Trip Dossier · Personal & practical

Netherlands → Albania

Everything you need for a smooth solo trip to Durrës. Short version: you are cleared to go. Your Ukrainian passport and your Dutch permit each get you in, so the rest is just a couple of documents to carry.

Traveller

You · age 17

Nationality

Ukrainian

Entry documents

Passport + NL permit

Destination

Durrës, Albania

Entry rights

You are allowed in - two ways over

Two independent rules both let you into Albania without a visa, and both apply to you, so one is a backup for the other:

Your Ukrainian citizenship - Albania is visa-free for Ukrainians.
Your Dutch residence permit - a valid Schengen residence permit gives visa-free entry for up to 90 days on its own.

Carry both, every day

Take your Ukrainian passport and the physical Dutch permit card. The permit card is what lets you back into the Netherlands, so it is not optional.

Departure · Netherlands

At the Dutch airport

Dutch border police (the Marechaussee) sometimes stop a person under 18 who is travelling without both parents and ask to see written permission. The airline can ask at the gate too. It is routine, and it is there to keep young travellers safe.

Your parents are preparing the consent letter for exactly this. Keep it with your passport where you can reach it quickly.

The consent letter

Good news: no notary needed

Because you travel without your parents, carry a short letter signed by both parents saying they permit this trip. It does not have to be notarized:

For leaving the Netherlands and boarding - the checkpoint that can actually stop you - the official Dutch government consent form only needs to be filled in, printed, and signed by both parents, with a copy of a parent's ID. No notary.
For the Albanian border - notarization is not a written rule for foreign tourists, and your Ukrainian-citizen plus Dutch-permit status already makes your entry straightforward.

Make an un-notarized letter strong

Both parents sign by hand, write it in English, and attach copies of both parents' passports plus a phone number they can be reached on during your trip.

Your hotel

Old Town Villa, Durrës

Good news from the hotel's own rules: there is no minimum check-in age, so you can check in by yourself. Keep your booking confirmation on your phone and printed as a backup.

Check-in

13:00 – 00:00

Check-out

until 11:00

Min. age

None

Pay with

Visa · Mastercard · Cash

Booking & payment

Yes, you can book and pay yourself

Booking.com allows you to make and pay for a reservation from age 16, so the booking you made is valid. At the villa you can settle by card or in cash. If the rate is refundable, even better, since it keeps your options open.

The flight

You fly as a normal passenger

At 17 you travel as a regular adult passenger. The "unaccompanied minor" service ends years earlier, so you do not need it. Just glance at your airline's young-traveller page once before the day, in case they have a small form of their own.

Pack this

Your document checklist

Ukrainian international passport Biometric, valid at least 3 months past your return date
Dutch residence-permit card Carry it with the passport, not instead of it
Parental consent letter, both parents' signatures Official Dutch form, printed and signed - no notary needed
Copies of both parents' passports Clip them to the consent letter
Hotel booking confirmation On your phone and printed
Travel / health insurance card Bring your EHIC if you have one
Parents' phone + email Written on the consent letter
A card or cash for the hotel

Rules can change, so confirm the details with your airline before you fly, and if anything is unclear, an Albanian embassy can give the final word. Prepared with love. Have an amazing trip to the Adriatic.