Vasili Restaurant — Hotel in Berat Municipality

They made our experience of our visit to Berat Castle very memorable. We also enjoyed the delicious homemade delicacies. Freddie and Nena were very attentive and made sure we had everything we needed. |||| The Turkish coffee, the homemade Gliko and Raki were fantastic, and the warm conversations at the table in the courtyard are great memories we cherish. We learned some of the traditions while sitting with them, for eg Don’t expect your raki to come in another glass ever. If you order a second raki, you could observe that they will pour the raki into the glass you are currently holding rather than bringing you a new one. Apparently, receiving a new glass denotes receiving a new companion.||||The home fires are started traditionally on Saint Michael's day and kept burning until the summer day. Which is a “traditional” holiday. ||||The belief in the past of this tradition was to connect the living with their deceased loved ones and to commemorate the end of the harvest season. It was believed that the flames of the fire would guide the spirits of the departed to the afterlife.||||In fact, the day supposedly has its origins in ancient pagan rites which were practiced thousands of years ago by the Illyrian tribes living in the western Balkans – and legend has it that these rites have been passed on almost unaltered from generation to generation since then. In case you were wondering about that: the origin of the day’s name can be found in antiquity (because even in Albania, March is not quite summer yet). Back in the time, only two seasons were recognized – summer and winter.||||It is customary in Albania to light fires on the eve of the summers day. This is an ancient tradition believed to ward off evil spirits and promote good luck and happiness for the upcoming year. The fires are often accompanied by music, dance, and food as people gather around the flames to celebrate.||||We highly recommend visiting them while at Berat Castle and experiencing the warm hospitality of Freddie and Nena. Thank you for an...

If you are planning to visit Berat and want an authentic experience with some of the kindest people in the world, look no further. This guesthouse is more than a place to rest your head it is a pure Albanian experience. Nina and Fred along with their son Arjan welcome their guests with open arms, their neighbor and friend Mikel who is also a warm, kind person speaks English and helps keep the conversations going. They all have such warm personalities and wonderful senses of humor. We spent hours sharing stories, talking and enjoyed many laughs. It was such a wonderful human experience. One thing me and my wife like most about traveling is the opportunity to meet locals, to learn about their lives and to enjoy their company. Breakfasts were wonderful and filling and we had the great pleasure and honor to have dinner with them one evening. Nina prepared a wonderful dinner and while it is difficult to admit - because I enjoyed giving Fred a hard time :-) - he did provide excellent service in delivering the meals and topping off our wine glasses. I give them my highest rating and I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to spend a couple of days in...

If you are planning to visit Berat and want an authentic experience with some of the kindest people in the world, look no further. This guesthouse is more than a place to rest your head it is a pure Albanian experience. Nina and Fred along with their son Arjan welcome their guests with open arms, their neighbor and friend Mikel who is also a warm, kind person speaks English and helps keep the conversations going. They all have such warm personalities and wonderful senses of humor. We spent hours sharing stories, talking and enjoyed many laughs. It was such a wonderful human experience. One thing me and my wife like most about traveling is the opportunity to meet locals, to learn about their lives and to enjoy their company. Breakfasts were wonderful and filling and we had the great pleasure and honor to have dinner with them one evening. Nina prepared a wonderful dinner and while it is difficult to admit - because I enjoyed giving Fred a hard time :-) - he did provide excellent service in delivering the meals and topping off our wine glasses. I give them my highest rating and I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to spend a couple of days in...