Why do you ask what floor the new flat is on?

Because it decides the unload, and because on an international quote almost nobody asks. A fourth floor is a fourth floor whether it is in Hackney or Tirana.

Do you drive it yourselves?

On a sole-use load, normally yes. On groupage the load travels with others and is handled more at both ends. We will tell you which applies rather than leaving it vague.

What if a vehicle cannot reach the building?

Then the carry becomes part of the job and we plan for it — a smaller shuttle vehicle or a longer trolleyed carry. It is an ordinary problem and a bad surprise.

Can you take furniture apart for the journey?

Yes, and on a long road route it is frequently the right answer for anything tall or rigid. We rebuild at the far end.

THE FAR END

London to Albania

Removals from London to Albania

A road destination, and an apartment country. Almost everybody moving here is moving into a flat on a floor, in a building with a lift that may or may not take a wardrobe — and on an international quote that question almost never gets asked. Here it is the first one.

A fourth-floor flat in Tirana is a fourth-floor flat. Distance does not change what a stairwell can take.

Six questions about the far end

What we need to know about the new address

The floor number Not "upstairs". The actual storey, because it decides the unload.

Lift or no lift And if there is one, its door width — the same measurement we ask for in London.

The stairwell Open or boxed in, which decides whether anything can go over the rail.

The street approach Whether a full-size vehicle can reach the entrance at all.

The flat door Clear opening. New-build doors in the region are frequently narrower than UK ones.

Who will be there Somebody with keys and authority, at the address, at the far end.

The route

Overland through France, across the Alps or down the Adriatic side of Italy, then by ferry or through the northern land border. It is a long road journey on mixed roads, and the last part of it is harder on furniture than the motorway miles.

Sole use or groupage

Sole use means your load travels alone and is handled twice — loaded in London, unloaded at the address. Groupage means it is consolidated with others going the same way, which costs less and adds handling at both ends. On a long road route each extra handling is a real risk to anything rigid and fragile.

Who moves on this route

Albanian households in London returning permanently, usually with a flat's worth.
People buying an apartment in Tirana or on the coast and furnishing it from here.
Families moving for work, with a short timescale and a part load.
Second-home owners sending furniture in stages rather than all at once.

Destination areas

Where the load is actually going

Tirana Dense apartment blocks, mixed vintages, lifts ranging from new to original.

Durrës Coastal apartments, many recent, with narrow approaches near the front.

Vlorë and the south coast Hillside developments where the approach decides more than the storey.

Shkodër and the north Older stock, wider streets, lower buildings.

Rural addresses Unmade approaches, worth a photograph before anybody sets off.

Paperwork

Who holds which document

You supply the documents and make the declarations, and their accuracy is legally yours. What follows is what is normally involved on this route — it is not advice and it is not exhaustive. Requirements change and the authorities publish the current position.

Passport and residence documents YouFor whoever the load is consigned to at the far end.

Itemised inventory UsBuilt as we load, and it must match what is declared.

Declaration of personal effects YouUsed household goods rather than goods for sale.

Proof of previous residence YouCommonly requested where a returning-resident relief applies.

Transport documentation UsPrepared for the road leg and the border crossings.

Restricted items list UsSupplied before packing. Read it before anything is boxed.

Arriving, and the stairwell at the other end

The reason we ask about the floor is that we are the ones carrying it up. On a road move the crew that loaded in London is frequently the crew that unloads, which means every measurement we took at the London end has to have a counterpart at the Albanian one.

Tirana's housing stock spans a very wide range. A recent block may have a generous lift and a wide lobby; a building from the socialist period may have a small original lift with a narrow door, or none at all above a certain line. Neither is a problem if we know which it is.

Street access is the other thing worth establishing. Central Tirana has streets a full-size vehicle cannot usefully enter, which turns the last part of the delivery into a carry — exactly the same problem as a suspended bay in London, and solved the same way if it is known about.

London to Albania

Questions about moving to Albania

Why do you ask what floor the new flat is on?: Because it decides the unload, and because on an international quote almost nobody asks. A fourth floor is a fourth floor whether it is in Hackney or Tirana.
Do you drive it yourselves?: On a sole-use load, normally yes. On groupage the load travels with others and is handled more at both ends. We will tell you which applies rather than leaving it vague.
What if a vehicle cannot reach the building?: Then the carry becomes part of the job and we plan for it — a smaller shuttle vehicle or a longer trolleyed carry. It is an ordinary problem and a bad surprise.
Can you take furniture apart for the journey?: Yes, and on a long road route it is frequently the right answer for anything tall or rigid. We rebuild at the far end.

Send us one measurement

The clear diagonal across the tightest turn on your staircase, corner to corner, with the handrail in place. That single figure answers more questions about a London move than a room-by-room inventory does.

Get a price Ask about a staircase