Summer Flight Timetable for Flights to Albania
(Version 5 Effective 05 March 2021)
FIER
Of Nature and Antiquity!
Museum of Apollonia
The Museum of Apollonia or Fiër Archaeological Museum is an archaeological museum approximately 8 km west of Fiër, Albania. It was established in 1958. The museum contains artefacts unearthed nearby from the ancient Greek town of Apollonia and is close to the Ardenica Monastery.
The city flourished during the 4th century AD as an important economic and trade centre. Over time it was expanded over the whole hilly slope including an area of ca. 81 hectares, surrounded by a large wall of 3 kilometres of length and 3 metres of width. Although Apollonia was situated few kilometres away from the Adriatic Sea, its position on the right bank of the Aoos River (modern Vjosë) enabled its communication with the coastal part of the territory.
In the two hilltops dominating the city stands the temenos area (the sacred area around the temple of Apollo) and the Arx (military citadel). The museum is housed in a 14th-century building which was previously the monastery of St. Mary. It is accessed via a double wooden door and a grand entrance on the west side.
The museum has 7 pavilions, a gallery and 2 porticos. The bulk of the collection is housed in 6 rooms on the ground
OPENING HOURS
May–15 October, Everyday
09:00-18:00
16 October–April, Tuesday–Sunday
09:00-16:00
ADDRESS
Pojan, Fier, Albania
floor to the north and west of the complex. An impressive collection of statues located in a portico on the east side and number of historically important frescoes remain in the building from medieval times; these are mainly housed in the refectory. Fragments of inscriptions and other spolia can be found on the walls and the museum also has a collection of medieval mosaics.
Ardenica Monastery
Located 237 meters above sea level and only a 20-minute drive from Fiër are the Ardenica hills, famous for the Monastery of the Nativity of the Theotokos and many breath-taking landscapes. A pagan temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis had existed where the Monastery sits now, which explains the origin of the name Ardenica.
Covering an area of 2,500 square meters, the Monastery was built in 1282, commissioned by the emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos of Byzantium. Perhaps the most interesting historical event recorded in Ardenica is Skanderbeg’s wedding to his lifelong wife Donika, hosted on April of 1451 at the Chapel of St. Trinity Church, the monastery’s very first church, built in the 10th century.
Scholars claim that the Byzantine Emperor, Andronikos II Palaiologos started building the monastery in 1282 after the victory against the Angevins in the siege of Berat. The chapel of Saint Trinity was already there, erected centuries before. A pagan temple, dedicated to Artemis had existed on the site before the chapel, and it is thought that the name of Ardenica stems from Artemis. The monastery site lies approximately 1 km from the Via Egnatia (a major 2nd century Roman road).
OPENING HOURS
Everyday
08:00-14:00
ADDRESS
RH9V+F4, Kolonjë, Albania
On April 21, 1451 in this monastery was celebrated the marriage of George Kastrioti with Andronika Arianiti. The archbishop of Kanina, Felix said the mess in the wedding in the presence of all the Albanian princes, members of the League of Lezhëand the ambassadors of the Kingdom of Naples, Republic of Venice, and Republic of Ragusa. This is mentioned first by A. Lorenzoni in 1940.
The monastery has a Byzantine-orthodox architecture but with many romanesque features, which lies in a surface of 2.500 meters square. It is composed of the Saint Mary Church, the chapel of the Saint Trinity, a mill, and a barn. The Church of Saint Mary in the Monastery of Ardenica has important frescos from Kostandin Zografi and Athanas Zografi. These painters from Korçë worked on the church in 1744. The frescos include an Old Testament and a New Testament, Dogmatica, Lithurgy, Life of Saints, etc.
St. Mary’s Church, Kisha e Shën Mërisë, on the other hand, is the most impressive building on site. Built with stones coming from the antique city of Apollonia, this church welcomes anyone through the open porch and its columns and arches. The bell of this church is 24 meters high, the church’s interior is adorned with beautiful frescoes, depicting scenes from the New Testament, from the painters Kostandin and Athanas Zografi (originating from Korça), while the wood-carved iconostasis by Kostandin Shpataraku and the many icons displayed there add even more beauty and splendor to the church.
In 1780 the Monastery started a theological school to prepare clerics in Greek Orthodoxy and became an important centre for learning the Albanian language. It had an important library with 32,000 volumes that got completely burned by a fire in 1932. The Church of Saint Mary within the monastery contains frescos from brothers Kostandin and Athanas Zografi, notably one of saint John Kukuzelis, born in Durrës, Albania.
Divjakë-Karavasta National Park
The Divjakë-Karavasta National Park ,Parku Kombëtar Divjakë-Karavasta is a national park in western Albania, sprawling across the Myzeqe Plain in the direct proximity to the Adriatic Sea. The park spans a territory of 222.3 square kilometres containing remarkable features such as wetlands, salt marshes, coastal meadows, floodplains, woodlands, reed beds, forests and estuaries.
Because of the park's important and great availability of bird and plant species, it has been identified as an important Bird and Plant Area of international importance. Approximately 230 different species of birds populate the area spanning the four lagoons of Karavasta, Godulla, Godulla e Pishës, and Spiaxho. Among them, the most popular is the Dalmatian Pelican, an exceedingly rare and beautiful bird.
The population residing in the Karavasta Lagoon represents about 5% of the entire global population of this species. The famous curly pelican, as well, is responsible for one of the most beautiful spectacles in the lagoon. Often, a massive flock of white and gray birds overtakes
OPENING HOURS
Everyday
Open 24 Hours
ADDRESS
Divjake-Karavasta National Park, Albania
the lagoon. Their reflection is beautifully mirrored in the water as they fly over its surface.
Other species in the park include the wader, laurel, eagles, and wild ducks, among others. Yet, the area’s exotic birds and species are only one of the many reasons to visit this park. The entire area includes the lavish Divjaka pine forest, Kular Island, Divjaka Oasis Dunes, Pelicans’ Island, the Lagoon’s Littoral Cordon and the famous four-century-old pine tree.
Byllis Archaeological Park
Near the cities of Fiër and Ballsh stands the Byllis Archaeological Park, the largest ancient Illyrian city in the south of Albania. Several majestic constructions were erected in Byllis during the 4th and 5th centuries B.C. Throughout your visit, you can admire the beautiful ruins of the theater, stadium, water depots, gymnasium, promenades, remains of former dwelling spaces and some of the most valuable Palaeo-Christian ruins in Albania.
The ancient city of Byllis was divided into three separate areas and constructed according to the architectural plan of the renowned ancient Greek architect Hippodamus of Miletus. The city, although a Greek speaking settlement was located on the territory of the Illyrian tribe of Bylliones. The latter were first attested in the mid-4th century BC, in the description of the geographer Pseudo-Scylax, and asking the oracle of Dodona to which god they should sacrifice in order to ensure the safety of their possessions. The archaeological attestation of the city is possible as far back as the second half of the 4th century BC and was later conquered by Pyrrhus. According to another view, Byllis was founded by king Pyrrhus of Epirus.
Among other wonderful sights, what remains from the golden age of Byllis are the beautiful ruins of the 7500-
OPENING HOURS
April–September, Everyday
09:00-18:00
October–March, Everyday
09:00-16:00
ADDRESS
GPRQ+R2W, Hekal, 9300, Albania
seat theatre, parts of the theatre’s forty rows of tiered seats, supporting walls and the orchestra’s pedestal can still be seen today. During the 5th century A.D., several churches were constructed whose ruins currently constitute some of the most important Palaeo-Christian remains in Albania. To date, five of them have been discovered, both inside the city walls and outside.
