Montenegro & Albania - Magical Illyria

Fly to Dubrovnik, meet your tour manager and transfer across the border to your hotel in Bar, set overlooking the shores of the Adriatic, surrounded by lush vegetation and backed by forested mountains. Settle into your surroundings and, depending on your flight time, enjoy a first dinner.

Rest and relax in the hotel this morning, perhaps taking a morning dip or stroll along the promenade. Later, join the first of our included excursions and head to the nearby startling ruins of ancient Stari Bar, a timeless jumble of narrow streets and crumbling buildings filled with the echoes of history.

Today’s excursion sees you heading north along the pristine coast to Budva, one of the Adriatic’s oldest settlements. You’ll get the chance to experience the now-thriving holiday resort, with beautiful beaches and scenic surroundings. After an opportunity to explore Budva’s old town, you'll travel the short distance to the spectacular Bay of Kotor, sometimes called Southern Europe’s largest fjord. Enjoy a guided tour of UNESCO-listed Kotor itself, with its old town of narrow streets and ancient houses. After a wonderful day, during which there’ll be time for a leisurely lunch, you’ll return to your hotel past the impossibly beautiful island-village of Sveti Stefan. Connected to the mainland by a narrow causeway, this private island and resort is Montenegro’s most-photographed sight. You'll arrive back in Bar in plenty of time for dinner.

Today is free to enjoy the hotel and its surroundings. Hang out by the pool, enjoy drinks at the bar, make the most of the well-appointed wellness and spa area, or wander into the centre of Bar – where the colourful streets of the Turkish-influenced ‘new’ town are a delight. Don’t miss what is said to be the Mediterranean’s oldest olive tree. For a glimpse of Montenegrin history, pay a visit to the town museum in the former royal palace on the seafront. However you choose to spend your day, it is sure to prove hugely enjoyable.

Today’s included excursion sees you journey inland to Lake Skadar. Straddling the border between Montenegro and Albania, Lake Skadar is home to over 300 different species of birds and other wildlife, some protected and some unique to this beautiful place. Dotted with sleepy towns and villages, the lake shore is a haven of peace and tranquillity, and a rich source of Montenegrin folklore and legend. Don't miss the opportunity to enjoy an optional cruise on the lake - it really is the best way to see - followed by a lunch of traditional fish dishes in a local restaurant.

Perhaps saving the very best till last, today sees you cross the border to head into Albania, for a day of fascinating exploration. Famed as part of the Illyria of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, and for decades hidden behind a repressive cloak that largely prevented foreigners from visiting, Albania is a spectacularly beautiful country. Today’s brief glimpse, in addition to the rolling hills and mountain-backed landscape of the north, will include visits to hillside Krujë home of Albanian hero George Castriot ‘Skanderberg’, who is widely celebrated through the town. Take in the giant statue of the Lord of Albania, as he is known, and wander through the colourful stalls of the ancient Ottoman bazaar, with its handcrafted curios.Return to Bar at the end of a truly memorable day that may well whet your appetite for a longer visit.

The last day is left free for rest and relaxation, hopefully to soak up the sunshine on the beach, to make the most of the hotel and its amenities, or to enjoy a leisurely lunch in Bar, before a last dinner at the hotel.

Transfer back to the airport for the return flight to the UK.