Durrës is Albania’s largest seaport and the main ferry gateway across the Adriatic, so plenty of visitors arrive by sea rather than by air. Several local rental companies will meet you at the terminal or bring a car there. This page covers the crossings, the paperwork and how the handover usually works, so you can plan the first hour after you dock.
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Crossings into Durrës
Most ferries connect Durrës with Bari, around nine hours with the fastest sailings a little under that, and Ancona, roughly sixteen and a half hours. Both routes are usually overnight. The Bari crossing is worked by Adria Ferries, Grandi Navi Veloci and Ventouris, while Ancona is served by Adria Ferries. A few services also reach Trieste, and Brindisi appears rarely. A new ferry terminal opened in 2013, and as of 2014 the port ranked as the largest passenger port in Albania and one of the largest in the Adriatic.
An overnight sailing means you will step off early, often before rental offices open. Build that into the plan rather than assuming a car will be waiting at six in the morning.
Documents to have ready
Keep your passport or national ID and your driving licence where you can reach them quickly. Companies here ask for a licence held for at least a year, and one asks for two years’ driving experience. Minimum ages vary, from 21 for most of one fleet to 23 at another, so check before you pay a deposit.
One local firm asks for a credit card in the main driver’s name for the security deposit, and releases the hold once the car comes back in the same condition. Another takes no deposit at all and is paid in person on collection, by cash or card. Keep the booking confirmation and the company’s phone number somewhere you can reach without mobile data.
Handover at the port
Several firms list the port as a pick-up point. Rei Rental offers delivery to town, hotel, port and Tirana airport, and lists Durrës Port among its pick-up choices. RentCar333 collects at Tirana Airport, the port or your hotel, and answers between 08:00 and 22:00. Donald Rental runs pick-up and delivery 24/7 in Durrës, in Tirana and at Rinas airport; the airport is about 30 minutes from its Durrës office. Others keep office hours: Kryemadhi is open Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 18:00, so a late sailing may mean collecting the next morning.
Confirm the exact meeting point before you travel, because port areas are large and not every company has a desk on the quay. Give the company your ferry name and arrival time, and a phone number that works in Albania. If the boat is delayed, call rather than wait. Inspect the car in daylight if you can, photograph every panel, and note the fuel level and the return time in the agreement. Full-to-full is a common fuel policy, and a late return can cost real money: one company charges a fifth of the daily rate for every hour of delay.
Bringing a car or renting here
If you bring your own car off the ferry, you travel on your own insurance and paperwork, and you carry the risk if something goes wrong. If you rent in Durrës, the car comes with Albanian cover, but you must not take it across a border without the company’s written permission and a Green Card for every neighbouring country except Kosovo. Not every rental can leave Albania, and some can go to one neighbour but not another, so ask before you book if the trip continues north or south.
Renting locally also suits a shorter stay: no extra ferry booking for the car, no border paperwork, and the option of a small car for the city and the coast road. For a longer Balkan tour, a car you already own may be simpler, provided your insurer covers every country you plan to visit.
Before you sail home
Return the car with the fuel level agreed, allow a buffer before check-in, and check where the return is handled — some firms meet you at the port, others ask you to drop the car at their office. If your rental runs to a fixed number of days, count them carefully, since a short ferry delay can push you into another day’s charge. Check when you book, as port arrangements and opening hours change.
More for your Durrës trip
- Local car rental companies based in Durrës
- Day trips from Durrës by car
- Renting a car in Albania: the full guide
Want prices from local companies in Durrës? Send us your dates and we will ask two or three local rental companies for offers. Free for you, no obligation.