I would have never expected Tirana, Albania to be as colorful and vibrant as it is. The city has fully embraced the concepts of street art and city art on almost every building in town. As you wander on foot, you’ll find so many surprising things to…

The more I travel through the Balkans, the more I want to continue exploring this particular area of Europe. After spending a day in Belgrade, Serbia, we hopped on a quick flight to Tirana, Albania. Much like Belgrade, this was a city I never expected to visit. Still, a friend's wedding in the Albanian countryside was the perfect excuse to explore all the different things to do in Tirana. We were particular fans of the wacky Pyramid of Tirana and the New Bazaar neighborhood but you’ll also be pretty mind-blown once you see the city’s love of art. Also, there are a couple of awesome day trips you can take if you choose to rent a car from the airport, including beaches and mountain hikes.

Get Inspired Creatively Just By Walking Around Tirana

I've seen some colorful cities, from Cinque Terre's orange and pink homes to Serbia's outdoor murals. But I can hands down say that Tirana is, BY FAR, the most vivid city I've ever seen. The locals have taken street art to a whole new level, seemingly adopting it as part of their national identity. As a full-time designer, I was in heaven! Exquisite paintings, carefully created down to the smallest detail, are depicted on building after building, stretching up across full facades, often wrapping 360 degrees around every inch of brick or concrete. The closest equivalent I've seen to this amount of public art is in Wynwood, Miami, but that was only one small neighborhood in Florida. The artwork in Tirana envelops the entire city, with much of the color concentrated in the Blloku neighborhood, one of the wealthier spots with a more global influence in shopping and restaurants.

This unique beauty of Tirana spurred from years of struggle. Throughout the 20th century, Albania was incredibly isolated, controlled by strict Communist dictators and regimes. The 1990s led to the fall of Communism and the growth of the metro cities in Albania. Pop culture from the rest of the world began to permeate society and artists felt the need to creatively express their views on politics and the tumultuous past they endured. In the 2000s, both individual artists and Tirana's government worked to cover up the Communist era's decrepit buildings, giving them new life with bold colors and dramatic imagery. It also helps that Albania's Prime Minister, Edi Rama, is an artist himself, who not only doodles daily but has exhibited his larger body of work at a gallery in New York City. My kind of politics! He also spent 11 years as Mayor of Tirana before becoming Prime Minister, so it's obvious the city holds a special place in his heart. He denounces large barricades and fences around political buildings and instead celebrates them with bold colors and patterns. Other official facilities in Albania, from doctor's offices to mosques, have embraced the colorful change as well. You never know what you'll see painted where. It makes exploring by foot even more fun and one of the easiest things to do in Tirana.

Spot as Many Artsy Electrical Boxes as You Can

The younger generation has continued to lead this artistic charge, bringing pop culture into their work. You can see this most prevalently on the electric boxes throughout the city. Most are adorned with illustrations of movies, tv shows, or comic book characters. I felt fortunate to walk past one painted with a character from my favorite film of all time, Donnie Darko (if you haven't seen it, go stream it now!), but there were also so many other references, including the Big Lebowski, Batman, and The Simpsons.

Check Out the Mysterious Pyramid of Tirana

As you walk the streets of Tirana, inevitably trying to find your favorite piece of street art, you have to check out the iconic Pyramid of Tirana. I love that such a strange landmark (it almost looks like an alien spaceship) is one of the most recognizable city spots. It's a bizarre sight: a literal pyramid built mostly of concrete that was once a museum dedicated to Enver Hoxha, Albania's long-time Communist leader. After years of debating its demolition post-Communism, the Pyramid still stands and is a popular place for local teens to hang out and skateboard. You may even see younger kids climbing up and sliding back down the gently inclined sides. Like everything else, the Pyramid has also been covered in graffiti, bringing some zest to the rather lifeless and other-worldly structure. This peculiar building definitely needs to top your list of things to do in Tirana, if just for the pictures alone.

Trek to the Skanderbeg Square

You can't visit a European city without checking out the main square in town. However, the Skanderbeg Square may be one of the largest ones you've seen, clocking in at almost 10 acres or 40,000 sq meters. Partially built from stone sourced from every corner of the country, all the prominent cultural institutions of Tirana reside nearby, including the National Library, National Bank, National Opera, National Historical Museum, City Hall and the Ministries of Agriculture, Economy, Energy, and Infrastructure. You'll also see the large, red Albanian flag proudly waving in the wind.

Next to the Skanderbeg Square is the entrance to the popular Bunkart 2 Museum, an art museum of countless rooms and winding halls built in one of the 750,000 underground concrete bunkers previous ruler Enver Hoxha constructed during his communist reign. These bunkers are literally in every corner of the country, many in Tirana itself. They were built to protect government officials and the secret police during a nuclear attack but were never used. If you see other bunkers during your Albanian travels, keep in mind that it’s one of thousands. Even the larger art museum, Bunkart 1, can be found in another bunker just outside of town.

Shop Your Way Through the New Bazaar Neighborhood

The New Bazaar neighborhood of Tirana ended up being one of our favorites. We only stumbled upon it because we were trying to get closer to the colorful buildings we could see in the distance on our walk (follow that mural!). The neighborhood is situated around a massive outdoor market where you can pick up fresh produce, fish caught directly from the sea, or local handmade trinkets. Restaurants and shops surround the outer edge of the market, comprising a part of Tirana's larger Old Town area. The colors in this neighborhood are much richer than other parts of Tirana with more elaborate patterns painted than actual images. You may also notice a lot of red and black used throughout these buildings color palettes to reflect the Albania flag.

Add a Day Trip to Your Tirana Schedule

Tirana is not only home to a rainbow of hues but has plenty of scenic views in the distance to match. Dajti Mountain, part of the larger Skanderbeg Mountain Range, can be seen from town, and a quick cable car ride from the edge of Tirana leads you towards the top of Dajti Mountain National Park. This easy day trip is the perfect way to escape the traffic and hectic lifestyle of the city. If you’ve rented a car and want to travel even further, you can check out the smaller towns of Berat (for picturesque mountain views) or Vlore (for a more beach vibe).

Overall, I was such a big fan of Tirana. The colors and detailed artwork left me so creatively inspired that I wanted to pull out my dusty acrylics and oils and get back into painting. If you have any artistic bone in your body, this city is for you. Pair that with one-of-a-kind architecture and bunkers every which way, and you'll have a very diverse trip. From the Pyramid of Tirana to to more unique neighborhoods, there are plenty of things to do. You may even stumble upon someone selling grilled street corn on the street, a scene similar to the popcorn stands I loved in Belgrade, Serbia. With Albania's tourist resurgence, and the ability to quickly drive to so many other gorgeous smaller towns in the country, it's time to add Albania to your travel bucket list!