
The government plans to open a seasonal airport in the south of the country after the one in Vlora, as well as to make the Kukes airport functional. The news was announced by Prime Minister Edi Rama, who participated in the Euro News Summit on Tourism, which was held in Brussels. During his speech, he stated that the number of tourists in our country is increasing every year, also emphasizing that the Rinas airport has left behind other airports in the region in terms of the number of passengers.
"We don't have the best infrastructure in the world. We have an airport that is the fastest growing in Europe. We have left our neighbors behind for the fifth or sixth year. We have left Belgrade airport behind. Now we are going to open a new airport in Vlora, we are working on another seasonal airport in the south. There is a fourth one in the mountainous area, but it is not working as we would like."
The Prime Minister emphasized that the goal is to further increase tourism.
"Our target is the world, because we are discovering that all parts of the world are participating in this growth. When we started this transformative journey, we counted 2 million tourists, and this figure also included the officials who did the counting, because every Albanian who entered and left the country was part of this figure. My predecessor was a tourist when he returned to Albania. Last year, 12 million foreigners. Among them, Japanese, Americans, Latin Americans, Chinese, Israelis, visitors from the Middle East," said Rama.
The summit brought together policymakers, industry leaders, investors and experts to discuss developments that are shaping the future of tourism, from changing traveler expectations to digital innovation and sustainable development.