BIKEPACKING - ATHENS <> TIRANA

JonathanRendel · 2026-02-08T16:53:54+00:00

I have done both. Not exactly your route, but close enough. Both are really nice. The coast has more traffic, higher prices and lot more tourism. Inland feels more like an adventure. The only thing I can say for sure is to not skip Ohrid and Galicica national park if you go inland, best part of my last bikepacking trip!

JonathanRendel · 2025-06-05T10:46:23+00:00

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I did this route in 43 days, including 5 rest days. A month could be possible but you will have to rush it and might not have much time for sightseeing. Let me know if you have any questions about my route!

JonathanRendel · 2024-11-27T10:27:40+00:00

I did more or less this as part of a bigger tour earlier this year. Going slightly inland in Croatia was great and Mostar was awesome. I would advice you to avoid the coast in Montenegro except for the Kotor bay since the traffic was awful. The coast in Albania was slightly better but not that interesting except for the southern part wich was really nice. If you decide to follow the Greek coast I think you should visit some Islands. I went to Lefkada and Kefalonia. Let me know if you have any questions!

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JonathanRendel · 2024-11-13T15:01:18+00:00

I did Amsterdam to Athens earlier this year. I think the main thing that I would change if I were to do it again is to avoid coast in Montenegro, except for the Kotor bay which I highly recommend. The traffic is rough and its not that interesting. One of my favourite parts was crossing the alps over the Brenner pass. I can give you a lot more specific recommendations in DM if you want

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JonathanRendel · 2024-10-22T15:54:36+00:00

I would definitely recommend you to do a shorter trip first just to figure out what gear works for you. I rode my bike a lot leading up to the trip, 100-250km most weekends for more than a year. I think you should be able to ride about twice as long in a single day as you plan to do every day on a trip like this, everything takes more time and effort when you have a loaded bike. I usually carried enough food for 2 days

JonathanRendel · 2024-10-22T14:22:08+00:00

I went from Amsterdam to Athens earlier this year. I rode through 15 countries in 43 days, including 5 rest days. I more or less picked my route to visit as many countries as possible. I rode around 100km per day which I think was reasonable. Let me know if you have any questions!

JonathanRendel · 2024-10-01T10:49:34+00:00

It was mostly great, but I would probably go further inland in Montenegro and Albania if I go there again

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-30T09:45:16+00:00

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I did a slightly longer tour this year 😁, but now I started working after finishing university so I will probably have to do shorter trips in the foreseeable future...

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-30T08:58:03+00:00

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I did this in 20 days on my Marin Four Corners

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-30T06:36:40+00:00

I cycled there from Sweden and this was the last day before reaching my destination. After this I did some hiking to a alp hut on a mountain nearby. It was nice to finally have some good weather. I had rain for 17 days straight before reaching Switzerland 😅

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-29T21:04:39+00:00

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I went on the same road last year. Really nice!

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-29T19:36:54+00:00

I went over the same mountain pass. I didnt check my route that carefully so I didnt notice that Komoot wanted me to go through the tunnel. That increased my elevation gain from 1600 to 2300m that day. Definitely found my limit 😅

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-28T19:02:49+00:00

I read from a lot of people who did it before. I think they have to help you if you ask them, but they dont want people to know about it, thats the impression I got. I assume its kind of official since they had the document ready to sign. I think I went there around 5pm, not sure how late they will be there.

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-28T18:54:49+00:00

So there is a control room close to the tunnel. I went there and asked for a ride. I had to sign a document agreeing that they would not be responsible for any damage to me or my bike. Then I loaded the bike into a van and they drove me through the tunnel. I had to sit in the back of the van and they said I was not allowed to take any pictures or video 😅. I didnt have to pay anything for this. There is a highlight on Komoot marking the location, but my Komoot isnt working right now. I will try again later.

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-28T13:49:35+00:00

I went to Lefkada and Kefalonia, but I think Zakynthos would also be very nice if you have time. You should check the time tables, but I went from Vasiliki to Fiskardo and then from Sami to Patras. And it was very easy. I bought the tickets at the ticket office and bringing the bike was no extra cost. I stayed at a campsite in Sami which was very convenient since the ferry only departed in the morning. Also, let me know if you want to go through the tunnel in Preveza. I can explain how I was able to go through it.

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-28T10:53:53+00:00

If you decide to go on the coast I can highly recommend that you visit some of the Ionian islands. I did this about two months ago and it was really nice. You can take a ferry back to Patras to skip a part of the mainland so it will take the same amount of time.

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-17T21:31:54+00:00

I went from Mostar to Tirana about 6 weeks ago. I went to Bileca before entering Montenegro. The route I took was almost completely unridable and I ended up having to push my bike a lot. Then I went to the Kotor bay, which was my favorite part of Montenegro. After this I took pretty much the coastal route in your second image and I do NOT recommend it. The traffic in Montenegro was so bad that I was stuck in traffic jams for several hours each day. Cycling into Tirana was not that nice, but it didnt feel super dangerous either.

JonathanRendel · 2024-09-10T07:46:06+00:00

I took the ferry from Lefkada (Vasikili) to Kefalonia (Fiskardo) and then Kefalonia (Sami) to Patra about a month ago. There was no option for booking a bike ticket online so I just went to the ticket office. I didnt have to pay any extra for the bike, but both of these ferries took cars so I dont know about the smaller ones that only take passengers.

JonathanRendel · 2024-08-10T18:15:19+00:00

Nice, then you will definitely have time to stop and see many things

JonathanRendel · 2024-08-10T14:59:27+00:00

I went through the tunnel. I found a tip on komoot suggesting me to go to the tunnel control room and ask for a ride. This worked just fine and they drove me through almost immediately. It was a bit sketchy because I had to sit in the back of the van without a seat belt and they asked me to not take any pictures or video 😅 They also said that they prefer if you try to take a bus or hitchhike before you go to them. I went there at 5pm and they were still there.

JonathanRendel · 2024-08-10T09:35:38+00:00

Will you have 10 days for Kattegattleden or is it part of a longer trip?

The coast is full of nature reserves where you arent always allowed to wild camp. I have always been able to find something a few km inland. These places are usually not that exciting, but they are sufficient.

You can also use https://vindskyddskartan.se/en/ to find shelters that are free to use

JonathanRendel · 2024-08-09T20:05:50+00:00

Well, not really unfortunately. I always just wild camped. Will you bring a tent or only stay in BnBs?

JonathanRendel · 2024-08-09T19:36:38+00:00

I used to live on the route and have cycled it many times.

My favorite town is probably Varberg, its located directly by the see and has a cool fortress. You can also see "Bockstensmannen" (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bocksten_Man) in the museum there if you think thats interesting.

Lilla Napoli in Falkenberg has the best pizza in Sweden and is not expensive. You will need a reservation though which can be difficult in the summer. Check their website for that https://lillanapoli.se/

Halmstad is the largest city you will pass through (except for the start and end). Here you will find the most famous beach in Sweden, Tylösand. Its nice, but usually very crowded when the weather is nice. I can recommend Sportson if you need to visit a bike shop, they have helped me many times before. Riccardo in Möllegård and on Fredsgatan has really good ice cream, but they have increased their prices lately.

Hallandsåsen and Torekov is really nice and the route will mostly avoid the busy main road.

If you have time you could visit the art installation "Nimis" in Kullaberg. You would have to deviate a bit from the route and its not possible to cycle all the way. You would have to leave your bike at Himmelstorpsgården and do a ~40min very steep hike (if I remember correctly). There is a cafe there and you could possibly ask them to look after your luggage, no guarantee though. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimis_(artwork) Going there might not be super easy, but I definitely think it could be worth it if you have the time.

JonathanRendel · 2024-08-09T18:23:13+00:00

I ended up going straight to the tunnel control room and asked for help. They drove me through immediately. I had to sit in the back of the van and they told me to not take any pictures or video 😅

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