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Sarandë

Sarandë

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  • foxix4
    Manchester, United Kingdom32 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Relaxing out of season is best
    We visited out of season which probably made our trip better than some of the reviews here! Had a relaxing time and can recommend Sushi at ‘Lost’ in the daytime overlooking the sea, and dining at Manxurane in the evening - best restaurant by far. You need a car here to get anywhere, but it’s worth a visit if you’re visiting Albania.
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written October 11, 2023
  • lonjon
    Edinburgh, United Kingdom267 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Nice Bay Area but nothing behind the scenes .
    Visited Sarandë from Tirana . Travelled by bus which was better than expected and was bang on time . Sarande looks great , horse shoe bay but man made beach . Nothing behind the facade though , not very nice with pavements dug up everywhere . Supermarkets were also pretty poor . We had a great apartment with balcony but getting any quality food to cook was impossible . The restaurants too although cheap were pretty ordinary . There is one with prices higher than UK on the front which never looked very full , don’t know what their food was like . Prices extortionate by Albanian standards though . A lot of new hotels on west side of bay but beware , you only get the sun in the morning so if taking one of these you may get a view but no sun in the afternoon . All in all , we would say it’s a one off unlike Tirana which is certainly worth another visit . Also , think hard about how much time to spend here , we spent four days which was one too much in our eyes . Remember credit cards are frowned upon but accepted sometimes if you stick to your guns . If you are in Corfu , it’s certainly worth a day trip .
    Visited May 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 8, 2024
  • Seaside54532531628
    2 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Not cheap and in development. Dont waste money
    Its ok,nice coast but mainly pebble beach. Its NOT cheap and prices comparable to western europe. As its in development, nothing functions effeciently and roads are broken; not much going on behind the beach. Honestly stick to turkey, spain Greece as price wise its the same, and these contries offer a lot more.
    Visited May 2024
    Traveled solo
    Written May 18, 2024
  • heckfy
    1,210 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Not for everyone
    If you are looking for a packaged vacation in a well developed area - look for some other place. Albania is a unique place in Europe and it's not as developed as the neighboring countries. So do your research first. It may be an eye opening trip or a waste of money - depending on what you're looking for.
    Visited June 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written June 18, 2024
  • LordSmithers T
    Stafford, United Kingdom37 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Sadly not recommended
    I am disappointed in Sarandë as a whole. If was crowded, busy, dirty and very expensive. I regret booking time here but I am thankful if was just 4 days out of the 12 total. There are much better places to go in Albania (which generally speaking O love).
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written July 5, 2024
  • Jarek P
    Crawley, United Kingdom58 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Poor value for money
    Underdeveloped, overpriced, poor roads and dilapidated pavements, poor architecture, abandoned construction sites everywhere. Shady economy nearly everywhere, hardly any proper historic sites . For family holidays go elsewhere, Greece, Spain Portugal offer far better services and attractions for the same monies. Should have done more research before booking the flights
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written July 7, 2024
  • Uruch B
    Leuven, Belgium35 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Think twice before you go there
    Mixed feeling and experience. The sea: amazing though very salty. The area, the city, the infrastructure: terrible. The city has developed at such a speed that they have forgotten or simply ignored the fact that a beach town also needs decent roads, streets, sidewalks, parking, you name it. Very steep roads and streets, highly overpriced, terrible non-stop music; trash everywhere. We came here because of what we read in decent outlets (praising the views, etc.), but what they failed to mention is that it is poorly built, maintained and organized. We very much doubt that the city's mayor care much about it: the only thing that matters is money and there is plenty of it flowing. I saw how some British young tourists paid ridiculous amount of money in euros and were paid back in Lek (Albanian currency) without even checking them. Even the beach facilities were very poor: no shower and very dirty beds. Overall one of the worst experiences.
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written July 16, 2024
  • Sull
    6 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Awful!
    We did a day trip from Corfu to Sarande (easy to do, one hour by ferry) but I would not recommend it. The place is really touristy and tacky. Loads of pirate boats (which you may like) and rubbish in the harbour and not a whole lot to do in the town. We found a restaurant someone had recommended which was awful and ended going to Ksamil (again based on reviews). We couldn't find the bus or anyone helpful to guide us so ended up jumping in a taxi (50 euros roundtrip) to see another tacky place with beds packed in at every space on the beach. If you do make the trip you can use euros everywhere, just have cash.
    Visited September 2024
    Traveled with friends
    Written September 22, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


3.0
3.0 of 5 bubbles125 reviews
Excellent
25
Very good
23
Average
20
Poor
27
Terrible
30

These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
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CarlosAthenesi
Sao Paulo, SP142 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2024 • Couples
We made a trip between June and July to the Balkans, from Trieste (Italy) to Saranda (Albania), through cities in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Montenegro.

When planning the trip, I did not find so much information about Albania - we passed through Tirana, Berat, Girokaster, Ksamil and Saranda - and after the trip I realized that a lot of information found was incorrect. Here are some points that I think are important to know.

Tirana: the capital is an amazing city, very safe, beautiful (mostly at night) and with good prices. In fact, one of the reasons that are often cited to visit Albania are the prices; however, I did not find the prices so good in places outside the capital, although they are lower than in other European countries. In caiptal yes, we had good experiences in accommodation in the Hotel Opera, which is very well located in the center, and in restaurants such as the Tartufo Shop and the Eden and the Mulliri Vjeter cafeteria.

From Tirana to the coast: bus or car? Per ⁇ the biggest inconvenience of the whole trip was making that choice. We realized, however, that the transport by bus to the Albanian Riviera was very precarious, in small and uncomfortable buses; and once there, we would have to continue depending on public transport (which, outside of Tirana, proved precarious during this period of our journey). That’s why we chose to rent a car at Rent Point Albania. There was a lot of information on the internet about the dangers of driving in Albania; our experience, however, was excellent with the car: we managed to go to Berat on the trip from Tirana to the Riviera, and then it was very quiet the move from Saranda, where we stayed at the Hotel Chicago (great cost benefit), to Ksamil, Blue Eye, Girokaster. I have driven through some complicated places, such as the Amalfi Coast, Los Angeles, São Paulo (where we live) and it was very quiet driving in Albania. The three main points of attention are:
- outside of Tirana, the roads are always simple and very winding, so it is worth the prudence of always when travelling on roads like these, when making overcrossings, passing crossings, etc; otherwise, the roads were all in excellent conditions of driving, and were not pedaged;
- Saranda, Ksamil, Girokaster, are like other typical cities in Europe, as little space for cars, even to park; so it is worth choosing a hotel with parking and CONTRACT the full insurance when renting the car, because some other car may eventually crash in yours and, when returning the car, the full insurance will free you from inconvenience and extra expenses;
The fuel is expensive, but the landscapes we saw on the car trip, from the Albanian Alps, is another reason to travel by car; it is among one of the most beautiful car trips we have ever made.

Internet: we hire the Claro Europe Passport, to use the mobile on the trip. It did not work well in Montenegro, but in other locations (including Allbânia) it was quite satisfactory.

Communication: we had no problem communicating in English; only at the Saranda hotel we had a little difficulty, but there was always someone who spoke the least to establish communication.
Automatically translated
Written July 8, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Uruch B
Leuven, Belgium35 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
Mixed feeling and experience. The sea: amazing though very salty. The area, the city, the infrastructure: terrible. The city has developed at such a speed that they have forgotten or simply ignored the fact that a beach town also needs decent roads, streets, sidewalks, parking, you name it. Very steep roads and streets, highly overpriced, terrible non-stop music; trash everywhere. We came here because of what we read in decent outlets (praising the views, etc.), but what they failed to mention is that it is poorly built, maintained and organized. We very much doubt that the city's mayor care much about it: the only thing that matters is money and there is plenty of it flowing. I saw how some British young tourists paid ridiculous amount of money in euros and were paid back in Lek (Albanian currency) without even checking them. Even the beach facilities were very poor: no shower and very dirty beds. Overall one of the worst experiences.
Written July 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sull
6 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2024 • Friends
We did a day trip from Corfu to Sarande (easy to do, one hour by ferry) but I would not recommend it. The place is really touristy and tacky. Loads of pirate boats (which you may like) and rubbish in the harbour and not a whole lot to do in the town. We found a restaurant someone had recommended which was awful and ended going to Ksamil (again based on reviews). We couldn't find the bus or anyone helpful to guide us so ended up jumping in a taxi (50 euros roundtrip) to see another tacky place with beds packed in at every space on the beach. If you do make the trip you can use euros everywhere, just have cash.
Written September 22, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Erry
Afragola, Italy36 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Family
Overrated place, very expensive with the same money you can go on vacation to more beautiful and more civilized places. To find a makeshift parking presents the little man who as he understands that you are a foreigner asks you 1000 leo equal to about 10 € and where we stay in Positano or Porto Cervo. Dirty smelly streets. I don't understand all the hype about this place, with exorbitant prices that are just not worth it, in Greek there are better and cheaper places and especially the locals don't try to rip you off at every opportunity. Not recommended
Automatically translated
Written August 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Salvatore C
Talmassons, Italy181 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Family
I go to ALBANIA since 2004 it was a lovely place very cheap, they have improved the roads a lot and there are certainly more services but they are not yet up to the great European places, just for this last reason they should not have raised prices so high, especially the restaurants in the port are to be avoided and the private beaches where I still have to figure out who is the lifeguard and who takes care of security, the euro has lost purchasing power is a plate of seafood rice (always on the seafront)costs more than in Italy, the sea of Saranda is beautiful early in the morning around 10 am there is a bit of seaweed and the water is sometimes cloudy, there is too much marine traffic, the beaches near the port are to be avoided because they smell of oil.
It makes me wonder some questions about how they are managed the rental of jet skis, (20 € per person for 15 of use) are driven by incompetents who make very dangerous maneuvers approaching other bikes creating a dangerous situation that has no equal.
There is too much car traffic and there are not so many parking lots, there are too many people crowded and too much music between the clubs that conflict with each other, the souvenir shops do not really compete but they have agreed among themselves.
Try to find the places further inland or downtown that have great prices, the seaside restaurants with modest prices are few.
Try to eat more Albanian food and local beers.
Eat the burek is cheap and delicious.
As a Beach Restaurant Recommendation:

liku pllakat restaurant (the best but only accepts cash)

vila and bardhe sarande (the only one with low sunbed prices)

For the rest I spent a nice holiday, my house was facing the sea at 20m.
Automatically translated
Written August 28, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

H X
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Couples
This is by far the worst destination I've ever been to. The atmosphere is nothing special and it is not normally expensive here. Normally a young tourist destination slowly builds up prices. In sarande it is directly at the level of Barcelona but without the associated quality facilities. Albania is called the poorest country in Europe, but I do not understand that based on the prices I see here. Everything costs money, even lying on the beach (even if you don't take a cot). Drink per can 3 euros, it's not even that bad in barca. Bosnia is the best alternative. Although hardly any beaches but the beaches here are not that special. On social media you have the feeling to have discovered the Maldives of Europe, now that I am here it seems more like a gypsy city. DON'T COME TO SARANDE. You've been warned.
Automatically translated
Written August 26, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Meg S
Pasco, WA6 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
We found a jet boat tour on the boulevard. Operator said we'd return by 15:45 at the latest from the nearby Krorez beach only accessible by boat,. The captain dropped us at the beach, along with three additional groups of a few people each, and said we could leave our stuff on the boat because he'd be anchored there. He said we had two hours at the beach, and we'd meet at 14:00 where we were dropped off. About a half hour later, we see him throwing the passengers' belongings on the beach and taking off. He never returned. We asked multiple boats if they could take us back over the next 1.5 hours passed pickup time, but boats were full. Finally, a private boat quoted 50 euros. We'd already paid the tour for roundtrip tickets, but we were abandoned there with a 4 year old child in 99 degrees F heat. The tour operator did not answer phone calls.. We were traveling on a cruise boat and almost missed our ship departure to Olympia! !!
The tour was Lily Boat Tour. They have 4 speed boats with navy blue bamini tops shading the back half and Lily printed on the side. They are on Instagram as: lilys_boat . They have a tour information board in front of the Sarande marina, where their boats depart to Krorez Beach. I suggest avoiding this operation at all costs. They appear legit, but are a scam!
Written July 17, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Diana H
6 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2024 • Family
Not worth staying here, especially if you like to go to bed before midnight. This is an overdeveloped and under resourced trashy tourist town focused on nothing but making money. What made it unbearable for us was the tourist pirate ships in the harbour that played non-stop headbanging music almost 24 hours a day in an effort to attract victims onto their boats for a trashy tour. Plenty of cheap three star meals to be had along the foreshore but overall there is nothing really worth seeing here. It’s mostly okay as a stepping off point I suppose if you wish to tour Albania but I wouldn’t want to stay here for more than one night we got out of there as fast as we could.
Written September 21, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Eileen N
Bristol, UK40 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2024 • Couples
We visited Sarande via the Port Terminal ,stayed 3 nights in a local hotel Aloha and used a local taxi driver to visit places around to see what Albania was like .
We added this on to our week in nearby Corfu .
We took the hydrofoil from Corfu
Tickets could be bought on line but never having been before we were not clear which Ferry company to use .We bought from Finklas a ticket shop opposite the Pirate Ship in the new harbour of Corfu .It was easier to discuss which vessel and timings face-to-face.
The hydrofoil was old but took >30 mins and we had a seat and the staff were helpful.
The hotel Aloha was a short walk with one suitcase from the Port Terminal even for x2 old crocks like us !The walk down to the entrance which is at beach level was more demanding as it was raining .I would suggest anyone with significant mobility problems assess if it is suitable for them
The hotel was very clean ,staff very helpful and has a beach side coffee drinks and breakfast bar.Seats by the beach .Again could be a challenge for anyone with mobility problems .
Breakfast was plentiful. and local fresh food .A bit sweet for me but all in all the hotel was in a great position, good staff ,good service There was no H20 in the room but there is an excellent SPAR next door .Restaurants plentiful with easy walking distances. Albanian plate portions and side dishes are enormous by British standards .A salad would feed x4 ,Matinated Sardines that we loved for x1 had enough for x4 people .Meat portions are double what would be served in Greece or UK .The wine is excellent. The beer cheap .The food is full of fresh local tasty produce .
We wanted to take some trips but wanted to avoid organised trips .After a lot of hassling along the road near the Port Terminal we found a lovely gentle taxi driver .He spoke no English but has friend opposite his pitch who translated We paid 175E for x5 trips on x3 days .We had a guide book and a map.He had a lovely clean comfortable Mercedes.He did not smoke or use his phone while driving .He knew lots of beauty spots that we did not know about and showed us those .He was a safe driver and there was no pressure on us re time .We went all the World Heritage sites and Nationsl Parks .He waited while we had meals in beautiful spots in the mountains, by the beach .
He was a great find and a good man
GONI taxi AF583T
Tel 355692692741
He does not speak English but his son does and you csn Whats app him
We found Sarande high rise blocks a bit brutal but Albania has preserved its National Parks etc The views in the surrounding mountains and landscapes are stunning as is the mountain of history that Albania holds.
Written October 16, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

8Luca8
Firenze15 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2023 • Family
City by the sea which in August multiplies the number of residents without suitable infrastructure: parking, services and roads. The result is that it becomes impossible to visit the city at any time. Maybe the rules are there but they are not respected. The webs of electrical wires along the streets say it all.
Google
Written April 26, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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