Camping packing list for Albania from a campsite near Durrës: gas cartridges, water, plugs, cash, SIM cards, sun and bugs, and what you can leave at home.
We run a campsite on a lake near Durrës, and every summer we watch the same thing happen. Someone arrives with a screw-top gas stove and no cartridges that fit it. Someone else has packed three rain jackets for August. This list is what we tell our guests before they leave home, split into what to bring and what to pick up here.
If you are still planning the route, start with our guide to camping in Albania and come back to this list when you are ready to pack.
01Cooking gas: bring the right stove
This is the one that catches most people out. Supermarkets and hardware shops across Albania sell the pierce-type Campingaz C206 cartridges without trouble. Screw-thread (Lindal valve) cartridges, the kind most lightweight hiking stoves use, are very hard to find.
If your stove takes screw-thread cartridges, bring enough for the whole trip or pack an adapter. The cheap option is to buy a basic pierce-type stove when you arrive, which costs a few euros.
Motorhomes are easier. Most fuel stations sell LPG (autogas, signed as GAZ or GPL), and Albania uses the same dish connector as Italy, so bring that adapter if your van has a refillable tank.
02Water
Tap water in Tirana and the bigger cities is treated, but in villages, the mountains and along much of the coast most locals drink bottled water, and we recommend you do the same. Big 5 and 6 litre bottles cost very little in any supermarket. A filter bottle is worth packing if you plan to hike in the Alps, where mountain springs are common.
At Wonderful Camping every pitch has drinking water, so you can fill your tanks before you head south.
03Power, phones and maps
Albania uses the same two-pin plugs (type C and F) and 230 volts as most of mainland Europe, so European chargers work without an adapter. UK and US travellers need one.
EU roaming deals usually do not cover Albania, so check with your provider before you rely on your home SIM. A local prepaid SIM or eSIM from Vodafone Albania or One is cheap and gives plenty of data. You can buy one at Tirana airport or in any town.
Download offline maps before you go. Signal drops in the mountains and on the Llogara Pass, and some village roads look very different on the map than they do in real life.
04Money
The currency is the lek. Cards work in supermarkets, fuel stations and most restaurants in towns, but market stalls, village cafés and small campsites often take cash only. Carry a few thousand lek for the day and use bank ATMs rather than the stand-alone machines in tourist areas, which charge more.
05Sun, heat and bugs
From June to early September the coast regularly reaches 30 to 35°C. Pack a wide hat, strong sunscreen, and something to make shade at your pitch, such as a tarp or a small awning. A hammock is a good idea too. You will spend the hottest hours in the shade anyway.
Mosquitoes come out at dusk near lakes, rivers and the coastal lagoons, so bring repellent and a mosquito net for the tent door. Ticks live in long grass in spring and summer. A quick check after a walk is enough.
06Clothes and shoes
Summer on the coast needs very little: light clothes, a swimsuit and something warmer for evenings. The mountains are different. Theth and Valbona can drop to around 10°C at night even in July, and rain comes fast, so bring a fleece and a proper rain jacket if you are heading north.
Water shoes are useful on the pebble beaches of the Ionian coast. The beaches around Durrës are sandy.
07Documents and health
Albania is outside the EU, so the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) does not work here. Take out travel insurance that covers medical care. Pharmacies are everywhere and well stocked, but pack a small first aid kit with plasters, painkillers, rehydration salts and anything you take regularly.
Drivers need their licence, the vehicle registration and a green card that lists Albania (AL). Our driving guide covers the border and ferry paperwork in detail.
08What you can leave at home
You do not need to bring much food. Supermarkets such as Conad and Spar sit in every town, and roadside stalls sell fruit, vegetables, honey, cheese and olive oil straight from the farm. Firewood, charcoal, basic tools and camping chairs are easy to buy too.
Heavy paper guidebooks and a second stove can stay at home as well. Most of what you forget can be found in the next town.
09A short checklist
Pierce-type gas stove or enough screw-thread cartridges, LPG dish adapter for vans, filter bottle, offline maps, a local SIM, some cash in lek, travel insurance, green card, sunscreen and a hat, a tarp for shade, mosquito repellent, a fleece and rain jacket for the mountains, and water shoes for the south.
If you are camping near Durrës, we have electricity, showers, drinking water and Wi-Fi at every pitch. See the camp or message us to book your spot by the lake.
