Southern Europe: Montenegro, Corfu & Medieval Fortresses
Experience Overview
If medieval fortresses, scenic drives, and shimmering ocean waters tickle your adventure bone, this eight-day, hostel-based trip from Dubrovnik to Corfu will definitely hit the spot. Kick things off by making one of the most beautiful drives ever along the azure waters of Kotor Bay, stopping in the storied town of Perast in Montenegro. There, you’ll catch a glorious sunrise from Kotor Fortress before heading to Skadar Lake, the largest lake in Southern Europe. After you’ve swam, dived, and dried off, you’ll wind down your adventure by catching a ferry to Corfu with free time for doing your thing.
Highlights
- Take a scenic drive along Kotor Bay with a stop in Perast
- Walk to Kotor fortress at sunrise
- See Skadar Lake
- Indulge in all Tirana has to offer on a free day in the city
- Stop for lunch along coastal beaches en route to Saranda
- Take advantage of a free day in Corfu.
Trip Details
Product Code: 2144
Tour Type: Small Group
Accommodation: Basic
Transport: Private vehicle, boat, and walking.
Guide Language: English
Tour Operator:
G Adventures
Supplier Code: ECDCHW
Starts: Dubrovnik, Croatia
Finishes: Corfu, Greece
Duration: 8 days
Departures: Guaranteed
Physical Rating:
Light
Includes
Activities
- Your Welcome Moment: Welcome Moment - Meet Your CEO and Group
- Take a scenic drive along Kotor Bay
- Walk to Kotor fortress at sunrise
- See Skadar Lake
- Enjoy a half day guided tour in Tirana
- Take advantage of a free day in Corfu
- All transportation between destinations
- Free time in major cities throughout experience
Accommodation
- Hostels (5 nts), Hotels (2 nts).
- 7 breakfasts
Transport
- Private vehicle, boat, and walking.
Group Leader
- CEO (Chief Experience Officer) throughout.
Price
Price per person: (Double Occupancy) CAD $1,700 ($212 /day)
Itinerary
Day 1: Dubrovnik
Arrive at any time, find a comfy spot in the hostel to relax or go out to explore before meeting fellow Roamies in the evening.
After your Welcome Meeting, set out on a walk through Dubrovnik's Old Town. See Dubrovnik Cathedral, Lovrijenac Fort, a Franciscan Monastery, and feel the vibrant energy of this Unesco protected walled city.
Day 2: Dubrovnik/Kotor
Pull out those travel journals and cross another country off your bucket-lists today because it's time to leave Croatia behind and give some love and attention to Montenegro. All of the boxes will be checked today, beautiful sites, quaint villages, and your first glimpse of Kotor Bay, a unique fjord of the Adriatic.
You'll check out the historic village of Perast. Think marvellous buildings, postcard-like churches, and a romantic waterfront that seems to feature in every painting of European sailing towns. Rest of the day you get to hang out with your super cool and fun CEO. They will take you on a highlights walk of UNESCO protected Kotor and show you places like the Old City, St. Tryphon Cathedral, and the famous Clock Tower. Don't let the fun end here! Make a plan and keep hanging out and see if your CEO can accompany you to a few hole in the wall places that will make your time here truly unique.
Day 3: Kotor
Amazing views and a magical experience are on the menu for today. It all starts as the sun rises over the land on a morning walk to the San Giovanni Fortress. Grab some fun group photos with your CEO as you stand atop the city and revel in the views.
The rest of the day belongs to you. Explore, bop around, and experience Kotor as you wish. Even if that means laying low at the hostel with a few friends, we won't judge, in fact, the best moments often happen when you least expect them. Cat lovers rejoice! Because Kotor has their very own Cat Museum you can visit. Not feeling an afternoon of felines? That's ok, walk into the impressive interior of St. Nicholas' Church, hop on a boat and visit Our Lady of the Rocks, or book an excursion to Blue Cave for a bucket-list worthy swim spot.
Day 4: Kotor/Tirana
Another day, another dollar. Just kidding, it's free to make awesome memories with your friends and it's guaranteed that you will as you travel along the Montenegrin coastline towards Tirana, Albania. Make a pit stop to St Stefan, part island, part luxury resort. It's a great place to get out, stretch those legs and pretend you have just arrived on your private yacht like most guests do. From there you'll get to visit Dolphin-shaped Lake Skadar on the border of Albania and Montenegro. Explore the area surrounded by steep mountains, island monasteries, and crystal-clear waters by foot.
Finish the day in Tirana with a half day guided walking tour through the streets featuring Skanderbeg Square!
Day 5: Tirana
The day is yours! Take advantage of free time and get to know Tirana. One of Europe's best-kept secrets, this city hardly ever makes travel bucket lists. Tirana boasts a wide range of optional activities that are guaranteed to charm you. Opt to hike through national parks in the area, or maybe explore history museums that unveil Tirana's turbulent past. Check out food markets full of local cuisine and sweets while you admire the local landmarks of this special place.
Day 6: Tirana/Corfu
It's no secret that travelling is exhausting! Build up that energy with breakfast in the hostel then drive along the coastal route to Saranda known fondly as the “Albanian Riviera”. Strap those sea legs on as you catch the ferry from Saranda to the island of Corfu where once you arrive you'll have free time to grab a drink, explore Corfu, and laugh it up with your pals at the hostel.
Day 7: Corfu
Wake up in paradise and know that the choice is yours today and there's nothing holding you back! Take a taxi and explore the UNESCO-listed town, wander by the laundry swaying in the sea breeze and search for a place to grab lunch and a cocktail or two.
Searching for something more exciting and unique? Chill out on an olive oil tasting experience, or learn about bees and honey production in Corfu. Looking for more adventure? Visit an ancient monastery on steep cliffs overlooking the azure waters. Want to just relax? Lay out beachside working on your tan and swimming in the refreshing waters. Turns out you really can't go wrong on this Greek island. Tonight, opt to go out with the group to Corfu Town and hit up some of the best nightlife spots. The transfer to and from the hostel is included if you choose to go.
Day 8: Corfu
Say goodbye to your Roamies and depart at any time, or keep the adventure going by heading south for some good times and epic views in Greece.
Similar Tours
Tour Operator
G Adventures
G Adventures is an operator of small-group escorted tours. It is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with 28 offices worldwide. It offers more than 700 itineraries in more than 100 countries, and carries 200,000 travelers from 160 countries each year.
In Business Since 1990
Reviews
Lauren T. - Traveled, September 2023
it's a gret way to meet people, and if you have never solo travelled before. It takes some of the hassle of stressing about accommodation and transportation out of the way. It comes down to the CEO though. If your CEO is not very involved then you have to make llans for each day about what you want to see.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/25/2023
Abdullah I. - Traveled, September 2023
The quality of hostels was awful.. the trip could have been planned out better.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/25/2023
Albany V. - Traveled, September 2023
I think it would wholly depend on which friend or family member I was telling. There were a range of pros and cons I experienced on this type of tour, which were vastly different from what I've experienced through G before. As always, I could see the great efforts that have gone into preparing and researching for a tour and I'm aware from the CEO of this trip that this is the first season this particular tour has been running, which considering that's the case I was pleasantly surprised by how well everything came together. Where this tour type differs though is there is a much bigger group than on a classic tour for example, and with this tour being a leg that was part of a larger/longer tour, this was a little jarring. What became clear too is that a lot of those on the tour had taken the information provided at face value and not done a huge amount of research - some didn't even know what place we were going to next for example. Where this was a struggle was the amount of surprise/angst there was at the conditions of the hostels and length of the travelling among a lot of the group. It was a shame to see so many of my fellow travellers get so het up about that, where as if they',d researched and read everything you provided in great detail, they may have been a lot more used to/expecting of what was to come. I know some people who love this sort of travelling and others who really don't, so this is why I'd share these particular caveats with my recommendation
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/18/2023
Katie A. - Traveled, September 2023
Good for younger people or those who don't mind sharing larger rooms etc however not everyone would want to stay in hostels
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/18/2023
Matthew S. - Traveled, September 2023
The shared dorms arent for everyone
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/18/2023
Chloe O. - Traveled, September 2023
If someone enjoys meeting a lot of new people and being on the go, this is the holiday for them
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/11/2023
Jennifer F. - Traveled, August 2023
I had a great experience but there were things that I would change
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 08/21/2023
Anna B. - Traveled, August 2023
Every Trip depends on the People, so it's not a 10, everyone needs to decide for themself but my trip was great so i would recommend it.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 08/21/2023
Charlotte H. - Traveled, August 2023
I've always enjoyed this style of trip and I think G Adventures do it very well.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 08/21/2023
Chloe S. - Traveled, August 2023
When choosing this style of travel between the main businesses available I personally prefer travelling in the smaller groups with G Adventures. I also appreciate the company is less about party and more about experience. I did, however, prefer the previous trips I did that were capped at 16. 24 is getting to be too many for me personally
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 08/14/2023
Rhian B. - Traveled, August 2023
Made it easy to travel round and to stay in good accommodations, it also helped to meet like-minded people
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 08/14/2023
Lise B. - Traveled, July 2023
I would recommend it to anyone who wants to visit a place that is remote or (like Albania) does not have a wellconnected public transport. The transports offered by G Adventures add a lot of value. However I did not give it a 10 because off the 7 days there were 2 very long travel days (8 hrs or more) that we could have doen with overnights transfers to maximize the time spent at the destinations.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 07/31/2023
Christia H. - Traveled, July 2023
I enjoyed the tour and made great friends on the trip. However, I wasn't impressed with the lack of organisation throughout the trip nor was I impressed with the behaviour of the guide.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 07/24/2023
Sandra B. - Traveled, July 2023
Hostel Standards can vary a lot from country to country so people should be made aware on what to expect when staying in hostels
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 07/24/2023
Peter B. - Traveled, October 2023
Overall, I was pleased with the structure of this trip, however, there are a couple things that would have improved my experience. Firstly, I think G Adventures should make it more clear that the tour is picking up an dropping people off throughout the tour as this transient structure can make it difficult for normal group dynamics to happen. I didn't know that I was joining a tour halfway through and that many members had already been traveling and bonding together. I would also recommend having an extra day built in at various cities where there is a lot to see and do as it was exhausting packing up and moving nearly every day.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 10/23/2023
Emma B. - Traveled, October 2023
It was the first time I had stayed in hostels so it was very different to what I'm used to
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 10/23/2023
Leah B. - Traveled, October 2023
The overall trip was very fun filled with lots of activities in each city that I wouldn't normally have been able to do or known to do if traveling by myself, plus getting to meet the wonderful CEO and other travelers is a bonus!
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 10/23/2023
Katelyn M. - Traveled, October 2023
The hostels were dirty, not enough bathrooms, no toilet paper, etc
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 10/09/2023
Flavia G. - Traveled, October 2023
The overall trip was good. However the quality of hostels was questionable. If booking this trip, one should be aware that you'll be sharing a dorm with up to 15 other people and only one bathroom available. The hostel in Albania was the worst one in the overall trip. 12 people in a dorm, 1 working bathroom, dirty bedding, rude staff and the door into the door was see through so no privacy into the dorm. During the trip I also noted there was a gap between the quality of rooms the girls were getting when compared to the guys dorms. Often they had a max of 4 people per dorm. For example, in Albania while all the girls stayed in a dorm for 12 people, the guys had twin room. When I originally booked the trip I did not realise the trip I was booking was part of a bigger trip. So some people had been travelling together for weeks already. This meant that they were quite close at this stage and didn't make an effort to include new travellers joining the tour. But overall this was an enjoyable trip and you got a small taste of each of the countries! it's also a great way to meet other like-minded travellers.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 10/09/2023
Sinead C. - Traveled, September 2023
I would recommend this experience and had a great time away. That being said there some small elements that could be improved that I think would make it even more enjoyable and have a 10 rating.
Source: Tour operator Submitted: 09/25/2023
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