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Visiting the albanian riviera

Our base to explore the Albanian Riviera was Himarë. We liked this small town so much that just after our first relaxing afternoon at Himarë beach we decided to revise our original travel plan and skip the most touristic area of Sarandë to make Himarë the longest stop-over of our Albanian journey: a big four nights out of 13!

Of course, we didn’t spend all four days lying down on Himarë beach (although Silvia would have loved that!) but we explored both the Northern part of the Albanian Riviera (and so Gjipe, Vuno and Jalë) and the southern area (Porto Palermo, Borsh and Qeparo).

The first thing I couldn’t help noticing about the Albanian Riviera is that it is dotted with abandoned bunkers from the Enver Hoxha era. The former Albanian dictator was so consumed by his fear of a military invasion that he literally covered the whole country with concrete bunkers, which still guard both the coast and the hinterland like a neglected army of untended beetles.

Another quintessential feature of the Albanian Riviera is that the Albanian mountain chain runs very close to the coast. Sometimes those rounded, sensual mountains end straight into the sea, forgetting to leave some room for the beach; but when they do remember, you will spot many narrow, secluded beaches nestled among the rocky cliffs.

The downside of this beautiful landscape feature is that to reach the next beach you should drive up to the mountain and then back down again. Undoubtedly, this contributes to the bad reputation of Albanian roads but -at least- the State Highway running along the coast is paved, which is not something you can say for all Albanian state highways!

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Many of those small towns along the Albanian Riviera are made of big, modern buildings: sometimes they are even completed, while more often they just have one floor or two completed and inhabited while the rest of the building is just an open structure, which makes them seem some kind of modern stilt-houses.p>

But, if you look deeper, you will find those characteristic villages made of stone houses, blue doors and a vineyard under each porch, or even ghost villages abandoned during the 1990s’ big exodus. Those ghost villages have been a fascinating discovery of my trip along the Albanian Riviera; I loved wandering around their narrow cobbled streets, surrendering to the powerful image of modern ruins and abandoned buildings climbed by Nature that is taking back its spaces and re-establishing its supremacy on the planet.

The Albanian Riviera is also very wild and populated by many different species of animals: driving along the glorious state highway number 8 we happened to meet donkeys, cows, turtles, frogs, sheep, boars, dogs, goats and many other animals!

The beach of Livadhi and a abandoned house at the castle city of Himara.
The beach of Livadhi and a abandoned house at the castle city of Himara.
Abandoned houses at the castle city of Himara.
Beach at he bay of Panormi and the church os Saint Nicholas.

Julia Bloca

Hi! I am Giulia and I blog about unconventional destinations, abandoned places, street art, outskirts, urban landscapes, weird spots and basically all the places I happen to visit and become very enthusiastic about.

Plan Your Trip

How to arrive

It is easy to reach Himara and travel around the region once you arrive. By air from Tirana or Corfu airports, by ferry from Corfu, by bus or by your own car.

How to get around

Read about buses, taxis and ferry’s that tie the region together in a web of sea and land connections operated by both large and small scale operators.

Useful Informations

We have compiled useful information and good advise for your visit in the Region of Himara in our list of Frequently Asked Questions.

When to come

Summer is a season of swimming and partying , while spring is for exploration and sightseeing, read about when is the perfect time to Visit Himara.

Visit Himara

About Visit Himara

VISIT HIMARA aims to provide all the essential information that a visitor might need on their next adventure to the Region of Himara. The data has been collected from Google Maps, Wikipedia, Local Guides and Personal Experience.

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  • When to go
  • Himariot Culture
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Other Websites By Visit Himara:

  • explorehimara.al
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