The back story
Wild Tirana: Mount Dajti and the Lakes
A national park of beech and pine forest above the city, a lake in the Grand Park and a reservoir in the mountains: the wild side of Tirana.
The natural side of Tirana, from Dajti National Park above the city and the Grand Park and its lake to Bovilla Lake and Butrint National Park in the far south, with a directory of the places in our guide and our regional long read on Balkan wildlife.
Tirana has a mountain on its doorstep. Mount Dajti rises to around 1,600 metres immediately east of the city, and on clear days it seems close enough to touch; the Dajti Ekspres cable car carries walkers up to its forests and meadows. In the city, the Grand Park wraps 289 hectares around an artificial lake.
This is a short, honest guide to Tirana's natural side: the mountain, the parks and the lakes. For Lake Ohrid, Butrint and the wildlife of the whole region, see our guides and our Balkans long read.
Tirana has its own mountain of forest and meadows, reached by cable car.
Dajti National Park
Dajti National Park, established in 1966, covers the slopes of Mount Dajti above the city. From the top of the Dajti Ekspres cable car, trails lead through beech and pine forest and meadows to viewpoints over Tirana and the plain. Inside the park, Bovilla Lake, a reservoir of 4.6 square kilometres, lies among the mountains north-east of the city.
The Grand Park
In the city, the Grand Park, 289 hectares around the artificial lake south of the University, is where Tirana comes to breathe: paths around the water, woods and the Botanical Garden at its southern end.
Feature: Mount Dajti
Few capitals have a national park so close: the cable car from the city's eastern edge rises to the top station in minutes, and from there the forest trails begin. Go on a clear morning for the view over Tirana to the sea, and walk into the beech woods for the quiet. In the far south of Albania, Butrint National Park keeps an ancient city among woods and lagoons.
Did you know? Dajti National Park was established in 1966 and covers the slopes of the mountain that rises straight from Tirana's eastern edge.
Our advice
Our advice: take the Dajti Ekspres up on a clear morning and walk the forest trails, with water and good shoes; circle the Grand Park lake at dusk. Keep to the marked paths, and take your rubbish home.
Why it's on our list
- Dajti National Park
- The Grand Park
- Feature: Mount Dajti
- Our advice
Location
The map comes from Google Maps, which sets its own cookies once it loads.
More in depth
A lake in the cityGrand Park & Artificial LakeThe big park south of the centre, around an artificial lake with paths, cafés and woods.
Tirana’s drinking waterBovilla LakeA turquoise reservoir 14 km north-east of Tirana inside Dajti National Park, with a popular viewpoint hike.The back storyMount Dajti and the Grand Park: Tirana’s green escapesA mountain national park reached by cable car and a lake in a forest park on the edge of the centre: Tirana is a city where nature is never far away.