Going to a new country, especially such as Albania, I always try to learn a little history to help me understand traditions and not to be biassed towards either the people or the political past of the country. Albania is a safe country and Albanians are very friendly and respectful to tourists, they are always trying to help in case of difficulty. 

Albania is not a rich country, but despite popular belief, here they will not try to rip you off at every step, but be careful with illegal taxi drivers. Agree in advance about the price and preferably write it on paper, make sure that you understand each other. Otherwise, having arrived at your destination, a taxi driver may ask you for a higher price. If such a dispute has arise and the taxi driver is trying to threaten you with the police - agree to call police. Unlicensed taxis are Illegal and dishonest drivers tend to back down in this case. 

If you are traveling in your car or a rented car, you should be careful on the roads. Road are not good and the car traffic in Albania is very chaotic, not all the rules are followed by drivers, so increased attention here will not hurt. 

When we travel with carry-on luggage, it's always a dilemma how much and what liquids can you take. In Albania protective suncream lotions are very expensive, the cheapest bottle we can find was €15 for a small one, so make sure you have plenty with you. Leave your shampoo or shower gel home because many hotels, even the cheap ones, provide it for free or buy it in the local supermarket and take sunscreen instead. Please remember that you have to split it into several 100ml travel bottles.