Visiting Divjakë with kids is fun! Divjakë is a village located in western Albania near the coast. Divjakë is known to many tourists because of the Divjakë-Karavasta National Park that you can visit here. Divjakë is located 5 kilometers away from the Adriatic coast, which is why the area also offers excellent beach access. Divjakë is a very quiet and nice place to visit with kids and again very different from northern and southern Albania. We visited this destination during our tour of Albania with the family and in this blog we list the best children’s activities in Divjakë.
Best travel time Divjakë with kids
Divjakë has a Mediterranean climate with warm summers and mild winters. You will have the best weather in Divjakë during the months of June through September. In the high season, the temperature can reach above 30 degrees and then it can be very hot in this destination. Despite staying in Divjakë during the high season, we saw few tourists here.
So this is also a great destination to visit during this period to escape the crowds that you do have in many of the coastal towns such as Sarandë and Ksamil.
Transportation to Divjakë
Divjakë is best reached by car. From Tirana, the distance is about 85 kilometers. This will take you about 1.5 hours by car although the time can increase in high season due to heavy traffic. You can also easily reach Divjakë by car from southern Albania.
Most tourists arrive in Albania at Tirana airport. At the airport in Tirana, you can easily rent a car and then take a nice tour of Albania. You can rent a car at the Tirana airport through Sunny Cars. This is a rental company with a comprehensive insurance package and good other terms and conditions. For more information on renting a car at Tirana airport, take a look here.
You can also take a cab from Tirana to Divjakë. It is advisable to compare multiple cab companies because prices can vary greatly from one cab company to another. The cost of a trip to Divkakë will be between 8000 and 10000 lek (€80 – €100). Therefore, it may be cheaper to rent a car if you want to see several places in Albania with kids.
From several places in Albania, there are also day tours to Divjakë-Karavasta National Park. Getting to Divjakë by bus is difficult because there is no direct bus going to Divjakë. The bus stops one village earlier and around noon several cabs will be driving around this village to pick up tourists who want to travel towards Divjakë.
Children’s activities in Divjakë
#1 Animal spotting in Divjakë-Karavasta national park
The most famous sight to do in Divjakë with kids is to visit Divjakë-Karavasta National Park. And so, of course, this national park cannot be missing from this list. There are several activities here for kids that I will name below but first a word about Divjakë-Karavasta National Park itself.
Established in 2007, the park covers some 22,000 acres. The park contains a lagoon, pine forests and sandy islets. The lagoon is a haven for 230 different species of birds. The lagoon is known for the rare Dalmatian pelican, but flamingos can also be found here. A wonderful park to visit with kids and thus to spot animals.
#2 Kulla 360°
Kulla 360 ° is located near the information center of the Divjakë-Karavasta National Park and is an observation tower where you have a view of the surroundings. The entrance fee is about 100 lek (€1) and you have to brave 10 flights of stairs to get to the top. Since our kids were quite tired we did not do this and had a drink at a small stall present at the Kulla 360 °.
Since the information center is also here we did walk in there and the kids really enjoyed this. It is a kind of mini museum with information about the location of the park and the animals that live in the park and in Albania. There are also some signs here with buttons that the kids can press after which the sound of the birds in the park can be heard. This our youngest daughter enjoyed very much.
You can also explore the park with a guide and often at Kulla 360 ° is the starting point to meet up with the guide. We didn’t do this but a guide did come walking up to us to ask if the kids had seen the 2 pelicans walking around there. That was obviously a lot of fun to see!
#3 Hiking
From the information center, there are also several hiking trails you can walk with the kids. They have a leaflet at the information center that you can take away with all the hiking trails you can walk here in the park. The shortest hiking trail is 3.6 kilometers, making it very suitable for families with young kids.
When you walk into the park there is also a big sign with all the trails you can walk. Also on all hiking apps, there are plenty of hiking trails for this national park that you can walk. It is advisable to bring enough food and drinks to this park, as we did not come across many restaurants or stalls where you could get food and drinks.
#4 Boat ride through the lagoon
What is very fun to do with the kids is a boat ride through the lagoon in the national park. We walked from the information center on a nice walking trail across the footbridge to where the boats leave. We paid 1500 lek for 4 people (€15) and were soon able to board a boat.
We sailed through the lagoon and this was really beautiful. Along the way we saw some birds and enjoyed the view. We made a stop on a small island where we were allowed to get out and take pictures. They were not allowed to sail any further because of the pelicans that are further away, so after our stop we went back to the starting point.
Since our kids had already sat down in the boat, the captain sailed around with the kids in front of the little island for a while and they liked it! People in Albania are so incredibly kind and especially to kids. That alone is a good reason to visit this country with the family.
#5 Sunset on the beach
The resort where we stayed, the Divjakë Resort was located near the sea at the point where the lagoon meets the Adriatic Sea so we visited this beach towards the evening. On the walkway to the beach the view was already really beautiful, but when we arrived the sun was almost setting so of course that was even more stunning.
It is a big wild beach and with the sunset it really has a magical atmosphere so this is definitely recommended to do with kids. Also, of course, you can lie on the beach here during the day with the kids and go swimming. Especially in the summer months, this can be nice to cool off for a while.
Family-friendly restaurants Divjakë
You have plenty of family-friendly restaurants in Divjakë, where you can go for a bite to eat and a drink. We ate at several restaurants with our family during our stay in Divjakë, and below we list some great family-friendly restaurants in Divjakë.
Divjakë Resort: at the Divjake Resort you can stay overnight, but they also have a restaurant that is very family-friendly. You have to go up a flight of stairs and have a nice view of the plateau where the restaurant is located. They have an extensive menu here with pastas, pizzas, salads, meat and fish dishes so plenty to choose from. And who knows, you may be surprised during dinner with a traditional dance like we experienced.
Pelikan: This is also a very family-friendly restaurant and this restaurant has a perfect mix of Albanian and Italian food with an extensive menu. The staff is very friendly and also this is a cheap restaurant. Also, you can eat outside here which is always nice for kids.
Bar Piceri Restorant Alkeo & Juli: a very nice family-friendly restaurant under the trees with some play equipment for the kids. Plenty of choices on the menu such as various pizzas, salads, fish and meat dishes. The staff is also very friendly. Our kids even got ice cream on the house after dinner.
Family-friendly hotel Divjakë
You can stay in Divjakë with kids just fine. You have some family-friendly accommodation in Divjakë that you can book. We list some of these family-friendly accommodations in Divjakë. Click on the blue link for more information!
Budget accommodation: Andrea Bashuri
Middle class accommodation: Guesthouse Anila
Luxury Accommodation: The Garden Guest House
For the entire list of family-friendly accommodations in Divjakë, take a look here.
