It’s not the easiest place to get to, even from one of the busiest airports in the world. But the Albanian coastal city of Sarandë is truly a unique and special place. Sarandë takes some of the best bits of Italy, Greece, and the Balkans and marries them together. The result is a spectacular contrast of ideals and cultures that can only be described as… Albania.
A valley between Sarandë’s coast and the inland mountain range. July 2022.
Growing up, I played soccer (football) and made friends with an Albanian family so visiting their home country had been a long time goal of mine for quite awhile. I got the chance when I read about how you can take a quick ferry ride from the popular Greek holiday island of Corfu. So I added Corfu to the summer holiday itinerary with the sole purpose of visiting Albania for a few days. In fact, we took a taxi straight from the Corfu airport to the Corfu Town Port. Thirty-five minutes later, we stepped foot in the home country of my old soccer pals.
As I mentioned before, Albania is a land of contrasts. The ferry ride over to Sarandë (high speed ferry service on Finikas Lines) was a perfect introduction to this concept. Surrounded by crystal waters of the Ionian while inhaling intense diesel fumes was something of an experience. Being forcibly befriended by a local who apparently knew every single person at both Finikas Lines and the Albanian border security was also fun, if a not a little overwhelming. “For €10 you can have a great night on the town in Albania,” he told me as he handed me three of the six beers he grabbed directly from behind the small counter that only crew were supposed to go behind. “For €100 you can live like a king.” Well, Gëzuar to that.
Turns out my new friend was pretty spot on. A large apartment a few steps from downtown was under €50 for the night. An amazing dinner at a family run restaurant right on the water was under €20 including (several) cocktails and bottled water was something like €0.25. I think this even beats out Budapest as far as bang for your buck goes. We were even treated to a beautiful sunset and a near-full moonrise. Albania’s beauty is astounding. Later that night we sat on the balcony drinking Albanian beer (€0.60/pint) reflecting on the wonderful people we had met and watching the party boat circle the bay. We were already in love with this city.
The next day it was time for some adventuring. If the southern coast of Albania is famous for anything, it is for the beautiful beaches that line the crystal blue waters of the Ionian Sea. Naturally, there are big boats that will take you on day trips to visit several of them. And naturally they leave relatively early in the morning so you have plenty of time to visit them all. And naturally I didn’t really think about this beforehand and we woke up and headed to the harbor well after they had all already gone for the day. Fortunately, we were in Albania.
After unsuccessfully enquiring at a few tourist offices, we came across a local trying to get off of her boat. The boat couldn’t get any closer to the dock and the end of the gangplank was still a short distance away and rocking quite a bit, so we reached and helped steady the boat as she jumped off. This turned out to be a fortunate meeting because here friends had a small boat and were happy to let us charter it for the day. I guess we ended up breaking the “King for €100” rule, but it was easily worth €150 to charter a private boat with snacks and drinks for 5-6 hours. Of course it was a little sketchy at first. Here we were, heading off into the wild blue sea with two strangers with somewhat surly demeanors and who immediately started steering the boat to a less-than-welcoming cove at the outskirts of town, surrounded by abandoned bunkers. Oh yeah, the bunkers. Have I mentioned the bunkers yet?
Bunkers Along the Sea. July 2022.
Albania is covered in some 173,000 bunkers. That’s one bunker for every sixteen people. That’s sixteen bunkers every square mile (or six every square kilometer for my non-USA readers). There’s a playground in downtown Sarandë with a bunker in the middle of it. There’s also a somewhat terrifying statue of Hillary Clinton’s head and guess what’s right beside it? Bunker. Remember the contrast thing I mentioned earlier? Flat grey bunkers on the edge of the sparkling blue sea are a perfect demonstration of that concept.
The Turquoisest Bluest Water I Have Ever Seen. July 2022.
So anyway, we were being taken to our doom by complete strangers, or so it seemed at first. Turns out the sketchy cove at the edge of town is actually the boat gas station. Once we had filled up, we cruised along the beautiful coastline. Eventually, our co-captains dropped anchor a few meters off the shoreline of Krorëza Beach and reached for a little herbal relaxation as we dove into the sea and headed for shore. We spent the next several hours exploring different beaches along the coast, our once-stoic guides becoming much more friendly as the day wore on. The boat returned to port that evening, just in time for dinner. Delicious pizza dinner. A drink or two. Sleep.
Sarandë From Above. July 2022.
The following day we went inland. I thought I was more prepared this time. What I thought was a day-long bus tour turned out to be our own private tour by car. An all-day private tour for about €50. Kings for a Day. We visited the hilltop castle Kalaja e Lëkurësit, and Albania’s famous Blue Hole. Or Blue Eye rather. Either way, it is a beautiful blue spring in the middle of a lush forest valley and surrounded by arid hill tops. And finally the ancient city ruins of Butrint, which has an acropolis older than THE Acropolis. Take that, Athena. We had very pleasant and amazing journey all day until some local traffic cops attempted to shake down our tour guide. I had the American embassy phone number pulled up on speed dial while loud arguments and wild gesticulations occurred outside the car. It was certainly exciting to say the least. But in the end we made it back safely, and in time for the return ferry to Corfu no less. It was a beautiful Albanian adventure full of contrasts, where we lived like kings and haggled like hustlers. I can’t wait to return.
Crystal Waters From the Blue Eye. July 2022.
Recommendations! Basically all the stuff I mentioned. But TL;DR Below:
Butrint, for sure. Worth the whole trip.
Kalaja e Lëkurësit (The castle on the hill)
Krorëza Beach
Honestly the group boat looked fun, if you can get up in time to go. They had a foam party on the deck. And the boat looks like a pirate ship.
Bar Restaurant Limani. Delicious breakfasts with giant portions. Try the Greek.
Shemo Beach Bar & Restaurant. Amazing food, family run, beautiful view. Ridiculously low prices and such a good value.
I hope you enjoyed the stories. If you have any questions or comments, let me know below! Thanks for reading!
Back in Corfu Town, Albania in the Distance. July 2022.