Client Reviews

Andrew Baddeley – UK – July/August 2018 (Grand Albania Tour)

As seen on TripAdvisor:

Jorik. Thank you for organising a fantastic 12 day tour for us and our teenage children from the UK. We enjoyed our wide ranging tour around what is a beautiful, historic and at times chaotic country of mountains and sea with wonderful food and drink and friendly hospitable people not least Al-Ben our guide (and activist for all that is best here). We hope to come back soon and enjoy it again before it changes too much.

Onno Moret – Netherlands – July 2018 (Fly & Drive)

As seen on TripAdvisor:

Jorik Thanks. We had a great time in Albania. Perfect hotels, nice locations. Good communcation. Wonderful!

Paul Ensley – Netherlands – May 2018 (Fly & Drive)

As seen on TripAdvisor:

My partner and I explored Albania for two weeks in May 2018. It was partly leisure and partly business, because my partner Ms. Kisa van den Berg was exploring opportunities for Business and Incentive travel to Albania. Jorik from Albania2Go was already a business relationship of hers and had made us enthusiastic about his destination and programs.

Traveling to Tirana from Amsterdam is fine. Just a 2:20 hrs flight. Our first impression of Tirana was a suprising one: modern, inviting, safe, colorful and very friendly. Our tour through Southern Albania was a delight: Berat, Vlora, Himara, Saranda, Butrint, Gjirokaster, Libohova, Permet, Korca and back to Tirana. What a perfect tour Jorik had assembled for us. Sceneries are unreal, nature at his best. People are so hospitable. We had such a great time and we're often amazed by hospitality and friendliness.

All-in-all we see great opportunities for business groups and MICE services. With Jorik as your DMC, your program is in good hands. With eye for detail and his management experience we see a great future for his company in front of us. Enjoy unspoiled Albania now!

Jan Portegijs – Netherlands – May 2018 (Classic Tour)

Via internet kwamen wij voor een vakantie bij Jorik Nijdam/Albania2go terecht. We hadden nogal wat vragen en onze vertrekdatum is een paar keer gewijzigd. Dat was geen probleem: Jorik beantwoordde de vragen snel en afdoende. Jorik heeft service hoog in zijn vaandel staan. Voor de uiteindelijke vertrekperiode was geen Albania2go gids beschikbaar, maar over de ingehuurde gids, Ben Kola, zijn wij zeer te spreken. Kortom, Albania2go is een prima bureau dat de zaken uitmuntend regelt. Een aanrader.

Hans Nilsson – Sweden – May 2018 (Day Trip)

As seen on TripAdvisor:

We have just now made two day excursions with Jorik. We were six persons and Jorik and his driver Nick picked us up at our hotel in Durres. First day to Kruja and Shkoder, second day to Berat.

Jorik is Dutch and speaks excellent English, so he was a great guide on our trips, taking us to nice restaurants and interesting sites.

We can highly recommend anyone going to Albania to use his services!

Susan Larsson – Sweden – May 2018 (Day Trip)

We were six of us in Albania last week on a package holiday but wanted to do excursions that were tailormade for us,so we asked Jorik to arrange two excursions, one to the north,Kruja and Shkodra and the restaurant Mrizi i Zanave and one to the south to Berat and a winetasting. All six of us were very satisfied with Jorik´s arrangement of the two days and the excellent driving of Niku, who was a competent and careful driver. We will definitely recommend Jorik´s firm to anyone who wants to discover Albania!

Thank you both of you and Good Luck, Yours sincerely, Susan and Kjell Larsson, Stockholm, Sweden

Jerry van Rekom – Netherlands – April 2018 (South of Albania Hiking)

With 5 people we went to Albania to do some walks and Jorik made it possible. It was a marvelous trip, but heavy in the mountains in the south. Albania is beautiful and so we saw a lot of this country with his typical history.. We stayed by locals and that was special! Also we did see Tirana and Vlorë, two nice cities.

We learned a lot about Albania, like history, food, drink and the culture like Apollonia and the castle of Palermo..

The most special thing was walking (more hiking) through the St. George Pass (1150m high) with two guides and two mules (for the bagage).

Jorik and his wife did a great job. We loved it!

Steve Serembe – USA – October 2017 (Grand Albania Tour)

As seen on TripAdvisor:

An Amazing Tour Of Albania

My wife and I as well as another couple took a modified Grand Tour of Albania from October 3rd through the 15th with Albania2Go. I had been working with Blerina for a couple of years to put together a tour that would accommodate my desire to discover my Albanian family ancestry and to visit the entire amazing country. Jorik picked us up at the Tirana airport since our guide was finishing another tour the day we landed. Jorik was great and very accommodating when we asked to change one accommodation from Kruya to Shkoder.

Our guide, Migen, was great. By the end of the tour we felt like family and none of us wanted to go home nor leave Migen. He was very accommodating and tried to assist with anything that we asked of him. He gave a wonderful description of the sites and the history involved. He even promised to assist me in continuing to occasionally look for more family clues for me in the future, until I can return and find out more, next time going primarily to Shkoder (where my family probably originated) and the north of Albania as well as Kosovo.

Migen went beyond the call of duty and always with a smile, accommodating our whims on the itinerary. He was also well versed on restaurants and was able to find us eel casserole in Sarande, which he also enjoyed.

All of our hotels were wonderful; we had not one complaint and each breakfast was better than the last one. As I write this in want to return to Albania more and more with Albania2Go. Thank you Blerina, Jorik and Migen so much. Steve S.

Frank Herbert – USA – October 2017 (Grand Albania Tour)

As seen on TripAdvisor:

We just completed a 2 week trip throughout most of Albania. Jorik of Albania2Go did a great job of organizing hotels and transportation for us. The purpose of the trip was to track down family history and tour guide Migan did an exceptional job of arranging meetings and translating a wide range of contacts in country. Migan was familiar with numerous restaurants and coffee shops that appealed to the four people in our party. Migan also brought along his drone which provided fantastic views of exciting forts and historical sites from a unique perspective. Jorick was thorough and flexible in adjusting the itinerary as our quest for ancestors developed new leads and continually lead to new avenues of inquiry. We found Albania to be an extremely safe and inviting environment and look forward to returning for a subsequent Albania2Go tour.

Monique Schrijver – Netherlands – September 2017 (Fly & Drive)

Albania2Go arranged for us (three friends from the Netherlands) a trip to Albania. Jorik made up a tour according to what we liked to do (hiking, beach, Berat, Tirana) and booked the hotels and car rental. Everything was well organised and the communication with Albania2Go is easy and quickly . We had a wonderful stay in a beautiful country thanks to Albania2Go. Thanks a lot Jorik!

Ineke & Gerard Rhebergen – The Netherlands – August 2017 (North of Albania)

We vonden het heel leuk allemaal in Albanië en zullen vol nieuwe indrukken thuis komen. We waren tevreden over de guesthouses, de transfers en de gidsen / wandelingen. Alles verliep volgens plan.

Theth was heerlijk en Lepushe weer heel anders en ook prachtig. Een mooie kennismaking met Albanië, alles bij elkaar.

Kou Jong Lin – June 2017 (Albania, Kosovo)

Thank you for organizing our Kosovo trip for us. We had a great time visiting Albania and Kosovo and especially the country sides on this trip. Our guide Migen was great and so were the owners, staff members of Hotel Centrum and Hotel Parlament. Please give our sincere thanks to them!

Bitron & Livant – Israel – June 2017 (North of Albania)

All the four of us (the two couples) enjoyed very very much our trip in Albania and the way Albania 2go company arranged everything . Migen, our guide and driver most of the days, spoke very good English and did everything in order to please our requests, even the non regular ones. Thanks to him we arrived to beautiful places not on the regular route (such as the Patok lagoon on the way to Shkoder and the family houses in the Valbona area). Also the guide with the horse on the trek from Valbona to Theth was excellent and spoke good English.

Jorik's excellent suggestions before our arrival to Albania and during our stay helped us a lot and make our trip so enjoyable.

We definitely recommend Albania2Go to everyone who intends to visit Albania.

Devi Purnawanto – Indonesia – May 2017 (Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro)

On behalf of our group, I'm writing this thank you letter for Albania2go Tour. I contacted Jorik a month before, with an interest to explore Albania & its neighboring countries (Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia), and gave him our original itinerary. It didn't take long time to get a respond from Jorik. He proposed some suggestions & a quotation with several options. We finally decided to rent a car for 5N 6D with all-inclusive service (driver, fuel, parking, etc.). He's easy to be reached, either by email or WhatsApp.

On the D-day, He warmly welcomed us in Tirana Airport and assured us about the trip. Our driver - Olsi - was helpful and speaks adequate English. He drove his VW caddy carefully & was quiet flexible with our needs. Good job, Olsi!

We thank Jorik & Olsi for their hard work & professional touch. We enjoyed and will always remember our trip to these 4 beautiful countries. Never regret choosing Albania2go and we do highly recommend them.

Mathilde Schouwstra – Netherlands – May 2017 (MICE)

Together with Jorik of Albania2go I arranged a trip for 27 women (9 days) to Albania. Jorik helped me a lot by preparing this trip. He arranged the transport and two perfect drivers for the whole stay, he arranged the accommodation and also the delicious lunches and dinners on several places in Albania. Jorik is always there for you. He is kind, modest and helpful. If you have a question, he has the solution. He joined us as a very pleasant guide for a trip to beautiful Berat. He knows a lot about Albania and is full of ideas for a very nice stay. For me, the success of the trip was due to Albania2go. All the women want to come back!

Alec Svoboda – Canada – April 2017 (Day Trip)

We liked our day trips, though of course we only scratched the surface of the two fascinating places. We were very happy with Migen as our guide. He was informative, and amazing at squeezing into and out of impossibly tight parking spaces.

Vickey Anderson – USA – March 2017 (Day Trip)

Yesterday was an excellent tour. Migen is a wonderful guide and speaks perfect English. I am leaving tomorrow but very much enjoyed the time I have had in Albania. Thank you again for your help arranging the tour. I would highly recommend Migen as a guide and your company for arranging the tour.

Stephen and Jennie Burnett – UK – October 2016 (Classic Tour)

A rather belated thank you for organizing such a superb holiday for us. You followed our brief and our break exceeded all expectations at all levels.

Having worked in Corfu 40 years ago and gazed across the Ionian Sea I often wondered about the life of those who lived so near and yet so far, almost it seemed within touching distance.

Gazi was the perfect guide. He was able to tell us of people who had managed to swim or sail across. He was able to tell us of his own experience, growing up under such a draconian regime and has such a wide knowledge of History I sometimes wondered if he was a professor! We met his son who told us his parents had spent their honeymoon in a football stadium having being part of the movement of young people who commandeered 2 ferries over to Italy to escape the regime.

We loved eating in obscure cafes frequented by the locals. Albanian food is delicious, simple and healthy. We were bowled over by the wealth of archaeology and pre-history sites and the hotels were a perfect mix of basic three star to the stunning Ottoman House in Gjrokastra.

Gazi was was happy to go off piste and took us way up the mountain to a remote village for a taste of rural life. No vehicles, just ponies. Totally spontaneous. Steve loves photographing desolation! Having observed this Gazi took us to the old Kalashkinov factory, now in ruins, but nature is taking over and the valley is returning to it's former glory. We visited other refineries and chemical installations, now in ruins but the home to turkeys, sheep, rabbits, ducks and chickens. The smell of pollution was sobering and one wondered who would dare to eat the meat of the livestock feeding off the land.

We enjoyed the culture in Tirana, felt sad about the destruction of a fine country but were glad to be part of the tourist industry which surely must be a step towards recovery.

Gazi has experienced so much, has great stories to tell and tells so many jokes I'm sure he could write a book!.

Thanks for organizing such an exciting, informative and hassle free holiday. I think we may be back but probably Macedonia next time.

Debby and Jim Jacobsen – USA – September 2016 (Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro)

The tour that we arranged through Albania2Go was for eleven days, and we were fortunate to have Beni as our private guide and driver. Our itinerary was developed with much help from Jorik, who was a delight to work with and very responsive to all our inquiries. The itinerary was relatively fast-paced, but Beni still found many ways in which to thoroughly enhance it with supplemental visits to wonderful “off the beaten path” sites and interactions with locals. He seemed to know everybody, and we feel that we were much more exposed to “local color” than on most of our trips in over four decades of international travel. Beni has a wealth of knowledge about the geography, history, and culture of the places visited, which he readily shared with us in fluent English, and he is a careful driver -- often on challenging roads! This was our first use of a private guide/driver, but it likely will not be our last – although Beni “set the bar high” for those to follow!

We also cannot say enough good things about all of the logistical arrangements made by Albania2Go. The hotels were generally “boutique,” as is our preference, and very well-situated in each city, and it seemed like we had the best room (or suite) in each! A couple did not have elevators, so mention to Jorik if this is a concern for you, and we’re sure that he will find suitable accommodations for you. We also found that, especially in comparison to comparable itineraries (even in large tour groups!) offered by others, the cost was surprisingly economical. Our only regret is that we did not add a few extra days in order to experience more in these delightful countries. We recommend the services of Albania2Go without hesitation!

Robert Bedford – USA – September 2016 (Classic Tour)

We just wanted to say thank you for a great trip around southern Albania (basically the classical tour with an excursion to Ohrid in Macedonia). Your communication was great right from the start and the hotels booked were all comfortable and good, especially the one in Korca.

Although it was a fairly full-on trip for us four 60+ tourists we thoroughly enjoyed it and saw some great sights.

Our guide Erion was very knowledgeable and good fun too and an excellent safe driver on some of the rougher roads. He seemed to know everyone in Albania!

We found the Albanian people so warm and friendly and the food was very tasty and very cheap too. We felt very safe everywhere we went.

I can highly recommend your company. It was a great way to get an introduction to the country and culture.

Thi – UK – July 2016 (Classic Tour)

I just got back to London from my trip to Albania. I just wanted to say we had a great time and Ben was a great guide. Thank you so much for organizing and for responding to all my questions. Hopefully we will be back in Albania again in the future :-)

Adam Wall – UK – July 2016 (Day Trip)

My parents and I visited Albania this month (July 2016) and booked two private day trips from Tirana through Albania2go (www.albania2go.com). We wanted one day trip to Durres and Kruja, and another to Berat. I did my research and emailed about 7-8 different Albanian tour companies months before we were due to arrive, as I wanted to get not only the best price but also a feel for reliability.

Jorik from Albania2go spoke excellent English and was efficient in replying to my emails. I sent him quite a few and he was informative and speedy in replying which all helped to make me feel comfortable I was booking with a reliable tour company. The prices for the tours were also very competitive so it was a no brainer to book.

Once in Albania, we were picked up for both tours bang on time at 9am. Our guide, Ben, spoke very good English, was extremely friendly, always laughing and joking with us, whilst taking care to drive considerately in the mad Tirana traffic! He was very intelligent, had a lot of in-depth knowledge about the places we visited and was clearly passionate about his home country. It was never an issue pulling the car up somewhere for an amazing photo opportunity, or allowing us to go off-piste, like visiting the inside of the mosque in Durres. He also took us to the Fly Bar in Durres (www.flybardurres.com) which I'd never heard of but for the price of a coffee gave us the most amazing 360 panoramic view over the city and port...it really was a highlight! My dad had a double knee operation not so long ago so his mobility isn't great but Ben always went out of his way to help him down stairs and to offer alternative, less-exhausting ways for him to enjoy the places we visited whilst my mum and I did the opposite (like scaling the ramparts of Berat Castle, for example!)...very much a gentleman!

All in all, I'd like to say a big thanks to Jorik but, in particular, to Ben for making our trip to Albania so enjoyable and interesting. I couldn't recommend Albania2go more highly for their friendly, efficient, reliable and value-for-money service.

Ruth Martin del Campo – June 2016 (Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro)

I recently traveled with Geotours to the Balkans in June 2016 and know that our trip was planned/scheduled by Albania2Go.

I just want to let you know that you guys did an excellent job with hotels, locations, restaurants, etc.

But the best part of our trip was having Erion with us. He is a great guide, friendly, very knowledgeable, helpful and patient!

The Balkans and specifically Albania is a beautiful country that the world needs to know about. Definitely one of my favorite trips of all time!

Great job and thank you for such a great time.

Jos Stouffs & Jean-Marie Neirinck – Belgium – June 2016 (Classic Tour)

De trip was fantastisch. Migen heeft die nog extra weten te verbeteren door zijn know-how en ook door ons te integreren bij de lokale bevolking. Dus dit was voor ons beiden meer dan een rondreis. Dit was net wat we wilden, maar dit hadden wij niet durven vermoeden. Het had gans anders kunnen uitvallen, hadden wij misschien een andere driver gehad die alleen zijn programma zou gevolgd hebben.

Dus de trip was fantastisch, maar ook de door jou zorgvuldig uitgekozen hotels, waren uitstekend en soms zeer typisch... Proficiat !!

Mochten we ooit terugkomen of aanbevelingen moeten doen, dan kunnen wij niet beter doen dan jouw gegevens door te geven.

Gerard Riemen – Netherlands – April 2016 (Fly & Drive)

We zijn inmiddels weer terug in Nederland en kijken terug op een zeer geslaagde vakantie. We hebben genoten van de natuur, de mooie historische plekken waar we zijn geweest en de aardige mensen die we hebben ontmoet. Dank voor de goede organisatie. Alles was echt goed geregeld. De hotels waren, op één na, helemaal top. Ook met de auto is alles goed gegaan en nogmaals dank dat je zo snel hebt willen handelen met het probleempje met de lekke band.

Ik wil je graag twee zaken mee geven waar je wellicht voor andere klanten je voordeel mee kunt doen. Nu is het altijd lastig om kritische punten te benoemen omdat daardoor snel de indruk bestaat dat die punten dominant waren. Dat is dus niet zo.

Het hotel in Dhermi "The Ionian" was geen succes. En dan druk ik me mild uit. Dat had twee redenen. De eerste is dat het seizoen nog niet was begonnen en dus alles in Dhermi nog dicht was. We hadden het geluk dat er één restaurant open was waar we wat konden eten maar verder was echt alles gesloten. Dat geldt eigenlijk ook voor ons hotel, de tweede reden waarom het geen succes was. De eigenaren waren kennelijk een uurtje voor ons aangekomen en we kregen duidelijk het gevoel dat we als een last werden beschouwd. Ze waren reuze druk bezig met alles op te bouwen en zaken te repareren en te zorgen dat het hotel gedraaid kon gaan worden. Maar wij waren dus domweg te vroeg. Kortom, het zal best kunnen zijn dat als het seizoen volop draait dat het een aardig hotel is, maar nu waren ze ons liever kwijt dan rijk en waren we blij dat we toch iets als een ontbijt hebben kunnen krijgen.

Het andere punt waar ik je op wil wijzen betreft de toestand van de Albaneze wegen. Daar kan jij natuurlijk helemaal niets aan doen. Maar je hebt slechte wegen, heel slechte wegen en géén wegen. Dat laatste is zeker het geval op de zuidelijke panoramische route van Gjirokastra naar Korca. We hebben over de laatste 25 km naar Korca 2,5 uur gedaan omdat er domweg geen weg was. De strook land bezaaid met diepe kuilen en grote stenen die op de kaart inderdaad als weg staat afgebeeld is niet bedoeld voor een normale auto. Het is echt een wonder dat de Skoda het gehouden heeft. Mijn tip is dat je de reiziger hier voor waarschuwt en aangeeft dat je ook via de alternatieve route die over Griekenland loopt kunt reizen. Die hadden we oorspronkelijk overwogen maar we hebben ons laten leiden door jullie routebeschrijving.

Het goede nieuws is dat dit dan ook alle minpuntjes van de hele reis waren en dat we dus met een heel voldaan gevoeld terug kijken op de vakantie. Dank daarvoor.

Ed Shapiro – USA – April 2016 (Albania & Kosovo)

Hello Everyone, my name is Ed from Atlanta, Georgia, United States. I recently traveled on an 8 day trip to Albania (5 days), Kosovo (2 days) and Macedonia (1 day) using albania2go. My experience was first rate, A+ all the way. I had wanted to go to Albania, in particular, for some time but was a little worried about going there alone. Albania2go had some good reviews and I contacted the owner, Jorik, who immediately provided some sample itineraries based on my interests. He provided a fair price for the tour which he said would be conducted by an Albanian English speaking driver/tour guide. I decided to roll the dice. My guide, Migen, picked me up promptly at the airport and soon I was in a comfortable, safe 4-door sedan. Migen has spent time in the US and other Western countries so he provides a good cultural bridge between Albania and other societies. Of course he could explain the sites very well and has a strong command of history (besides being an excellent driver on the varying levels of Albanian roads) but he gives you a strong sense of being someone you can ask anything to and he "gets" what you're talking about. So we were able to discuss aspects of Albania and the Balkans over the ensuing days I might otherwise not have been able to. Meanwhile the logistics for the trip were smooth and without a hitch. The hotels in the various provincial cities-- a different place each night-- were clean, efficient and safe. Don't expect it to be of top notch Western quality but the hotels selected were very good places to stay. Everyone is quite friendly. Breakfast is included in all the hotels. Lunches and dinners were on my own but extremely affordable and of high quality. We kept to the itinerary of what to see and do but there were plenty of room and time for improvisation. The days were full but not overly packed and tiring. I would not have had the same great impressions without albania2go to make my trip and all the sites as superb as they were. Well done.

David Wolfe – UK – September 2015 (Classic Tour)

Our entire trip was really very good. What made the trip truly special was Gazi, who is immensely knowledgeable, seems to know everyone in Albania, knows the best restaurants and the most interesting places to visit, and is full of knowledge of the history of the various areas. Both Kathy and I enjoyed this very much. Albania is a beautiful country, obviously quite poor, and does not seem to have much industrial base. I hope that tourism will really take off and provide a growing economy and that your company will thrive in this venture. It is hard to be a small country when there are so many big and strong countries around that want pieces of your territory. History has certainly been hard on Albania. As a person interested in languages I find this also immensely fascinating.

Many thanks for everything.

Paul Burnside – UK – September 2015 (North of Albania)

We had a great time in the Balkans. Migen was a very good guide – some of his diversions, like the radio station in Lushnje and the monastery in Kosovo, were highlights of the trip. And he managed to get us on to a charter boat when the Komon ferry was cancelled. The accommodation was good and always seemed to be the best available. We particularly liked Hotel Tradita, where the service was excellent and the weather good enough to eat in the pretty courtyard.

Petra Peters – Switzerland – September 2015 (Grand Albania Tour)

"Just for me alone I have booked a tour with Albania2go. My wishes were seeing the culture (Illyrian, Hellenistic, Roman, Ottoman), walking (in the North, along the Ionian coastline and in the south) and learning about what Albania is. Jorik listened, understood and selected Beni as my English speaking guide and driver. This was an excellent choice. Ben was a very knowledgeable guide and a careful driver. He fulfilled all my wishes, sometimes even sensed, what I felt like next without me having to say it. Ben has an incredible memory of places and guided me perfectly, also, when we went off the beaten tracks to discover some more hidden treasures of Albania. He knows his country and its history and is enthusiastic to share that. In addition, Ben solved all the problems that I encountered such as “needed a non-standard charger for my camera battery” or “my optical glasses forgotten in the Panorama hotel in Kruja”…

I recommend Jorik's Albania2go and Beni as a guide for individualists and groups. I have recommended Jorik and Ben to friends of mine. And when I return to Albania, I will surely travel again with Albania2Go and with Ben as my guide.”