Saranda is known for its great activities and its deep blue waters. You won’t get bored if you decide to visit this city. I don’t want to spoil you too much so let’s get into it. Here are 5 of the best things to do in Saranda.
- Enjoy the beach
- Walk on the Bulevardi Hasan Tahsini at night
- Blue Eye (day trip)
- Gjirokastër (day trip)
- Butrint (day trip)
Enjoy the beach
Did you know you can take a ferry of 1h30min from Corfu (Greek Island) to Saranda? This little fact can give you an idea of how amazing the water is since it’s so close to Greece.
There are many beaches in Saranda. The closest one to the city is Saranda Beach. It’s a pebble beach, so don’t forget to bring your flip-flops. The water is hot and blue. This beach is free. There will be more people at this beach since it’s the main one in the city. Here are two suggestions if you prefer a place with fewer tourists:
- Gjiri i Midhjeve: 1000L (10 euros /14$ CAD) to have access to the beach. The price includes 2 sunbeds and a parasol.
- Plazhi Era: 1000L (10 euros//14$ CAD) to have access to the beach. The price includes 2 sunbeds and a parasol.
Walk on the Bulevardi Hasan Tahsini at night
If you are looking for a nice and easy activity, this one is for you! You can also walk on the Bulevardi Hasan Tahsini during the day, I just found it more fun at night. There are a lot of restaurants. It’s close to the sea. At night, this pedestrian promenade offers small stands such as ice cream & waffles. There was a clown doing tricks. You can hear the waves hitting the beach. Honestly, it was just a nice walk to do during the night before going back to my hostel!
Blue Eye
This activity is not located in Saranda. You will need to either rent a scooter (which I did, and it was very easy) or a car. Blue Eye is a 35-minute trip from Saranda (by car or scooter).
Blue Eye is a beautiful water spring. The entrance fee is 50L per person (0.70$ CAD). It’s almost free and totally worth a visit. From the parking, you will walk 10 minutes to get to the blue water spring. You can bring a swimsuit if you dare because the water in the summer is very cold. However, people jump every day in the spring, so you won’t be freezing alone. There are a couple of trails around Blue Eye, so you can easily spend an hour there.
Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër is actually a small town located 1 hour from Saranda. You will need to either rent a scooter (which I did, and it was very easy) or a car. This town represents the beauty of the Balkans countries. There’s not much to do except to walk in the streets and shop for souvenirs. That’s why I recommend visiting this town from Saranda. You can easily spend between 1 and 3 hours there if you plan to eat at a restaurant for lunch or dinner.
To help you plan your trip, here is what I did: I left Saranda around 9 am. I drove my scooter for 35 minutes to Blue Eye. I spent 1 hour there. After that, I drove my scooter for 50 minutes to Gjirokastër. I had lunch there, and I spent 2 hours in the city. Around 1:30 pm, I went back to Saranda.
Butrint
Butrint is a UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It’s a 30-minute ride from Saranda. I rented a scooter, but I know there’s also a public bus you can take to get to Butrint. It costs 700L (10$ CAD) to have access to the National Park. It takes at least a good 2–3 hours to visit the whole site. My favorite places inside Butrint were Butrint Ancient Theater & Butrint Castle (Venetian).
