Albania has remained for years the Balkan Peninsula’s best-kept secret, with many tourists snubbing this country as a holiday destination in favour of the more famous Croatia. But, in recent years, the Albanian Riviera has experienced a surge in visitors – including Britons – who have discovered its turquoise waters, sandy beaches and beautiful landscapes can be experienced at a very cheap price.

And this destination could soon welcome many more holidaymakers as it is preparing to launch its third international airport, set to serve one of the most beautiful cities on the Albanian Riviera.

This city, Vlorë, has become particularly popular among tourists thanks to its rocky coastline, beautiful beaches, outstanding food influenced by Italian cuisine and rich history.

The creation of the Vlora International Airport will surely provide yet another reason for tourists to travel to this riviera, as it will slash the travel time from the air hub to the coast.

Right now, the airport closest to Vlorë is in the country’s capital city, Tirana, at a distance of some 67 miles.

A direct flight from London to Tirana takes a little over three hours and can come at less than £100 even in high season.

Plans for the Vlora International Airport were first announced by the Albanian government in May 2017. Four years later, Mabetex International – a group specialising in large-scale civil engineering – said it was planning to invest more than £88million (€103.5m) for the first phase of the construction of the airport, including a runway and terminal. 

In the summer of 2023, it was reported the airport would be ready for launch by April 2024, but the opening was seemingly pushed back to March 2025, while the infrastructure is reportedly to be completed by December this year. 

The new airport will reportedly include, among other structures, a 1.9-mile runway as well as a 12.43 square mile terminal, an operation tower and a fire brigade building.

Albanian Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku boasted in November, upon visiting the construction site where the airport will be, that the infrastructure will be innovative. She said: “The entire airport will be covered with solar panels. They will be placed so that problems do not arise with the landing and takeoff of planes. These will produce 5.2 MWH of renewable energy, which will be for the needs of the airport.”

The airport – being built in Akerni, 6.2 miles north of Vlorë – was a “complicated job” from an engineering perspective, Ms Balluku also said, as the area where it is being built is 6.5 feet below water level – an issue resolved through the use of a drainage channel. 

While it hasn’t yet been confirmed, it is likely airlines operating from UK airports will announce new routes reaching Vlora International Airport, given the growing popularity of the area.

Speaking in November, Ms Balluku shared the great expectations harboured by the government as she said more than one million passengers are anticipated to transit through Vlora International Airport between March and December 2025 alone. 

The creation of this new airport hasn’t come without criticism, and has sparked concerns among environmentalists concerned for the local biodiversity. The infrastructure is being built inside the Vjosa-Narta Protected Area, sheltering more than 62 species of birds listed in the EU Birds directive.