Lalzit Bay is a new-build beachside apartment complex at Durrës. A four-bed villa is around £189,000
Tell friends that you’re planning a property hunting trip to Albania and you can expect squeals of horror. I suppose it’s only to be expected when you consider that this is a country that was cut off from the world for 45 years during Communist dictator Enver Hoxha’s paranoid regime; a country where – just a couple of decades ago – they would cut your hair at the border if they deemed it was too long.
But once you get over that hurdle and do some research you realise that this bite-sized country sitting on the Adriatic between Italy and Greece is a pretty desirable place to buy a second home.
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Not only because of the Greek-like climate, beautifully conserved villages and healthy Med food, but also because of current property prices, which resemble the bargains that were once to be had in southern Spain back in the heady eighties.
Keen to do some research of my own, I take the ferry from Bari in Italy to Durrës in Albania on a warm day in spring.
Durrës: like Italy 20 years ago
I’m expecting Albania’s second city to be pretty drab, but the Durrës seafront bustles with kids throwing sticks for dogs and families sitting out at pavement cafés. In fact, the brightly coloured houses and pizza parlours remind me of Italy 20 years ago.
“Many Albanians from Durrës lived in Italy for years and now they’ve returned here and set up businesses,” says Bora, who works in Cela, a seafront ice cream parlour that serves up some of the city’s tastiest frozen goodies.
Durrës, settled by the Greeks in the seventh century BC, is one of Albania’s oldest cities. So I slurp on one of Cela’s walnut whip ice creams, then set out to explore the city’s massive amphitheatre. After a goggle at the opulent artefacts on display at King Zog’s villa, I make the 20-minute trip to Lalzit Bay.
This pristine spot is set on a graceful curve of soft sand beach, bound on one side by a vast nature reserve. It’s the site of Lalzit Bay Resort and Spa, an award-winning new-build beachside complex 30 minutes’ drive from Tirana’s International Airport. 
Exterior view of the Lalzit Bay complex
Marketing director Peter Walshe shows me around the resort, which will soon include 500 properties, an eight-storey hotel and a health club.
Spacious apartments with surprisingly large bathrooms and sea view balconies sell for around €35,000 (£28,500). A four-bedroom, two-bathroom villa sells for around €232,600 (£189,000).
Compared with prices for similar property in Adriatic resorts like Croatia this seems like pretty good bang for your Lek. But is it safe? According to Peter, it is.
Over lunch at family-run beach shack restaurant Insifa, he tells me: “It’s important to have a good lawyer to check property titles, but buying a new build is an extremely secure option. Especially with the Albanian government’s recent guarantee to ensure the safety of foreign investments.”
As we wolf down Insifa’s speciality seafood pasta, spiked with meaty prawns and brine-fresh mussels, he adds that, with rapidly increasing tourism and EU accession on the cards for 2015, a lot of UK purchasers are buying as an investment or for rental income.
Tirana: a lively and charming town
An hour’s drive along a narrow but well-surfaced road brings me to Tirana. Given the country’s recent past, I expect derelict buildings and run-down shops. But the bustling streets, studded with tall trees, are packed with pavement cafés and an eclectic range of boutiques, selling everything from antiques to designer clothing.
There are still a few reminders of Hoxha’s reign, however, including the concrete bunkers that he ordered the population to build in case of attack. Left to crumble, painted in crazy colours or used as storehouses, there are 700,000 of them strewn around the country.
I hadn’t really planned on property hunting in Tirana, but I am charmed by the lively town, with its colourful houses and lively café culture. So I view a few apartments, including a gloriously large tenth-floor studio with panoramic views over Mount Dajti, selling for around €42,000 (£34,000), and a centrally-located two-bedroom apartment with communal pool for €109,000 (£88,500).
Right Move is a good place to start looking at available property here, and the Rogner Hotel a good place to stay while viewing.
After a last night spent sipping cocktails on The Block, once the seat of the country’s communist party elite and now the heartland of Albania’s hip bar scene, I head for Krujë.
Krujë: a charming mountain village
Several times in its past, Krujë has been the capital of Albania during the middle ages. It sits on the flank of the Skanderbeg mountains, about an hour’s drive from Tirana.
Although the road is good, indications are sparse and I get lost several times en route. Luckily, even though few people speak English, everyone does their best to help. By dint of vigorous sign language I finally make it to this pretty mountain village whose magnificent marble-paved streets and massive mediaeval castle are depicted on the 5,000 Lek banknotes.
With its narrow alleys studded with cobbles and massive stone houses fronted by intricately carved wooden balconies, Krujë oozes charm.
Admiring breathtaking views over forest shrouded mountain to the glittering sea beneath, I muse that Albania is definitely Europe’s forgotten gem. But with Tirana’s glitzy new airport and BA flying direct from Gatwick five times a week, that might not be the case for much longer.