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Car rental in Tirana is the starting point for almost every Albanian road trip. TIA is the country's only international airport, so even travellers heading to the Riviera or to the mountains of Theth pick up their car here. The airport sits 17 km from the city centre — 20–30 minutes on the SH60 motorway outside rush hour.
Tirana is cheaper and offers more choice than any other city in Albania. The trick: pick the car up the day you leave the capital, not the day you land.
Tirana also has the lowest rental prices in Albania: economy from €5–10 a day in low season and €15–30 in July–August. And it has the largest pool of automatics in the country, because international chains and the bigger local suppliers cluster around TIA — Skanderbeg Square, Blloku and Kavaja Street office locations all draw on the same airport fleet.
You don't really need a car in Tirana itself
It is a phrase you hear from local guides, and there is truth in it. Skanderbeg Square has been pedestrian since 2017, Blloku is a maze of café streets with the worst parking in the country, and Bunk'Art, the Et'hem Bey Mosque and the Pyramid are all walkable or five minutes by taxi. If you have one or two days in the capital, a car adds more headaches than it saves.
The standard scenario is to pick the car up on the day you leave for the road trip. Land at TIA, take a €20–25 taxi to the hotel, spend a day or two in the city, then collect the car on the day you set off for Berat, Krujë or the coast. Most of our partners support this pattern with both TIA and city-centre pickup on Kavaja Street.
A couple from Manchester booked TIA pickup for Saturday and a hotel in Blloku for Thursday and Friday. They walked to Bunk'Art on Friday and took the LUNA Express back from Skanderbeg on Saturday morning — saving two rental days and the parking guesswork.
An alternative to a taxi is the LUNA Express bus from TIA to Skanderbeg Square: 400 lek, runs around the clock, around 30 minutes' drive. It pulls in right behind the National History Museum, a five-minute walk from most central hotels.
Baic Senova D50 in Albania
The pick up and dropp off very quick, the lady who was dealing with us was amazing Very helpful so 5 stars for her The car itself - and I mentioned this to her - we didn’t have an AC and with the heat was horrible It wasn’t clean and they knew about it But it wasnt mentioned to us when we picked up the car And I think this a big minus considering you are in a hot country So this was not great considering the price we paid for the car
Skoda Fabia in Albania
It was a really good expérience! The person was really kind and informing. The car was great so we loved it! Thanks!! And a big thanks again! Your way of working was really great. The fact that we could pay cash was what made us choose for this kind of company. I think that’s the same a lot of the time for other traveller’s of clients in general! So keep up this amazing service! 😇
Hyundai Accent Blue in Albania
everything was okay with the car. Not any problems. Thank you very much!
Mercedes-Benz ML250 in Albania
The Mercedes was old and had driven 300.000 km plus, but okay, the price was good. We had problems with the engine. At a certain point we couldn't go faster than 60 on a road going up, where everyone drove at least 80. It seemed the car had an issue no one understood. Probably overheated. So from then on, we kept the airco switched off. That helped. But it was 38-40 degrees, so airco would have been very welcome. Same day we had a flat tire. Someone came to help us, just a guy on the road, very nice. A guy from the company later came to have the spare flat tire fixed, which was good. At the end of our holidays, when we delivered the car back, the guy that picked it up, started to make a problem about us not having washed the car and that in this state, he couldn't judge if the paint was damaged somewhere. He never told us before about any carwash. He said it was in the contract but that was only in Albanian language. He tried to keep our €100 deposit for this (to wash a car, really??), so we had a terrible argue about this, with him. The one that rents these cars in the website (Aldi) is a really nice guy. He talked this man out of the arguement and finally we got our deposit back.
Ford Fusion in Albania
Everything was fine.
Volkswagen Caddy in Albania
All was perfect
Skoda Scala in Albania
It was great
Volkswagen Golf 5 in Albania
It was perfect ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Fiat Punto in Albania
It was all good! Good service Thanks!
Volkswagen Golf 6 in Albania
everything was good nice people And good ca
Baic Senova X25 in Albania
was fine. Fine car.
Hyundai Accent in Albania
My experience with LocalCarHires was excellent. The rental process went very smoothly, and the car was in great condition. Artur, the rental agent, was incredibly helpful throughout the entire process. I will definitely use LocalCarHires again for my next trip. Highly recommended
Citroen C3 Aircross in Albania
Everything was ok. The car was clean and well treated.
Where to drive from Tirana: routes and day trips
Tirana sits in the geographical centre of Albania, so almost every tourist site is an hour or 90 minutes away. Berat — the UNESCO "city of a thousand windows" — is 1 hour 30 by SH4. Krujë, the Skanderbeg fortress town, is one hour by SH27. The Durrës beaches are 40 minutes on the toll-free AK1 motorway.
For something quicker, Mount Dajti is right behind the city: 15 minutes to the Dajti Express cable car, walking trails on top and views over Tirana from the terrace café. For Lake Bovilla or Theth in the Albanian Alps, plan an overnight — they are 2.5–3 hours of mountain switchbacks from the capital.
The most popular long route is Tirana — Berat — Sarandë — Gjirokastër. Comfortable pace is 5–7 days. Most travellers pick up at TIA and drop in Sarandë, or loop back to TIA.
The new Llogara tunnel, opened in 2024–2025, cuts the drive to the Albanian Riviera by roughly an hour compared with the old pass. That changes the calculus on a one-way booking: Sarandë is now a realistic same-day pickup-and-drive from TIA.
TIA arrival, debit OK, cash OK, zero hold
3 zones, SMS pay, Skanderbeg garage, Blloku tip
From €350/mo, nomads, relocants, NGO staff
AK1 is free, north A1 tolled, cameras live
Walk Tirana, drive the road trip, save days
Picking up the car at TIA airport and in the city
TIA is open round the clock and lies 17 km north-west of the city centre. After the arrivals exit the rental desks are on the right; some of our partners meet you with a sign at the door or by the car park. The paperwork takes 10–15 minutes plus the walk-around.
In rush hour (7:00–9:30 and 16:00–18:30) the TIA — centre drive takes 40+ minutes instead of the usual 25. If your flight lands in those windows and you're heading to a hotel, the LUNA Express bus to Skanderbeg Square is more sensible — pick the car up at the Kavaja Street office the next day. Hotel delivery within Tirana is free with some partners and €10–20 with others.
A guest landed at TIA at 02:40 with a delayed connection from Vienna. The flight number had gone through WhatsApp before take-off, so the partner was waiting at the kerb. Five minutes of paperwork on the bonnet, then a quiet 20-minute drive to a hotel near Blloku — the LUNA Express was long stopped for the night.
Always do a walk-around at pickup: photos of every panel, wheel and window with a timestamp. At drop-off this defuses most disputes about damage and saves a fight over the €500 deposit hold.
Rates in Tirana vary throughout the year depending on the season and the rental length.
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How expensive is renting a car in Tirana: average daily rates for a one-week car rental, across all car classes.
Why travellers pick TakeCars in Tirana
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The largest pool of automatics in Albania
International chains and the bigger local suppliers cluster around TIA, so a Skoda Fabia AT, Ford Focus AT or an automatic SUV is easiest to book here.
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"No deposit" tariffs as standard
In the Tirana and TIA catalogue we flag the no-deposit option separately, for travellers who'd rather not block €1,000 on a card.
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Italian, Polish, Greek, German and English-speaking managers
Tirana hosts the most multilingual partner roster in the country — from Italian families using TIA as a Balkan gateway to German road-trippers.
Parking and traffic in Tirana
Central Tirana has three paid parking zones run by Tirana Parking. Zone A (centre) is roughly 100 lek per hour, Zone B 40 lek, Zone C 20 lek. Hours: weekdays 7:30–20:00 plus Saturday morning. Free at night, on Sundays and on public holidays. Pay through the Tirana Parking or ParkAlbania apps — the SMS option to 50500 only works with an Albanian SIM.
Where to park in the centre
The safest bet is the underground car park beneath Skanderbeg Square: 500 lek per 24 hours, security 24/7, entrance via Kavaja Street. The Toptani mall garage is another option. For dinner in Blloku, take a taxi: there is no municipal parking and private spots fill up by early evening in summer.
A family rented a Skoda Octavia for the Tirana-Berat leg. Their navigation kept trying to cut across Skanderbeg Square, pedestrianised since 2017. Two loops and a polite policeman later, they learned to ignore the prompt and swing round via Kavaja Street.
Rush hour in Tirana runs 7:30–9:30 and 16:00–18:00. The hardest stretches are the Outer Ring (Unaza) and Durrës Street — add 20 minutes to your usual estimate, especially on a Friday afternoon when half the capital heads for the coast.
Frequent Questions
17 km on the SH60 motorway, normally 20–30 minutes. In rush hour (7:00–9:30 and 16:00–18:30) plan for 40+ minutes — this is the busiest stretch in the capital. At night the road is empty and the drive takes around 20 minutes. The alternative is the LUNA Express bus to Skanderbeg Square (400 lek, runs round the clock).
Usually no. Skanderbeg has been pedestrian since 2017 and the main sights — Blloku, Bunk'Art, the Et'hem Bey Mosque, the Pyramid — are walkable or five minutes by taxi. It is smarter to pick the car up on the day you leave for Berat, Sarandë or Mount Dajti. That saves two or three rental days and the parking headache in Blloku.
The SMS option to 50500 only works with a local SIM (Vodafone, One, ALBtelecom). Tourists are left with the Tirana Parking and ParkAlbania apps, which run on any phone with a bank card. The simplest workaround is a covered car park where you pay the attendant in cash.
The underground car park beneath Skanderbeg Square: 500 lek per 24 hours, security round the clock, entrance via Kavaja Street. Alternatives are the Toptani mall garage and the municipal lots on Bajram Curri Boulevard and Rruga Elbasanit. Never leave the car in front of private garages — towing is fast and costly.
Yes. Blloku is a fashionable bar and restaurant quarter with narrow streets and no municipal lots. In summer finding a space is close to impossible. For dinner in Blloku, either take a taxi or park near Air Albania Stadium — it's a 10-minute walk from there.
No. The AK1 (38 km) is fully toll-free — the main artery of the capital. There is no vignette. The only toll in Albania is the A1 "Rruga e Kombit" towards Kosovo, more than 100 km north of Tirana.
Yes. Fixed speed cameras run on AK1; fines are sent automatically to the rental company, which forwards them to you with a €15–30 admin fee. The standard limit on the main stretch is 110 km/h; in roadworks it drops to 80 without warning. Enforcement tightens on Friday evenings and on Sundays.
No. Standard CDW does not cover unpaved roads or off-tarmac tracks. This matters for travellers leaving Tirana for Theth, Valbona or Lake Bovilla: the SH21 to Theth includes unpaved sections, and some mountain trails are explicitly forbidden in the contract. Take Super CDW if your route includes the Alps.
4–5 hours on SH4 and SH8 along the Albanian Riviera, around 280 km. The new Llogara tunnel opened in 2024–2025 saves about an hour over the old pass. In summer add another hour for beach traffic around Vlorë and Himarë and the occasional police checkpoint.
For days inside the city, pick a compact hatchback — easier on parking and in traffic. For switchbacks to Theth, Valbona or Lake Bovilla, take a diesel crossover with an automatic gearbox. If your route mixes both beach and mountains, a Skoda Octavia or Hyundai Tucson is the comfortable middle ground.
Two reasons. First, Tirana and TIA carry the highest competition in the country — over 100 suppliers — which keeps prices down all year. Second, Tirana isn't a beach resort, so there is no peak-season markup. Coastal cities cost 25–35% more in July and August.
Yes. Long-term rental is popular among remote workers and longer-stay visitors. From 28+ days the discount is 20–35% off the daily rate. Economy starts around €350 a month, mid-size with an automatic gearbox €500–700. The contract is signed at the partner's office with month-to-month auto-renewal.
Yes. Tirana hosts the most multilingual roster in the country: among our partners you'll find managers fluent in Italian, Polish, Greek, German and English. The mix reflects the airport's role as a regional hub for travellers from across Europe.
Top three: Berat — UNESCO "city of a thousand windows", 1 hour 30 on SH4. Krujë fortress with the Skanderbeg statue — one hour on SH27. Durrës beaches — 40 minutes on AK1, easy with kids. For something active, Mount Dajti with the cable car: 15 minutes from the centre, then 15 minutes up.
TIA operates round the clock and almost all our partners adapt to night arrivals. Send the flight number in WhatsApp before take-off and a representative meets you in the arrivals hall or the car park. The drive to the centre is empty at night and takes around 20 minutes. The night-pickup surcharge is usually €10–20.