Edart Hotel in Durres

This was a truly traumatising experience when it comes to the dining area. Dirty chairs, table cloths with cigarette holes, disgusting food, unfriendly waiting staff. This hotel does not deserve 4 stars at all. We were lucky enough to get one of the rooms with fresh bathrooms (after I made a complaint to the staff), however, at the beginning we were given the room with an old bathroom with mold. Absolutely terrible experience. I will never come back to Durrës because of this place.

Accommodation: We stayed at Hotel Edart, which claims to be four stars, but I wouldn’t even give it two. Initially, I was pleasantly surprised when we were allowed to check in earlier than the indicated time and even received breakfast. However, this was the only pleasant aspect of the entire vacation. The hotel did not have a pool, and the rooms were neither renovated nor clean. Food: The food was occasionally tasty, typical of the Balkans, but the lack of hygiene was total. Staff did not wear gloves and handled the food directly with their hands. This was particularly disappointing when serving ice cream. It might be that we are used to different standards, but serving ice cream without gloves after sweeping the street, and then handling food without washing hands, seems very disrespectful. The variety of food was very poor; there was rice and pasta almost every day for both lunch and dinner. Only in the last days did they start serving potatoes. Meat was more common, and fish dishes were served maybe twice. Breakfast was always the same menu, with nothing healthier or less fried. The pastries included a cake that was good, no complaints there. Beverages: Regarding alcoholic beverages, they only had beer and three bottles of spirits that you could pour yourself, along with some suspicious-looking wine bottles. For non-alcoholic drinks, there was only sweet carbonated water in an old fridge, and it was self-service. Free drinking water was available from a communal cooler, but you couldn’t take bottles as you can in hotels that offer proper all-inclusive services. Beach: The beach was very dirty, and I even encountered unpleasant surprises while trying to swim. I’m not sure if the litter was from locals or tourists, but throwing plastic bottles into the sea is terrible. One day I collected as much trash as I could, but the ignorance of some people is astounding. Many lack basic home education. Overall: The cost for two people from Chișinău to Albania was €1470. Before choosing Albania as a vacation destination, either discuss thoroughly with your travel agent if you’re opting for one or research very carefully. I did my research and checked reviews and photos online, but the reality was far different from what I had read and seen. The all-inclusive services in Albania are far below the standards of even Bulgaria, not to mention Turkey, Egypt, and other destinations. Two staff members were very empathetic and helpful each time we needed assistance. We are referring to one waiter and one receptionist who always answered our questions and provided support. Unfortunately, we cannot say the same about his colleague, who was very arrogant and always in a bad mood.