Sarandë

Sarandë, the gateway to the southern Albania, is a small town of about 33.000 inhabitants, situated on a beautiful horseshoe bay between the mountains and the Ionian Sea. The name Saranda derives from an early Christian monastery dedicated to Agioi Saranta (Forty Saints). In antiquity, Saranda was known as Onchesmus. Located opposite the Greek island of Corfu, Saranda is characterized by a Mediterranean climate and warm sea waters. Saranda typically has over 300 sunny days a year. Due to its location and warm weather Saranda is one of the most attractive tourist towns on the Albanian Riviera, where honeymooners traditionally spend their holidays. Fronting the sea and along the main promenade there are some hotels and restaurants which offer you catering facilities and accommodation. Visitor information Saranda Tourist Info Center (Glass sphere building), Shetitorja Naim Frasheri (Near the Molo by the beach).  edit Get in Saranda can be reached by land or by sea. It is connected with Greece by three routes: (i) To the nearby Greek island of Corfu (New Port). The daily ferryboats are at 10:30; 13:00 and 16:30 (fewer out of season - check with the ticket office at the port). The 10:30 passage is a hydrofoil which takes about 45 minutes. The 16:30 is a car ferry. Corfu is one hour ahead of Albania. (ii) By the border of Qafe Bota with Gumenitsa; (iii) By the border of Kakavi with Ioannina It is reached from other parts of Albania by two important routes: 1. From Vlore it goes through Riviera or "Bregu" (a line of picturesque, gorgeous Mediterranean beaches and villages; Bregu is the summer hostel of the country Prime Minister and President) 2. From Gjrokaster to Tepelene, Fier and Tirana From Tirana to Saranda can be travelled with the bus lines, taxi vans or taxies. The are two itineraries: Tirana-Durres-Fieri-Vlora-Dhermi-Saranda or Tirana-Durresi-Fieri-Mallakastra-Tepelena-Gjirokastra-Saranda. If you travel through Riviera (the first) you should pay more attention as the way is narrow. Albanians from Kosovo and Macedonia follow this itinerary to reach Saranda: Strufe-Qafe Thana-Librazhd-Elbasani-Rrogozhina-Fier and so on. The tourits, who come here from Greece, reach the border of Kakavi in two ways: from Ioannina and Gumenitsa. You can fly from Athine to Ioannina, and then the roadway from Janina to Kakavi takes around 40 minutes by bus or taxi. When you reach Kakavi, you follow this itinerary: Kakavi-Gjirokaster-Jergucat-Qafe e Muzines-Sarande. Though Qafe-Bota, the itinerary is Igoumenitsa-Qafe Bote-Sarande, but the roadway is narrower. The idea of an airport in the village of Vrion is of great interest, because it is only 5 km far from Saranda. A facility is the urban service offered nowdays. Get around See Beautiful and quiet beach at Ksamili Synagogue Ethnographic Museum Ksamili The village of Ksamili is near Sarande. It has a beautiful beach with several small islands you could swim to. The bus from Sarande serves both Ksamili and Butrint. Ksamili is now heavily developed, with a large number of part-completed properties. An extraordinary sight is that some of these new buildings are toppling over; this is believed to be where buildings have gone up without permission, and the police have sabotaged the building by pulling out a couple of upright pillars, leaving the owner to clear up the damage. Butrint Just outside of Ksamili, lies Butrint, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Butrint was an ancient city throughout Greek, Roman, bishopric and Byzantine periods. The city was finally abandoned during the Middle Ages perhaps due to the marsh surrounding and subsequent malaria epidemic. Despite being one of the greatest classical cities of the Mediterranean, Butrint remains largely unknown. The current archaeological site includes an impressive Roman amphitheater, a Byzantine Basilica (the largest in the world after Hagia Sophia in Istanbul), a Roman temple with mosaic floor, a beautifully carved lion's gate as well numerous constructions built throughout the periods. Furthermore, what you see is just 15 per cent of what lies beneath. As of summer of 2005, there is an international archaeological team performing excavations at Butrint which can be observed inside the park. 700 lek entry fee (€5) The amphitheater is used as a performance venue by world amateur theater troops at the annual: Butrinti 2000 International Festival of Theater[1] Picture of the Roman temple at Butrinti Do Above Saranda is the old Castle of Lekures at "Qafa e Gjashtes" (The Pass of Six). There is a nice outdoor restaurant within the castle from which you have panoramic views of Saranda Bay below, the inland mountains, the Butrint Lagoon and the island of Corfu on the Ionian Sea. After visiting Butrint and the Ali Pasha Tepelena Castle, you could go to the Pulbardha Beach and enjoy some great food and relax on the sandy beach. Syri i Kalter is just 25 min away past the city of Saranda. This is a great place to visit and relax. Attractive Travel, rr"Bardhok Biba"(Behind Hotel Tirana International), Fax: 00 355(0)42 244 347 Tel:00 355(0) 682020013 Email:attractivetravel@yahoo.com, . daily. This organization of scholars, professors, and specialists in such fields as architecture, archaeology, art history, and theology organize walking and bus tours for groups and individuals. In the afternoon, when the sun is setting, you should go to Lekures, and watch the sun set, or you could go to the beach and relax with your friends or family while enjoying the beautiful sunset. Something else that you can do, when it’s not a really hot day is to go camping. If it’s not a hot day, camping would be a really good experience, and it would be a change from going to the beach because it could get a bit boring and tiresome to just go to the beach. So for a change you could go camping because not only will you have a good time looking at the stars at night, but you would be trying something different. Something else you should do is visit a new beach each day, such as one day “pllakat” the next day “manastiri” and so on. You should also take a ferry to visit Corfu. Buy Skenderbeu Cognac Miniature bunker from alabaster Albanische Mythologie book Souvenirs made from sea shells in Ksamil LLogara honey is a local speciality - it is sold by various merchants on the road. Eat Sarandë is bustling with restaurants, cafes and bars. Fast food places offer a surprisingly cheap and tasty variety of options: 1 euro will usually get you a good souvlaki (usually pork) or a very nice crepe. Look out for yoghurt flavoured ice cream on the boardwalk, near the tourist info office. In Ksamil, there are a few places you can eat at. At least 4 restaurants in Ksamil are open year-round, but in the summer there are a lot more options and many are just seconds from the beach. If you go to Sarandë, you must try the fish, since Sarandë is next to the sea, restaurants that are located next to water would be the best because those are the places that usually have fresh fish. You should also try the squid, mussel, and shrimp. You should try them in different cooking styles, not just fried. The best time to eat sea products is after a nice long day of swimming. Drink Albanian Raki, the local firewater. Sleep Backpackers SR, Rruga Mithat Hoxha Num 10, Lagja 4 Sarande, 7500 (*Directions from Bus - From the bus stop walk downhill towards the sea, when you reach the promenade turn right on to Ionianet street and walk to the eucalyptus in the center of the road and turn left and 50 metres on the right you will see a yellow and grey building No. 10. At the dark brown door, ring the bell (Tomi) six minute walk. *Directions from the Corfu ferry - Exit the customer area, walk up the ramp, turn right and 50 meters in front you should see a yellow and grey building with an internet cafe on the ground floor. Look for the dark brown door to the left of the creppe shop. Ring the bell named Tomi. One minute walk.), ☎ 00355694345426, [2]. Centrally located in the heart of town, close to everything Saranda has to offer. Bus route 6 min walk, Corfu ferry 1 min, Bus st. to Ksamil/Butrint 1 min, Bus st. to Greece 2 min, beach in front of the hostel, the famous promenade (xhiro) on our doorstep, the farmers market, fresh fruits & vegs 1 min. Open year-round. 14 dorm beds in a new building. Free breakfast. Free wifi. Kitchen. Free Security lockers. Free linen & bedsheets. Free coffee and tea. Roof terrace. Beach BBQ dinners in front of the hostel in the summer. Run by Tomi, a local resident, who is such a nice and helpful guy. He will make you feel right at home by going out of his way to help you out. Knows lots of information about day trips to Butrint and the Blue eye. 11 euro.  edit The Hairy Lemon, ☎ +355 69 355 9317. A small 18 bed hostel run by a great Irish lady. Has hot shower, laundry, free breafast, 24 hour tea and coffee, internet, comfy bunks, large balcony with awesome view of the beach and Corfu. Just a hop skip and a jump from a nice beach with beach chairs and beach umbrellas free after 4 PM! Directions: A taxi from the port costs 3 euros. Otherwise, with your back to the Port turn left and continue on this coastal road (part tarmac and part dirt track) 1 km till you see a sign on the right: 'Pharmacy' and on the left 'Kasandro Restaurant' at the 'Apollonia Hotel' junction. Ask anyone along the coastal road for 'Apollonia Hotel'. From the map 'Andon Lapa Hotel' to 'Apollonia Hotel' is a 2/3 min walk. Above the 'Pharmacy' in the 10 storey lemon and orange building, look up to the 8th floor to see an Albanian flag hanging from their balcony. Go to the opposite side of this building to find the entrance. You can get a key to the building from the shop near the building entrance. Take the lift to the 8th floor. From the lift go left, and the 'Hairy Lemon' awaits you, behind the last door on the left!  edit Jolly Hotel, Dhermi (on the boardwalk), ☎ 068-224-0334, [3]. This small beach village before reaching Sarande has a beautiful beach, and the Jolly Hotel has 4 person rooms for 20 to 25 euros per room (not person!). You can negotiate. The staff, food, room, and location are all great. 20euro.  edit The luxury five star Hotel Butrint in Saranda is prohibitively expensive but very pretty. Another luxury hotel is "Hotel Duraku". The rooms are very comfortable and clean, and the staff is very qualified. It costs around 90euro/night for a family. The simple yet nice Porto Eda Hotel. Holiday Apartments from locals, everywhere in and around Sarande. There are plenty of private houses, apartments offered by locals especially during the high season period. The accomodation offered ranges from low-budget to highly exclusive locations both for low and reasonably high prices. However, if you are traveling in a group of more than 2 people, it is worth a consideration. The apartments can usually accomodate up to 10 people and are much cheaper than a hotel. Furthermore, you can usually cook in the apartment and save some money for the outstanding night life of Sarande. But make sure to book your accomodation in advance, since most of the apartments get booked out very fast.  edit For accomodation in Ksamil You can have a look at www.ksamiliapartments.com Hotel ‘Dea’ tel 00355692724043 e-mail; hoteldea@gmail.com .Probably the best out there in Saranda,with 20 rooms all rooms view on the sea, 3 large suites,big swimming pool,bar restaurant reception 24h/24 private parking,it is only 1 km from the city center so you can just have a nice walk along the road Sarand-Butrinti and you are there Stay safe As everywhere in Albania, some areas suffer from waste disposal issues, and illegal construction, while others from excessive noise pollution by beach clubs. Bottled water is recommended instead of tap water for drinking. Contact Get out Borsh Corfu (Kerkyra) in Greece is the island of grace and politeness. It lies opposite the coast of Epirus mainland and it is separated from Albania in the north part of it by a narrow Strait of 1.5 sea miles. Corfu is the capital of the seven Ionian Islands with an area of 592 square kilometres it is the second largest Island of the Ionian Islands, with a beautiful coastline of 217 km. Corfu is also the greenest island of all Greece. The impressive vegetation of the island consist mainly of olive and cypress trees One way: 19€/Return: 38€. Voyage duration: 25 min. Dhermi Albanian Riviera This article is an outline and needs more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. Please plunge forward and help it grow!