By Denada Jushi
On the shores of Shëngjin, Violeta has been running a small eight-room hotel for years. Now, as the number of tourists increases like a summer storm, she faces a dilemma that, in effect, sums up the national drama of Albanian tourism:
Increase the number of rooms and follow the wave of mass tourists, or invest in quality, building a more elite model, with fewer clients, but more value?
In this question of a small entrepreneur, lies the great national debate today: is Albania, the country of late discoveries by the world, moving towards elite tourism or sliding towards uncontrolled massiveness?
Between enthusiasm and warning
The numbers, at least on paper, are spectacular.
In 2024 alone, Albania welcomed over 11 million visitors, a number that puts the country in the league of the most sought-after tourist destinations in the Mediterranean. The coast, the Alps, Albanian gastronomy and hospitality have begun to be sold as a “national product” with ever-increasing success.
The government, happy with the numbers, has embraced this reality with the new leitmotif: "Albania 2030" a vision for sustainable tourism, which according to the Ministry of Tourism should be harmony between nature, development and preservation of identity.
But as the government counts visitors, economists and industry experts sound the alarm: numbers do not necessarily equate to development.
Economy: Lots of money, little formality
According to economist Zef Preçi, tourism revenues in 2025 are expected to reach around $7.3 billion, an increase of over 50% compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019. However, most of this money cannot be fully channeled into the formal economy. Many hotels, rental apartments and seasonal businesses operate informally, avoiding taxes and distorting competition.
An even deeper problem is the lack of local production that supports this industry: food, drinks, and skilled staff are increasingly imported. Therefore, at the end of the season, the remaining share for the local economy is smaller than the figures suggest.
Mass tourism or elite model?
“Albania cannot become either the Thailand of the Mediterranean or the Monaco of the Balkans,” says Zak Topuzi from the Association of Tour Operators.
"We are between two models that require difficult decisions:
mass tourism, which brings volume, but consumes nature and infrastructure;
or quality tourism, which requires greater investments, long-term planning and a vision that we still don't see today."
Unfortunately, so far the Albanian model resembles more a race to catch the season than a genuine strategic plan.
Montenegro, as a lesson
We only need to look at our neighbors to understand what we are losing.
Montenegro has built a clear model for years: investments with a master plan, clear separation of natural and tourist areas, supply control, and environmental protection.
The difference is not only in prices, but in the sustainable economic standard, where tourism becomes a sustainable engine and not a means for quick profits.
Deceptive statistics
Another problem is the measurement of tourism itself.
According to Topuz, about 40% of visitors are transit, passersby who leave no real economic impact. Inflated statistics create an illusion of success, while the economic reality remains more modest than seasonal propaganda.
Tourism: Economic Overview
In truth, what is happening with tourism is only a reflection of the oldest disease of the Albanian economy: lack of planning, informality, spontaneity, and the thirst for quick profits.
Today, Albania is at a crossroads. It can choose to continue with massive growth that kills nature, distorts the market, and empties the essence of authentic tourism.
Or it can make the most difficult choice: invest in quality, standards, local production, trained employment, real supply control, and above all a long-term national vision.
At the end of the day, tourism is like inherited property: you can use it to get rich quick by selling it piece by piece, or you can build a house on it that will live on for generations to come.
The real question that arises for Albania today is:
Will we be just the next stop for Mediterranean tourists or a destination with its own face and identity?
