11.7M
foreign visitors in 2024, 15.2% more than in 2023
Sources 3, 4
01 · The question
Postcards show the beaches.
We want to show the people.
Our research question
Is Albania's rapid tourism growth benefiting local Albanians, or are the economic gains outweighed by the social and environmental costs?
Since 2021 Albania has become one of the fastest-growing destinations in Europe, and it now faces problems already seen in Spain, Italy and Croatia. It is a local problem with global relevance.
We look at the question from five perspectives: economic, environmental, social, political and cultural. Our research so far is secondary research from October 2026, using official statistics (INSTAT, the Bank of Albania, government ministries), international organisations (OECD, IMF, World Bank, WTTC, the EU), NGOs, academic work and the news. Government sources tend to present tourism positively and NGOs tend to focus on its problems, so we used both for every perspective.
02 · The boom in numbers
Fast growth, now slowing
€5.7bn
spent by foreign visitors in 2025, up 15%
Source 7
21.6%
of GDP: tourism's total contribution in 2022
Sources 12, 30
269k
jobs supported by tourism in 2023, about one in five
Source 13
The catch
"12 million tourists" counts border crossings, not guests.
Fewer than 2.2 million of the 11.7 million foreign visitors in 2024 stayed at least one night in registered accommodation: roughly one in five 16. Many recorded visitors are Albanians from Kosovo, which alone made over 4.4 million trips in 2024 5, and the OECD notes that Albania's figures don't follow UN Tourism guidelines 12.
Overnight stays by season, 2025 10
2021
The boom begins
From 2021, visitor numbers grow extremely fast 3, 8.
2024
11.7 million visitors, +15.2%
Foreign visitors spend about €4.9 billion, roughly €427 each 3, 14.
2025
About 12.4 million, +6.6%
Growth slows. Between 2023 and 2025 visitors rose 23% while revenue rose over 40% 6, 7.
Jan–Aug 2026
9.44 million, +5.3%
In August, growth was only 2% 8.
2030 target
€8.5 billion a year
The government's goal: value over volume, and a longer season 7.
03 · Five perspectives
One boom, five ways of seeing it
Each of us researched one perspective, with evidence for and against the idea that local Albanians are benefiting.
Economic · researched by Gerald Bineri
Who actually captures the money?
Tourism is one of the biggest pillars of the economy. The question isn't whether it makes money, but how much reaches ordinary Albanians through wages, small businesses and taxes, and how risky it is to depend on it.
48%
of accommodation capacity is outside the tax system 16
6%
VAT for 4- and 5-star "special status" hotels, plus other tax exemptions 30, 31
15,000
foreign workers fill tourism jobs, with reports of exploitation 25, 26
Locals are benefiting
The gains are uneven or fragile
- Hospitality is still among the lowest-paid sectors 28
- Informality means lost taxes and no protection for workers 16, 17
- Tax breaks go mostly to big branded hotels 30
- Seasonal jobs, and an economy exposed to shocks 10, 18, 20
Around the world
Croatia and Montenegro run similar seasonal coastal models and depend on tourism even more 21. The World Bank suggests linking the coast with mountain, food and culture tourism 22.
A possible solution
Make registering and paying tax simpler for small hosts, shift tax breaks towards small local and off-season businesses, and keep overnight-tax revenue in the towns that host visitors.
Environmental · researched by Ajvi Zarka
Can the coast and its resources cope?
Albania sells itself on clean seas and wild nature, but water, sewage and waste systems haven't kept up, and protected areas are being opened to large resorts. Locals often pay the cost, and it threatens tourism itself.
"Bottle tourism"
how a parliament committee chair described the drinking-water shortage in Saranda and Ksamil in summer 2026 33
€44.6M
invested in coastal wastewater plants over a decade, yet sewage still reaches the sea 34
$4.7bn
reported cost of the planned resort at Zvërnec, inside the Vjosa-Narta protected landscape 40
Zvërnec and the "Flamingo Revolution"
Vjosa-Narta near Vlora has been protected since 2004 and is home to flamingos, Dalmatian pelicans, seals and nesting turtles 40, 41. In May 2026 excavators began clearing pine forest and dunes, although no development permit had been issued 42, 43. Thousands protested, 77 groups demanded an environmental assessment before approval 44, and the anti-corruption prosecutor SPAK opened an investigation 45.
Tourism helps the environment
Around the world
In Çeşme, Turkey, tourists are estimated to use two to three times more water than locals 46. On Koh Samui, Thailand, water had to be shipped in during peak season, and locals paid the cost 47.
A possible solution
"Infrastructure first": no new building permits until an area's water and sewage capacity is proven, and no large-scale development inside protected areas.
Social / local residents · researched by Klea Karafili
Is the boom pricing Albanians out?
This is about quality of life, not GDP: whether people can afford a home, whether they can still enjoy their own coast, and whether tourism keeps communities alive or pushes people out.
1,000 → 5,200
Airbnb listings in Tirana, 2021 to 2025 52
+28%
house prices in a year by late 2025, driven by the coast 54
€165
average monthly pension: a holiday on their own coast is out of reach for many 56
A positive case: Theth
The mountain village had almost emptied before a guesthouse programme started in 2006. Today it gets around 30,000 visitors a year, more than 25 families make a living from accommodation, and emigrants have come back 60. Tourism can benefit locals when it is small-scale and locally owned.
Locals are benefiting
Around the world
After protests over rents, Barcelona plans not to renew any of its 10,101 tourist-apartment licences when they expire in November 2028 64.
A possible solution
Register and cap short-term rentals in high-pressure neighbourhoods, protect long-term tenants, and guarantee a minimum share of free public beach.
Political / governance · researched by Arsa Sakja
Is the state managing tourism, or just promoting it?
Who benefits depends on government choices: which investments are encouraged, how strictly laws are enforced and how much say citizens have. We compare the official sustainable strategy with what happens in practice.
2024–2030
National Tourism Strategy: sustainable growth and protected heritage 66
Law 21/2024
allows large-scale tourism and building in areas that were better protected 69
"No progress"
the European Commission's 2025 verdict on the environment chapter 69, 71
The 2026 Zvërnec dispute
Early May
Machinery begins clearing pine forest and dunes in the protected area 42
30 May – early June
Clashes at the site, and protests by thousands in Tirana for several days 43, 72
June
PM Rama says the project will go ahead and blames social media for distortions 73
17 June
A European Parliament report on Albania. Outlets describe the vote differently, so the official text needs checking 69, 74, 75
July
In Brussels, Rama says the strategic investments law will be repealed and the protected areas law revised 76
4 September
NGO open letter: Parliament has still not repealed the 2024 amendments 77
The government's case
Around the world
Dubrovnik capped cruise visitors after a UNESCO warning, and its cruise-ship fee raises over €1 million a year 81, 82. Venice charged a day-visitor fee on 60 days in 2026 83.
A possible solution
Public consultation and an independent environmental assessment before any project in a protected or coastal area, and transparent rules that also reward small local businesses.
Cultural · researched by Soed Hasani
Protecting heritage, or turning it into a product?
History, architecture and living traditions draw more and more visitors, and tourism can pay to keep them alive. But it can also focus on a few pretty sites, swap real culture for imitations and leave the communities behind.
+69%
visitors to heritage sites, January–July 2025 compared with 2023 84
19
traditional artisans still working in Kruja's historic bazaar 88
34 → 47
ruined historic buildings in Gjirokastër, while about 80 houses stood empty 86
A qeleshe made in China
In Kruja's bazaar, imported souvenirs, even the traditional white felt cap, are sold everywhere because they're cheaper than handmade ones. Artisans say their children don't want to continue the craft because it doesn't pay 88. Tourist demand can support a market for culture without supporting the people who make it.
Tourism helps Albanian culture
Around the world
In 2023 UNESCO's experts recommended listing Venice as World Heritage in Danger because of mass tourism; the committee decided not to 92, 93. Heritage status attracts tourists, and the same tourists can threaten it.
A possible solution
Use part of heritage-site ticket money to restore historic houses, train young people in traditional crafts, and introduce a certified "made in Albania" label for handmade souvenirs.
04 · How it all connects
The same fact can be a gain and a cost
Economic ↔ Social
Airbnb income helps owners but raises rents for tenants 50, 51.
Economic ↔ Environmental
Big resorts promise jobs but threaten protected areas, and damaged nature hurts tourism too 38, 40.
Environmental ↔ Social
Water shortages and pollution hit the people who live there all year first 33.
Cultural ↔ Economic
Heritage brings in money, but cheap imported souvenirs take the spending away from artisans 84, 88.
Cultural ↔ Social
Gjirokastër is losing residents even as visitor numbers grow 86.
Political ↔ All
Laws, tax breaks and enforcement decide who wins and who loses, and EU accession pushes towards stricter rules 69, 76.
05 · Solutions
Ideas that work across perspectives
A local tourism levy that stays local
Enforce the overnight tax, including on platform rentals, and spend it on water, sewage and waste in the same town. Dubrovnik's cruise fee is a model 32, 82.
Infrastructure first
No new tourist capacity where water and sewage capacity isn't proven.
Register and cap short-term rentals
In pressured neighbourhoods, learning from Barcelona 64.
A heritage restoration fund
Part of heritage-site ticket money restores historic houses and trains craftspeople 85, 86.
Spread tourism across places and seasons
Support small, locally owned mountain and rural tourism on the Theth model 22, 60.
Every solution favours some perspectives over others. A levy helps public finances and the environment but raises costs for visitors and small businesses. Limits on short-term rentals protect residents but cut income for owners.
Our team solution
The solution we agree on as a team goes here. Coming soon
06 · Our research
What we're finding out ourselves
Next comes primary research: surveys and interviews in Albania. The results will go here.
Survey
Who we asked, how many people, and what we found. Coming soon
Interviews
"A quote from someone we interviewed goes here." Coming soon
Name, role, place
Limits of our research so far
- Visitor numbers for 2025 differ slightly between sources (12.4, 12.47 and 12.5 million). INSTAT's figure is the most reliable 6, 7, 8.
- Tourism's share of GDP depends on whether the direct or the total contribution is measured 12, 13.
- The European Parliament vote of 17 June 2026 is reported differently by different outlets 74, 75.
- The Zvërnec situation is changing quickly. Our information is from early October 2026.
- Government sources present tourism positively and NGOs focus on its problems, so we used both.
- The Gjirokastër and Kruja case studies partly rely on reports from 2011 to 2018 86, 87, 88.
07 · Team
Who we are
Arsa Sakja
Political perspective and research planning
Klea Karafili
Social perspective
Ajvi Zarka
Environmental perspective
Gerald Bineri
Economic perspective
08 · Sources
Where our information comes from
The numbers in brackets across this site match our numbered bibliography of 93 sources.
- The full bibliography goes here: publisher, title, date and link for each source. Coming soon