payment option, especially outside the capital and the main tourist towns; public transport is cash only; ATM withdrawals are typically capped at 75,000 to 100,000 lek per transaction | 2026-08-26 · Wise, cash or card in Albania |
Asked about this
Is Albania safe for tourists?
The things official advice actually singles out are road-shaped: poor rural surfaces, no street lighting on major routes, vehicles driving without lights, and unexploded mines on part of the northern border with Kosovo. Plan for those and the rest of the trip looks like any other Mediterranean one.
Is it safe to drive in Albania at night?
It is the avoidable risk on this list, so avoid it. Unlit roads, unmarked roadworks, potholes and unlit vehicles are all named in official advice, and the mountain and coastal legs on this site are slow enough in daylight that starting one late is how a drive becomes a night drive.
Are there still landmines in Albania?
In some remote areas around hill towns on the northern border with Kosovo, yes. The stated mitigation is the ordinary one: follow the warning signs, stay off uncultivated land, and do not step off the marked path.
Do taxis in Albania use meters?
This site does not know and will not guess. It found no source it would cite for either a fare table or a metering rule, so the only honest advice is the procedural one: agree the price before you get in, and pay in cash.
How much cash should I carry?
Enough that the small places are not a problem, because cash is the primary option outside the bigger towns and public transport takes nothing else. ATMs usually cap a withdrawal at 75,000 to 100,000 lek, so take out larger amounts less often. The money guide has what things actually cost.