Some photos showed mostly the newly opened Skanderbeg Square and the people’s emotions while refreshing the waters of the fountains in this square. The weather was so hot in Tirana these two months, so people, especially the children, used the numerous fountains in this Square to freshen up, and the images were just fantastic.

Other photos were from the nature around Tirana, from the Artificial Lake and newly explored destinations such as Erzeni Canyons and Cyclop Eye, where the combination of turquoise waters and green nature was stunning.

The photos from other known attractions, such as Pyramid, New Bazaar (Pazari i Ri), National Museum, and sunset photos were also part of this competition.

The competition was not only based on the best photography, i.e., judging the technique and professional side, but also on several aspects to consider.  It was rather from a tourism promotion point of view, aiming to intrigue foreign travelers’ curiosity and desire to come and visit our city. Our team at VisitTirana has aimed to promote Tirana in every season, to show the best images of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, but also to promote new attractions and destinations of the city.

The winners

In this framework, the staff of Visit Tirana selected the top 10 photos, based on the number of votes and the diversity of places photographed, to have a broader picture of the city during this summer, including attractions, nature, the city center, and the surroundings, day photos, and sunset, etc.  Three winners have been selected among the top ten:

First Prize: Dritan Zaimi (photo: Tourists climbing the Pyramid of Tirana). Dritan will enjoy a one-night stay at Rogner Hotel and free entrance at the pool on the day, considered as one of the best hotels for business and leisure situated along Main Boulevard of Tirana.

Second Prize: Ani Treska (photo: Jumping in Skanderbeg Square). Ani will enjoy a lunch for two at il Gusto restaurant whose gourmet cuisine offers delicately prepared dishes to fit anyone’s taste.

Third Prize: Erida Haloci (photo: View over Erzeni Canyon). Erida will get dental services for free from Dentalux: consultation, teeth cleaning, and dental radiography).

Two certificates of gratitude were given to Alla Simacheva and Valter Zharra for their precious contribution to all #VisitTirana social media contests with beautiful professional photos. Both were winners in previous competitions.

Ceremony at Reja

The awarding ceremony was held in a friendly and warm atmosphere at Reja on 14 September 2017. The ceremony started with fantastic violin sounds and continued with announcing the winners. All the winners thanked VisitTirana for organizing such a competition to engage photographers and allow amateurs to show their passion for photography. They considered Visit Tirana an open window for all the young and brave photographers who love the city.

www.visit-tirana.com  is the tourism portal of the capital of Albania. Being the main media for promoting Tirana as tourism destination, VisitTirana organizes these social media competitions to engage young people in taking photos of different places in Tirana, contributing to overall promotion of the city.