This tour covers one of the most beautiful coastlines of Albania, with blue deep waters and steep to sea rocky hills, Mediterranean weather, and vegetation, combined with Albanian culture and heritage. The villages of the Ionian sea, typically on the hills have a very particular architecture and picturesque. Saranda is a magic town, especially nightlife. Butrint will complete your understanding of the whole region with our rich historical past. Gjirokastra is totally a different taste with its big houses with Turkish architecture and grey stone color, giving its name of Silver town. At Albania My Way we pay attention to the local flavors which makes our country unique and are committed to making our guest feel those characteristics. We also are sensitive to our guest requests and will accommodate their needs accordingly, whether they need more history, more on communism time, more hiking, etc. We are here to give the best of our country.
Pick up and drop off all travelers at their hotel
8:00 am at the pick up place
English, Italian and Greek
These 2 days are full of sightseeing and visiting old villages, archaeological parks, old fortresses and much more. You will be surrounded by the wild beauty of south Albania, the Ionian Sea, characteristic architecture, good local food, and a warm atmosphere.
This tour is an easy walk and drive, with many visits to natural and historical sites, making it suitable for everyone. The weather most of the time is very nice and comfortable, only during July and August you should bring your hat, sunscreen, and water. A certified tour guide will be with you all the time.
Our day will start early morning at 8 am and will head south of Tirana, towards the National Park of Llogora, the road passes through the marvelous gorge and pine forests. At the top of Llogora pass, we will stop to enjoy a fantastic view of the coast from Llogora to Corfu Island and up to Italy in front of us, on a clear sky day.
We will continue our visit through the seafront with stunning views of the Ionian Sea and the mountains, as well as the villages of Dhërmi, Ilias, Vuno, and Himara. In the bay of Porto Palermo, we will visit Ali Pasha’s castle one of the pearls of Albania, preserved in very good conditions, a monument of cultural heritage.
The road continues towards Saranda where we will arrive late in the afternoon. Free evening in town, where you can enjoy a walk on the promenade by the sea.
Overnight in Saranda
The day starts at 9 am, with a trip to Butrint, the best-preserved archeological park in Albania and part of the UNESCO heritage since 1995, excavated since the late 20s by Ugolini, an Italian archeologist. It is located 18 km south of Saranda and along the way, we will pass the lake with the same name, known for the production of black mussels. The archeological park has a surface of 9 hectares and starts at the Vivari canal linking the sea with Butrinti Lake. Under the freshness of Butrint’s intensive vegetation, we will visit the many objects in the park as the surrounding walls, numerous gates, baptismal, amphitheater, church, etc., and at the end, we will visit the museum rich in local artifacts.
After lunch, we will visit the fortress of Gjirokastra, mentioned for the first time since 1336. Its last reconstruction was made by Ali Pasha Tepelena at the beginning of IXX century. Coming out of the fortress we will walk descending to the old town of Gjirokastra, where we will go through the old, well-kept bazaar, the museum house of dictator Hoxha and Skendulaj’s house.
Later afternoon we will head back and arrive in Tirana at about 8 pm.
