At least 4.5 million domestic and foreign tourists visited protected areas in 2023. Despite the good trend in tourism in Albania, it seems that natural tourism has experienced a decline compared to 2022. The Ministry of Tourism and Environment, in its periodic statistics of the sector, acknowledges a slight decrease according to the figures reported by the National Agency of Protected Areas.

The figures in these areas often do not reflect the real situation because the sector still has informality or lacks systems that can control the exact number of visitors.

But what are the protected areas that had more visitors last year? According to data, there is a noticeable decline in the Korça region, which led in 2022. This year, Shkodra is the one with the highest number of visitors, followed by Fier and Vlora.

Meanwhile, around 2 million foreign and domestic visitors have visited the National Parks of Albania during 2023. This year marks an increase of 40.2% compared to the previous year. The most visited national park is Divjaka-Karavasta, the Albanian Alps, and Mount Tomorr.

There were 425,000 visitors who visited the Monuments of Nature during 2023, marking a decrease of 0.5% compared to 2022. The Thermal Waters of Bënja, the Shënandoi Cave, and the Sarisalltik Monuments of Nature were the most visited for 2023.

Lake Shkodra, the Blue Eye, and Qafështama were the most visited Nature Reserves during 2023.