Albanian Heartland — 3-Day Grand Tour

09:00 Hotel pick-up. Tirana city tour: Skanderbeg Square and the national hero's story, the Et'hem Bey Mosque with its rare frescoes, BunkArt 2 — the nuclear bunker under central Tirana, now an unflinching museum of Communist state surveillance and political imprisonment. Walk through Blloku — the sealed Communist quarter, now Tirana's most fashionable neighbourhood. 11:30 New Bazaar: artisan food stalls, gjizë cheese, mountain honey, fresh byrek. Lunch in the bazaar. 13:00 Drive to the Dajti Ekspres cable car station. Board the gondola — 4.5 km, 15 minutes, rising through beech forest to 1,613 metres. The views over Tirana are extraordinary. Free time at the summit: forest walks, the terrace restaurant, paragliders launching from the ridge. 16:00 Cable car down. Return to your Tirana hotel. Check in, freshen up. The evening is yours — your guide has restaurant recommendations in Blloku for every budget.