Meet Saranda, the smuggest spot on the Albanian Riviera.

Like Croatia pre bumbag-clad house fiends, this strip of turquoise sea is all UNESCO towns and quiet coves.

Wave at those suckers in Corfu on your ferry over…

Blue Eye Spring

“What are you looking at?”

A sapphire eye shimmers under the cherry trees, winking at people as they walk past.

This spring seduced communist leaders who shut it off from the public during their reign (greedy bastards) but now the dragonflies rule.

Dip a toe in the electric blue iris of the pool before diving in. The shady oaks here make a dreamy picnic spot.

Butrint Ruins

Drape the towel you nicked from the hotel round you like a toga and feast your eyes on this ancient paradise...

Hidden in the countryside where Albania touches Greece, some of these ruins have been knocking about since 3BC.

Ksamil Beach

“Is this where they filmed The Beach?"

Naah, wrong continent - Ko Phi Phi and Ksamil could be cousins though.

Swim with coral sponges and octopuses at this island scuba-diving spot.

My bunker or yours?

“You’ve made me hike all the way up the hill to look at a concrete mushroom?!”

Dictator Hoxha went mad in the 60s thinking the USSR would attack so he built 700,000 bunkers - there’s 1 for every 4 people (yep).

They’re on beaches, in back gardens and someone has even set up a tattoo shop inside one.

Seafood at Gerthela

Get your pincers on this taverna's menu.

If fish isn’t your bag, you’d better push on - they only serve underwater grub here. Saranda's seafood will have you dribbling down your chin.

Juicy shrimps, sea bass and crabs bigger than a beachball. Ask Chef what’s fresh that day.

Sum Up

Get to Albania before everyone else cottons on. It’s got refreshing waters, juicy-ass prawns and a terrifying amount of nuclear bunkers.

Everything mentioned is a 20 min drive or less from Saranda. From Corfu aiport, hop on a ferry for two hours to Saranda.