Bovilla Lake has become the thing to do when visiting Tirana. With vivid blue water backed by jagged mountain peaks, it’s incredibly photogenic (a bit like an Albanian Roy’s Peak), so it’s easy to see why it’s become such a popular spot. The hike to reach it takes you along the edge of a cliff which is often made to look a bit daredevil on social media. In reality it’s nowhere near as precarious as it looks, though it’s still very scenic.
How you choose to visit will probably come down to whether your top priority is cost or lack of crowds and we cover all of that and more in this guide.
Here’s everything you need to know to plan your perfect Bovilla Lake trip.
Tips for visiting Bovilla Lake
How to avoid the crowds
Over the last five years Bovilla Lake has become more and more popular and it now receives over 1000 visitors a day in season. And the season runs for much longer than it used to, a guide told us 1000 people a day were still visiting in October which would have been unheard of even a couple of years ago.
The majority of people visit between 10.30am and 3pm (ish), therefore coming outside these times is going to be best if you’re crowd averse. Unfortunately for us our taxi picked us up much later than planned so we got there around 10am.
At this time a few groups were already there but not many. By 11am it was a literal congo line up and down the track and there were queues to try and pass people. The track is narrow so this is a bit of a pain and does detract from the experience.
My advice would be to arrive by 9am and even earlier if you want to be alone or close to. For that I would even consider a sunrise mission, though anytime before 9am should be pretty quiet if you don’t have to be totally alone.
Alternatively you can come much later in the day but the light generally isn’t as good so if that bothers you, you are better off coming early.
To tour or not to tour (and what does hiking vs no hiking mean)
By far the cheapest way to visit Bovilla Lake is on one of the numerous guided tours departing from Tirana or Durres. These group tours start from as little as €11.50 (a little over 1000 Lek). Some are a little more and include a swimming stop or other nearby activities. If you want something more adventurous you can also take one of the ATV tours.
The upside to a tour is it’s unbeatable value and everything will be taken care of for you.
The downside is that you will usually be taken at the same time as all the other tour groups so it will be crowded. Although this more expensive tour takes you for sunrise which would be extremely quiet.
It is worth noting many tours will not drive the full road to the final parking point so you’ll need to hike up the dusty road which at peak times will have vehicles passing you and kicking up the dust. If you’re visiting in the warmer months, expect it to be a hot sweaty hike as it’s all uphill and there isn’t much shade.
The tours that will take you to the last point a vehicle can get to say ‘no hiking’. This doesn’t mean literally, everyone has to hike the final 380m to the top. It simply means you won’t have to hike the road.
You can check the latest prices and availability for tours from Tirana or Durres on Viator using the button below. Many offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before you go, making it a risk free option as the tours can sell out in peak season.
Hiring a driver
If you don’t want to take a tour you’re only real option is to hire a private driver.
This is easy to do and gives you full flexibility but obviously costs more. We messaged loads of drivers on Facebook and the best price we were offered was €60 (5500 Lek). This is to get to the restaurant beside the trailhead, you could pay a fair amount less to take a taxi to the bottom of the gravel switchbacks and walk up!
Considering with traffic (which there almost always is in Tirana) the journey time is around one hour each way and the driver also waits for you for a couple of hours, this seemed like a fair price.
Our driver’s name was Leo and he was great, with perfect English and a laid back attitude as well as a great car. Although he did pick us up late (due to traffic) I would still recommend him.
If you want to book, his Whatsapp is +355 69 794 0579.
Why it’s unlikely you can take your rental car
While I am sure one probably exists we are yet to find a rental car company that will let you drive this road. The first car we hired in Albania listed only two roads we couldn’t drive on, this was one of them!
We hired three different cars throughout our trip and none of them allowed it and we haven’t yet met a soul who was able to drive their rental car. If you’re thinking about doing it anyway know that some rental car companies have installed GPS trackers in their cars and the fine for driving this road starts at €300!
If by some miracle you can take your car then it’s worth knowing that once you turn off the main road you have 7.5km to go to reach the restaurant which is the final parking point.
The first section of unsealed road is flat and though potholed, it’s easy to drive on. There is then a paved section as it begins going uphill before you reach the steep gravel switchbacks (without crash barriers).
The switchbacks aren’t terrible but you would need to be a pretty confident driver, especially considering it’s a two way road. If you decide to drive it we would definitely recommend doing so early or late so that you don’t need to pass any of the tour buses or ATV tours.
What the hike is actually like
Stats
Distance: 380m each way
Elevation gain: 60m
Time: 10-15 minutes
The hike to the the viewpoint from the final parking area is less than 400m long, or around 400m if you want to climb the ‘Instagram rock’. The first 100m is on a flat gravel path and the rest of the way it’s uphill.
First on a dirt track before you have around 130m on a rocky path. It’s not a scramble, but it’s uneven and requires a bit of care with footing.
You will then reach the first metal staircase, this helps you go steeply uphill on good even steps with a handrail.
There are gaps where you can see down into the drop below so it wouldn’t be much fun for vertigo sufferers, but otherwise it makes quick easy work of the climb.
There’s a brief rocky section again and then you’ll see a floating staircase off to the right. This leads to a small cave and a bit of a view, but it’s nowhere near as good as the view from the official lookout platform.
There’s a few more stairs and then a bit more uneven rocky track before you reach the metal viewing platform.
The lookout offers a great view but so does the rest of the rock platform, so if there’s a queue to take pictures you’re not really missing out by not queueing (although from our experience everybody does!).
The Instagram Rock
Off to the right of the rock platform there is a prominent rocky outcrop and this is a fab spot to take photos. Far fewer people climb out to the rock so it’s also a quieter more peaceful spot.
We had it to ourselves for about 15 minutes, later into the morning it would almost certainly get crowded though.
To get to the rock you walk down the narrow gravel path and then the final couple of metres to the top is a rock scramble.
There are very good hand and footholds and the rock is grippy when dry making it pretty easy. There are a few different routes you can go so you just pick the one that looks easiest to you.
Once on top the rock is very wide, though a touch polished so you have to be a little bit careful. The view is amazing as you are much closer to the jagged mountains whereas the main viewpoint is more about the lake.
From the rock you get the best of both worlds, as well as it feeling quieter and more natural.
You can step out onto the further nobbly rock which looked quite easy to do but is more exposed and I decided not to.
Everyone else I saw who later climbed up did take their pictures there, but just go carefully and avoid it if it’s been wet or there are high winds.
If you want a good birds-eye view over the rock there is a little track that climbs up from the main rock platform to a knoll (this is where are photos are taken from, they aren’t taken with a drone).
I think this is also the end of the official trail as we didn’t see a path beyond this point.
Swimming at Bovilla Lake
Since Bovilla Lake provides Tirana’s drinking water, swimming is prohibited. However, you can swim along the river beside the road that leads up to the gravel switchbacks and the river here doesn’t run dry, even in summer.
A gorgeous spot our driver showed us had shimmering emerald water and a pretty waterfall, you can find it by the rickety wooden bridge at these coordinates: 41.435741, 19.861625.
The downside is that access here is steep and there is no path, you need to climb sharply down the hillside. It would only take a minute or two, but it’s not what I would call easy.
There are other spots you could swim along the river further downstream which are probably not quite as beautiful but access might be easier, so if you don’t like the look of this one then you could scout a bit further down.
Where to stay in Tirana
We’ve stayed in four different places in Tirana so far, but the ones we’d recommend are:
Your Spot Apartments
These little apartments are great value for money and have everything you need if you want to self cater. Our apartment was very modern and clean with a comfy bed and black out blinds. I repeat black out blinds. The one and only time we had them across 2.5 months in Albania (since writing this, we have stayed in their other apartment and this one had a curtain, but a very good curtain that blocked out the light, so no issues there either!).
The bathroom is little but the shower is good and there’s a washing machine. It’s also fairly central, we walked into the city but that might not be for everyone and taxis were cheap.
We stayed before we picked up our hire car the first time which is easier as there’s no dedicated parking. However, the second time we Whatsapped the owner and they kindly saved a space for us so we could park free of charge right outside the apartment.
In terms of noise, it is generally very quiet, especially considering you are in Tirana. I am very noise sensitive and I was very happy here.
You can check out the reviews and prices here:
Hotel Restaurant Emblema
So this one is actually located around 25 minutes from the city in the small village of Petrelë and is therefore only suitable if you have a car and you’re looking for a peaceful place away from the lights and noise of the city. We stayed here because Your Spot was full and we were fed up of the noise in Tirana’s city centre and preferred peace over proximity.
You’ll have mountain views and the sound of tinkling cow bells rather than car horns and revving! It’s a traditional stone house with character and rooms vary in size but even the smallest (which is the one we stayed in) had a large comfy bed and a shower with a door - no bathroom flooding here!
The internet was very fast which we didn’t expect for the location and the breakfast was the best we had in Tirana - the yogurt and fruit was particularly good.
The food in general was good and comes from the surrounding farms. It’s also very close to my personal favourite restaurant in Tirana, Fustanella Farm, which is a must do for great food and stunning views.
My only word of caution if you’re noise sensitive like me is to ask for a room on the right side of the hotel (not facing the castle) as there was a bit of a buzz on that side, coming from an electrical box or something, whereas on the other side it was quiet and suitable for a complete noise-phobe like me!
You can read the reviews and check prices here:
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