Albania’s low cost of living, visa-friendly policies and natural beauty are drawing a small but growing number of Americans to settle in the Balkan country, even as most U.S. visitors continue to come only as tourists.
The Mediterranean nation welcomed 11.7 million foreign visitors in 2024, including 306,000 from the Americas, up 15.2% from the previous year, government data show.
Among them are Alicia Walter and her husband Nathan Stark, who left San Diego in 2023 after traveling the world. “Albania is absolutely gorgeous and still feels untouched by mass tourism,” Walter told Business Insider. “The food is some of our favorite anywhere, and the locals are incredibly welcoming.”
The couple now rent a one-bedroom apartment near central Tirana for about $520 a month, less than half what they paid in California.
Other expats cited cheap rents, the ability to stay up to a year without a visa, and Albania’s location within easy reach of Europe’s major cities as reasons to relocate.
Still, challenges remain in a country rebuilding after decades of isolation under communism and a damaging 2019 earthquake that left scars on the capital’s infrastructure.
“Learning Albanian is tough, and many expats only stay a year or two,” said Cheryl Orlov, a former Los Angeles resident who now lives in Tirana. “But Albania’s culture and history are so rich — it’s mind-blowing.”
Digital nomads and retirees are also being drawn in by Albania’s affordability. “The coastal photographs looked so nice I thought they were AI-generated,” said American writer Greyson Ferguson, who moved from Argentina to Tirana earlier this year.
Though most acknowledge the move is not permanent, many say Albania offers a less stressful lifestyle compared to the U.S. “I didn’t realize how stressed I was in America until I moved to Tirana,” Walter said.