Starting next year, Albanian tourism will face significant changes. Prime Minister Edi Rama has warned private businesses, restaurants, and beach bars that they will no longer be permitted to place umbrellas on beach spaces.
“Besides having hotels, no more beach permits will be issued for an individual or a legal or physical entity to say, ‘I want this beach, I’ll set up a beach bar and sunbeds.’ You can set up a beach bar, but not sunbeds. You can have a restaurant, but no sunbeds. The beach must be enjoyed in the best possible way. And enjoying the beach among sunbeds crowded together is impossible.”
Hotels that want to place sunbeds will need to follow certain rules.
“You cannot have a hotel with 40 rooms and place 200 sunbeds and force people to pay. You will set up sunbeds only according to your capacity! Of course, not one per room, and you must maintain distance between sunbeds.”
Local government units will play a key role in managing the tourism sector, including designating public spaces for citizens.
“We will start with the municipalities, so that municipalities take spaces and set up umbrellas. Where it is reasonable for sunbeds, but with a maximum price required. We started this a few years ago, and this year we pushed forward for municipalities to manage it.”
Referring to the sector as one of the most potential for the country’s economy, the Prime Minister urges businesses to value their employees and increase their wages.
“Now I understand that when there are no people, you need to raise salaries because there’s no other option. You should consider the people who work for you as your most valuable asset.”
This year, Albania was visited by 7.2 million tourists in just eight months, showing a 60 percent increase compared to the previous year.
“I’ve heard from some who have hired people returning from Greece, and they tell me there is interest from those in Greece. There is no comparison now; working as a waiter in Greece versus Albania, you have more benefits in Albania.”
