Saffron season in Dëshiran: what happens in late October
Updated July 2026 · 5 min read
For a few weeks in late October the fields at Dëshiran flower violet and growers pick crocus stigmas by hand for Zafferano di Dumre. Each flower gives three red threads, picked at dawn before the sun opens them fully. You can join a morning harvest.
A genuinely unusual crop
Saffron is not what you expect to find in central Albania, but Dëshiran grows it and sells it as Zafferano di Dumre. It is the single strangest and most memorable thing on the plateau.
When to come
The flowering is short — a few weeks in late October — and the picking happens early, because the stigmas are gathered before the flowers open in the day’s heat. Come for the morning and you will have your hands stained by lunch.
Common questions
When is saffron harvested in Belsh?
In late October, over a short flowering window of a few weeks. The picking is done in the early morning.
Can visitors join the harvest?
Yes — we run morning harvest visits with the growers at Dëshiran during the season. Book ahead, as the window is short.
Planning this trip?
Tell us your dates and where you’re coming from — we’ll sort the tour or the transfer.