Getting to Albania from Podgorica, Montenegro
There are two main ways to get to Albania and Tirana from Podgorica.
By Bus
To get to Tirana from Podgorica, first you go to Ulcinj, on the south coast of Montenegro. There are busses every morning from Podgorica to Ulicinj which will get you there in time for your next bus.
Then there is a bus from Ulcinj to
Skoder, Albania everyday at 12:30 PM. From Skoder there are
busses every hour to Tirana.
It takes about 90 minutes to get to Ulcinj from Podgorica.
It also takes about 90 minutes to Skoder.
And about the same to Tirana.
It costs about 6 euros each part of the trip, so the total will
be around 18 or maybe a bit less even.
In Montenegro you can get as far as Bar by train. Then you must take a bus to get the rest of the way to Ulcinj. The trip from Bar to Ulcinj takes about 20-30 minutes.
By Shared Taxi
From Podgorica you can take a local bus to Tuzi, Montenegro. Note that these busses don't leave from inside the Podgorica bus station. They leave from just outside it, so ask people where you need to wait. There is something of a busstop, but it has no signs. There is one about every 90 minutes.
From Tuzi you can get a shared taxi to Skoder, Albania. You can also pay for a private taxi, but of course this will be more expensive. Possibly 20-30 euros vs 6-10 if you go in a shared taxi. Some taxi drivers will try to charge you too much, so it is good to try to get the help of a local when negotiating the taxi ride. The taxis are quite safe.
The trip to Tuzi is about 15 minutes and costs about 1 euro.
The trip to Skoder is about 90 minutes.
From Tuzi there are busses every hour to Tirana. Cost 4-6 euro.
Hitchiking
You can also hitchike from Podgorica to Tuzi and Skoder relatively easily. If you want you can wait for someone to take you for free, or you can get in a shared taxi.
If you want to do this, walk to past the bus/train station in Podgorica. Then keep going about 600 meters towards the Mex Centar shopping mall. Turn left and walk about 800 meters, going under the train tracks, till you pass a traffic circle. Waiting there is the best spot to start to hitchike.