“Low-cost tourism for foreign tourists vacationing on the Albanian coast will not last for much longer. Albania must prepare for elite tourism.”

This was the vision shared by Prime Minister Edi Rama with the Italian newspaper La Stampa in the midst of a tourist season that is being considered one of the most successful for Albania.

“Mass tourism is not sustainable for the environment. We don’t want to make the major mistakes that Italy or other countries have made, with overrun coastlines or overtaken cities. Massive arrivals and low costs can destroy the future and leave behind eco-disasters and environmental catastrophes. We desire balanced tourism and increasingly of a high level. It takes three or four years to be ready to surpass the larger ones,” Prime Minister Rama stated for the Italian newspaper.

However, according to the Albanian premier, tourism has overturned the former perception of Albanians as criminals and now counts a significant number of Italian tourists, and not only.

“We are following the paths that your country has taken. But this summer has gone beyond expectations. We’ve had a 35 percent increase in tourists, the figures for Italians are impressive and are nearing half a million. At the beginning of my term, Tirana Airport handled a maximum of 350,000 passages per year. Now it’s over 6.5 million,” Rama added.

For this tourist season, Albania is expected to surpass the figure of 10 million tourists.

Multiple international newspapers have dedicated countless articles to promoting tourist Albania, citing the affordable prices of accommodation and foods, as well as the natural beauties of the country, as the main reasons to visit Albania.

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