The goal of a prosperous future for Albania’s rural communities is at the heart of the Sustainable Rural Development project. To this end, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and with cofinancing from the governments of the UK and Switzerland, GIZ has teamed up with local companies and Albanian ministries. Sustainable and digital tourism initiatives and innovations in agriculture are opening up new opportunities for people in rural areas.
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GIZ/Jurgen Duro
New horizons
Albania will take centre stage as the official host country at the ITB 2025 travel trade show in Berlin. Located in the Western Balkans, Albania has so much to offer visitors. GIZ is supporting a number of local partners to ensure that the upsurge in tourism also benefits rural areas. A visit to the cultural and architectural heart of northern Albania.
Text: Alice Ophelia Taylor
Climbing the steps to Kulla Hupi is like travelling back in time. The traditional tower house rises impressively against the vast sky of northern Albania, each stone witness to a long history. This iconic building has been owned by the Hupi family for generations.
Kullas, old defensive towers that also functioned as residences, date back to the time of the Ottoman Empire. They were widespread in northern Albania, Kosovo and parts of Montenegro. In troubled times, they served to protect the extended family from attackers, although people also gathered there to celebrate and share stories. The towers are closely linked to the region’s strong sense of family. Today, only a few of these structures remain.
It was precisely this family connection that prompted Julian Hupi to breathe new life into the old building. ‘It was a promise I made to my grandfather,’ says the 39-year-old, whom everyone calls Luli.
‘Tower Tour’ links nine kullas
The former miner has transformed his family’s stone heritage into an authentic guesthouse. Kulla Hupi has become an emblem of sustainable tourism and cultural revitalisation in the region, and has inspired others. It is part of the ‘Tower Tour’ project, which now links nine kullas in northern Albania. Travelling between them, visitors can experience the culture, hospitality and traditional food of each location.
Among a series of measures, GIZ has supported the pilot project and work to develop an agritourism app. The aim is to make the region more accessible to individual tourists and tour operators.
In turn, this will create new economic opportunities for Albania’s rural areas. Those are urgently needed. In recent years, many young men and women from rural Albania have moved to the capital Tirana or further afield in Europe. Indeed, this was the path followed by Luli Hupi. As a young man, having grown up on the outskirts of the northern mining town of Bulqiza, he saw no future in his homeland. Until 1990, the region had been a centre of chromium mining during the years of communist rule. Later, as fewer and fewer people found work in the area, the number of inhabitants fell sharply.
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GIZ/Jurgen Duro
Renaissance of the kullas
After several years working abroad, Luli Hupi finally returned to Albania with one resolution – to fulfil his grandfather’s wish and restore the kulla. This was no easy task as the tower had fallen into a poor state over the years, but Luli was determined. He began the painstaking restoration work around eight years ago using traditional techniques and materials. The thick stone walls, wooden beams and handcrafted furnishings transport guests back to a bygone era, while at the same time providing comfortable accommodation.
‘I want every second to be authentic for my guests,’ says Luli Hupi with a grin, before everyone takes their shoes off at the door – as is customary in Albania. He leads the way through the kulla. The ground floor, which used to house sheep, poultry and agricultural equipment, now provides space for his family’s living area, a kitchen and the guesthouse restaurant. The first floor, where several generations of the family once lived, has been divided into hotel rooms – some with balconies and en-suite bathrooms, others with large fireplaces and decorated with sheepskin rugs and traditionally woven fabrics.
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GIZ/Jurgen Duro
‘I want every second to be authentic for my guests.’
Luli Hupi
Owner of the tower guesthouse Kulla Hupi
For Luli Hupi, the reconstruction of the family kulla has been a personal success, but he also wants it to motivate others and bring wider social benefits. As a board member of the Albanian Agritourism Association, he encourages young people from the area to invest in the tourism potential of their region. Having led the way, Luli believes the prospects are good, as long as the right training and support are available during the start-up phase: ‘The future of the region lies above the ground, in its heritage, its landscape and its people. Kulla Hupi is just the beginning.’
Albanian variety
GIZ/Katerina Deli
Zoom on Albania: GIZ has supported the development of the Agritourism AL app and the website so that rural regions can also develop and better market tourism offers.
Albanian Climbing Festival
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GIZ/Orion Bregu
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GIZ/Orion Bregu
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