Although we are still in the month of February, the first cruise ships have started to dock in the port of Durrës.

The “Beauty of the Adriatic” touched the Albanian coast without tourists on board and only to change the crew.

“In Albania it is easier to change Filipino crew, than in Croatia and Greece, for example, because there they have a series of bureaucracies and require a series of documents and a visa above all”, said Leo Stanic – captain of “La Belle de l’adriatique”.

The luxury tourist vehicle with a length of 111 meters and the Belgian flag is the first to signal the start of a season, which is expected to be successful.

“We expect to come to Durres and Saranda 3 times this year. On July 30 will be the first visit with tourists to Durrës and on September 24 the last cruise. This year we will bring a total of about 400 passengers to your country”, said Leo Stanic – captain of “La Belle de l’adriatique”.

“They are mainly French, but this year we will have many Germans, also we will have many tourists from the USA, Great Britain and Spain,” said manager Pedro Morreira.

From the port of Durrës, the captain of the “loyal” cruise ship of the Albanian coast says that this year his cruise ship will come less than the last summer.

“Last year we came a little more, 8 times, but this time the company made changes, decided to stay in Greece a little longer. The route we have is very beautiful, but now we are trying to attract younger tourists.

There are always changes, this year we come to Albania less, next year much more. This is to maintain the balance, but of course also to respond to the demand of tourists”, Leo Stanic – captain of “La Belle de l’adriatique”.

Last year, 22 cruise ships stopped at the port of Durrës, bringing with them thousands of tourists.

For the period January-December 2023, luxury tourist and pleasure vehicles brought more than 1 billion new ALL to the state coffers, just for fuel supply.