Villa Gjecaj, a cables hut, inn, or family-run hotel – our building reflects its rich history and the moving stories from generation to generation. These stories involve the resistance during Communism Regime and great sacrifices for the everyday bread, great love, upsetting loss, and brave women. The history of the building cannot be separated from the history of the Gjeçaj family. The past meets the future in our traditional family-run hotel. A holiday in the Thethi Valley area always involves something of a step back in time – without ever leaving the comforts of our contemporary world. Would you care to accompany us as we take a walk down memory lane?
The ‘Kulla’ of Ded Ndre Markut – Gjeçaj
“Ded Ndre Marku (Gjeçaj) would be proud of how we have grown his tower today”
1922
Our great-grandfather Ndre Marku builds this alpine building as a shelter for cattle, placed in the middle of the fertile plains of Gjeçaj, right in the center of
Thethi valley. During this construction, Ndre’ put a specially shaped stone in the corner of the house, a woman breast sculpted by nature itself, as a memory of his son’s mother who died giving birth. He grows up as an orphan and an only child.
1958
The centralization of all private property in the hands of the State, during the Communist Regime, in the so-called Agricultural Cooperatives forced our grandfather, Ded Ndre Gjeçaj to make a deal with the local officials, to give away as a cooperative property all his lands with the condition to save his cattle hut, in order to transform it in a dwelling building. Deda did this request because he wanted to protect his land from collectivization and make a house for his three sons.
1959
Creation of a family hearth with the reconstruction on enlarging and adding one extra floor, sufficient housing for Deda’s new family with his three sons Marku – Ndoci and Gjoni.
1986
After the marriage of the brothers and the separations between them, the house became the property of Ndoci with his family and their parents Deda and Lula.
1992
With the fall of the totalitarian Communist regime in Albania and the return of private property, everybody could develop its property again.
2006
Thethi had its firsts tourists, Czech and Polish, English and German, and the tower of Ndoc Gjeçaj opens its doors to welcome the first tourists with the minimal conditions of hospitality “Bread and salt and a white heart”.
We are now in the third generation of residence in this tower, after Ndre Marku and his son Deda, now it is the time of Deda’s son, Ndoci, with his family to welcome guests.
2008
With hard work, long, intensive days caring for the guests, and years of frugality, the small guest house grew in size with each passing year, improving year after year the standard and facilities from a house to a guest house.
2013
In the spring of this year and added two greenhouses with fundings from MADA (Mountain Areas Development Agency) which was a great contribution in order to have fresh and local vegetables at least one month earlier from the usual season.
In addition, began the construction of a building with 5 standard rooms as a touristic accommodation structure.
2013
In November of this year, Petrit and Aida got married, the Ndoci’s only son, thus creating the fourth generation of the Gjeçaj family. A man with a clear vision for the future of his family’s property from generation to generation.
2014
This year got operative the ‘New House’ with 5 double rooms with balconies, bathroom included, and other facilities that were ‘avant-garde’ for the area, but not for the world, for those countries where tourists come from. This was the first meaningful step forward on the business growth and on the accommodation standards.
2016
Since the tower was very small, Ndoci and his son Petrit decided to reconstruct it with the help of an architecture studio, adding an extra residential floor according to the traditional style of the old towers of the northern mountains, covering it with wooden slabs.
An ecological reconstruction all with wood, from the roof to the floor of the ceiling. Intertwined with other lightweight ecological materials and refurbished electrification and heating systems that were once again necessary to take the next step toward the standards and quality of services. The tower now distributes 12 rooms of which only 8 for the hospitality of tourists.
2017
This year it was time to renovate the inner restaurant space. Our guests are ready for an unusual dining area. The new dining room is a triumph of light, stone and wood construction, colors, and atmosphere.
2018
The surrounding premises by arranging the premises for the creation and establishment of an outdoor restaurant with wooden tables for the outside and proper lighting.
Improving the outdoor area, around the guesthouse, creating an outdoor restaurant space with wooden tables and other surrounding facilities.
2020
In order to save the health of our parents, Ndoci and Lula, who use to live in Theth all year long, both in winter and in summer, we decided together that the structure should not open its doors due to Covid-19.
Today
We like to be hosts, love our small hotel, and work to honor the name of our ancestors. We like to leave a mark on the local hospitality and promoting the standards and quality in the area by keeping pace with the times. And this is how we want to continue…