Museums in Tirana

The House of Leaves (Shtëpia me Gjethe) is Albania's museum of secret surveillance, housed in the actual building where the Sigurimi secret police ran their eavesdropping operations. Its name comes from the ivy that once covered the façade, hiding its sinister purpose from passers-by.

The National History Museum (Muzeu Historik Kombëtar) is Albania's largest and most comprehensive museum, occupying a prominent building on the north side of Skanderbeg Square. Its façade features a massive socialist-realist mosaic called 'The Albanians', depicting the nation's journey from Illyrian antiquity to the Partisan liberation.

The National Archaeological Museum (Muzeu Arkeologjik Kombëtar) showcases artefacts from Albania's rich archaeological heritage, spanning from the Neolithic period through Illyrian, Greek, Roman, and Byzantine civilizations. It occupies a modern building near Skanderbeg Square.

Bunk'Art 2 is a downtown nuclear bunker beneath the Ministry of Internal Affairs, transformed into a museum focused on the Sigurimi — Albania's feared communist-era secret police. Smaller and more intense than Bunk'Art 1, it tells the deeply personal stories of political persecution.

Bunk'Art 1 is a massive 3,000-square-metre Cold War nuclear bunker built into the side of Mount Dajt, converted into a striking history museum and contemporary art space. Constructed in secret for dictator Enver Hoxha and the political elite, it now tells the story of Albania's militarised isolation.