Fier
Fier is a city in Albania. It is a modern and uninteresting city, which serves as a transit point on the way from Tirana and Durres to the southern part of the country. Near Fier is Apollonia, one of the country's main monuments of ancient times.
Get in
[edit]By bus
[edit]There are buses from Tirana every half hour; the journey takes about 2 hours.
Minibuses from Berat go to Fier 1-2 times an hour (1 hour 15 minutes), and the connection with Vlora (30 minutes) is organized through a collective taxi.
Fier is a charismatic example of the Albanian transport mess. All buses and minibuses depart from different places, usually not marked in any way. To top it all off, there is a new bus station, from which you can’t go anywhere at all.
- 1 Buses from Tirana, Rruga Rauf Nallbani (500 m from the central square). The area in front of the former railway station building. There is a semblance of a canopy and landing platforms, although the schedule posted on them has nothing to do with reality.
- 2 Minibuses from Vlora, Rruga Ramiz Aranitasi (750 m from the central square). The roundabout area near the Gold shopping centre is popularly known as QTU. In the spring of 2023, instead of minibuses, there will be a collective taxi, look for a car with a sign.
- 3 Minibuses from Berat, Rruga Jani Bakalli (1 km from the central square). A roundabout next to the Catholic Church at the beginning of the road to Roskovec.
- 4 New bus station (1.5 km from the centre). The modern high-tech building is open to everyone, but does not have a waiting room or a single announcement about bus routes, since there are simply none here. They say that large buses travelling on international routes arrive at this bus station. The bus station confidently ignores all local transport, and is at least 20 minutes on foot from the centre.
By car
[edit]The SH4 highway, the main Albanian highway, runs near Fier, 110 km from Tirana . To the south, the same route continues to Vlora (35 km) and ends there. A local road leads to Berat (50 km) - winding, but not bad.
By plane
[edit]There are direct minibuses from Likometaj Aeroport to Tirana airport. There is no exact schedule, minibuses depart when they are full. In Fier, the company's office is located in the central square area.
Get around
[edit]
By bus
[edit]Fier has several commuter bus routes, from which travellers will need connections to Pojan, a village near the ancient city of Apollonia. Buses also make stops around the city, and such a trip costs 30-40 lek versus 80-100 lek for a trip to the suburbs (2023). Conductors have two types of tickets, and while city tickets are simply torn off, commuter tickets are carefully written down with a ballpoint pen for a specific flight.
Along the street adjacent to the university building, little red local buses line the street. There is a neat and seemingly new schedule hanging on the poles - like everywhere else in Albania, it is out of date.
On foot
[edit]The city centre is small and it's possible to explore it by foot.
By car
[edit]It is very comfortable to visit everything, but space is a problem in the city so be prepared for a lot of traffic and parking space pro
By bicycle
[edit]This form of transportation comes a lot in hand because it allows you to visit the city really fast by not getting stuck in traffic. There are a lot of shops where people can rent bikes by hour, days, etc. with low cost.
See
[edit]
- 1 History Museum of Fier, Rr. Leon Rei, Fier, ☏ +355 69 888 4035, muzeuhistorikfier@gmail.com. 08:00-16:00. The Historical Museum of Fier stands as the sole museum in the city, housing a collection of 1800 objects within its holdings. The majority of these artifacts are original and offer valuable insights into the history of Fier, spanning from the Middle Neolithic era to the present. The museum's layout is designed with separate pavilions tailored to different historical periods, creating a well-organized and immersive experience for visitors.
- 2 Saint George Cathedral (Kisha Shën Gjergji).
- Public Library of Fier
- The Puppet Theat
Further afield
[edit]- 3 Ardenica Monastery. Orthodox monastery.
- St Mary Church — It was built between 1250-1270 upon the remains of an older church and is the part of the Ardenica Monastery.
- Byllis. An archaeological site in Hekal village
- The ruins of the Church of Saint Mary, in Ballsh
- The Castle of Gjon Bocari is in the village of Tragjas and was built in the 16–17th centuries. The walls form a rectangle, with a width of 1.25 m and a height of 5.5 m.
Apollonia (Illyria)
[edit]- 4 Apollonia. It was a Greek colony, an Illyrian and then a Roman town until its decline. You can see remains from all periods, some of them well preserved, others less so. The well-presented museum is within a monastery which also has a beautiful 13th-century church, and a late Roman mosaic in the refectory. You will need two hours for a good visit and even then can't see everything. Start with the Forum, then walk along the Great Stoa to the cistern. 600 lek.
- 5 Archaeological Museum of Apollonia. The museum contains many archaeological treasures found during excavations and expeditions in the area, you can visit first floor rooms along the monastery walls, six separate halls dedicated to the exhibition of prehistoric to Roman-era including baked clay pottery items, ceramics, vessels decorated with Hellenic mythological images.
- Monastery of Saint Mary at Apollonia
- Archaeological site of Apollonia
- Excavations and the Monuments of Apolonia
- Monument of Agonothetes
- Library and the Odeon
- House with Mosaics
- Fontana
- Museum of Apollonia
Do
[edit]Buy
[edit]Eat
[edit]What
[edit]- Petulla - fried pancakes
- Embelsire me miser - dessert with corn
- Eat the "pizza in hand" from Pizza Roma, a small pizzeria across the genie.
- Ice cream and sweets in the sweet shop, "Apollonia".
- Traditional burek in restaurant "Albes".
Where
[edit]- 1 Restorant Martini, Rr. Lami Monka, ☏ +355 69 621 0385. 07:00 - 22:00.
- 2 Triena Restaurant, Rruga Skender Muskaj, ☏ +355 695488600. 12:00-22:00.
- 3 Fiesherman ((Peshkatari)), Rruga Miço Plaka, ☏ +355 695612934. 11:30–22:00.
- 4 Bar Restorant Fenix, Lagja, Rruga Jani Bakalli, ☏ +355 693247913.
Drink
[edit]- 1 Block13 Coffee & Lounge Bar, Xoxi Andon, 9301 (depart toward SH8/street Aulona; turn left onto SH8/street Aulona; at roundabout take 2nd exit; at roundabout take 3rd exit onto SH94 Seman`s street; turn right onto street Xoxi Andoni, arrive at Xoxi Andoni street and there you can find Block13 Caffee & Lounge Bar), ☏ +355 696145388, Block13shpk@gmail.com.
Sleep
[edit]- Hotel Shkelzeni has a standard price of 1500 lek per person per night. The rooms each have 2 beds and a terrace and it's clean. You may be able to negotiate a better price with the nice man at the front counter named Mr. Bush (who is very friendly and speaks great English). It's in the city center near the giant ball on Jakov Xoxa street.
- 1 Fieri Internacional Hotel, Rr Çameria, ☏ +355 693766449. Check-in: 14:00 , check-out: 11:00 . It is €50 per night per room and very nice; It's also in the city centre. Also there is a new hotel which is called Hotel Fieri. It's one of the best hotels in Fier and it doesn't cost a lot. In this hotel you can find a really good restaurant and near the hotel there are many clubs and there are other things that would be entertaining for you or your family.
- 2 Hotel Fieri, Sheshi Nene Tereza , ne qender te Fierit., Rr. Jakov Xoxa, ☏ +355 682085860. Check-in: 14:00 , check-out: 11:00 .
- 3 Hotel Dashamiri, Rruga - Leonardo Murialdo, lagja-1 maji, ☏ +355 692282701.
- 4 Chicago hotel, Rruga Andon Profka, ☏ +355 695830468. Check-in: 13:00 , check-out: 12:00 .
- 5 Comfort Hotel, Lagjja 1 Maj, Rr Jani Bakalli, ☏ +355 699906230. Check-out: 11:00 .
- 6 Hotel Aulona Fier, AL, Rruga Aulona, ☏ +355 676326320. Check-in: 14:00 , check-out: 11:00 .