Practical Information on travelling and living in Kosovo

Getting to Kosovo

Access to Kosovo is continuing to improve. Pristina airport hosts regular flights connecting Pristina with London, Zurich, Ljubljana, Vienna, Tirana, Istanbul and other European capitals. Travel companies flying to these locations include British Airways, Albanian Airlines, ADA-Air, Adria Airways, Reiseburo-Aviompex, Tyrolean and Crossair.

Local Taxis

Taxis are always available from the airport to the city centre. The charge is normally around 50 DEM. Once in the city, the average taxi fare is around 5 DEM, most taxis now work on a meter system.

Local Vans

The local mini-buses 3+4 cover most of the city. The cost is 50 pfennings for any number of stops. These are in some places being phased out by a Public Bus Service.

Bus Services

The main bus station in Pristina provides services to a large variety of destinations across the province. Local travel agents are able to organise trips to international destinations.

Accommodation

In Pristina and throughout the regions of Kosovo, hotel accommodation is improving. New hotels, of reasonable quality are being developed. There are several places to stay in Pristina itself and you should expect to pay around 150 DEM per night.

Food

Many restaurants have opened up in the capital serving a wide range of local and international cuisine including traditional Balkan food, Chinese, Italian, Indian and others.

Entertainment

There is a cinema which has thee showings per night of box office hit films. These are usually shown in their mother tongue with Albanian sub-titling. The city is cultivating other activities such as theatre, ballet and live music, cafes, bars and nightclubs.

Telephone

In most major hotels you will find telephones. For international calls dial an outside line (if you need to) then 99 + country code. For calls in Pristina dial 038 + number. Most mobile numbers start with 044. The local network provider has started co-ordinating with the roaming facilities of other international networks so it may be worth checking if your mobile line can work here before you arrive.

Internet/Fax/Photocopy

There are many internet cafes available for public use along with Fax and photocopy booths.

International News

Most hotels are likely to have televisions connected to satellite dishes carrying all major international channels (BBC, CNN, RAI, DW). Most private houses are also connected to satellites. International newspapers can be found in a few places, the most reliable is the news stand in front of the Monaco restaurant by the Sports Centre.