Butrint Archeological Park
Butrint, 2,500 years old city is the first Albanian site to be granted World Heritage status by UNESCO in 1992. The main part of the Butrint archaeological site, where the majority of the ruins are located, sits atop a forested hill peninsula on the channel that connects Lake Butrint with the Ionian Sea. The views from everywhere on the hill are breathtaking, and stunning picnic spots abound in the form of strategically located wooden benches and tables.
The history of the ancient city of Butrint
Greek mythology has it that the city of Butrint, once called Buthrotum, was founded by Andromache and her brother-in-law Helenus, son of King Priam, when they fled a burning Troy. What we really know is that the earliest actual evidence we have of occupation on the site goes way back to 50,000 BC, but it wasn’t until the eighth century BC, when Greeks from the region of Epirus came and settled here, that Butrint became a thriving, fortified city with an acropolis. The Romans took over in 44 BC, making Butrint a colony, building one of their famous aqueducts over the Vivari Channel, and expanding the city on reclaimed marshland. Over the centuries, the city became a Christian center of the Byzantine Empire and then was under Frankish, Venetian, and Ottoman control before it was abandoned.
Must-see monuments on the main site
Butrint’s archaeological site is huge, and the structures of the ancient sites testify to the different occupants, so we suggest you take your time to visit. Allow at least two hours to see the most important monuments and more if you want to enjoy the views properly and check out the smaller sights, which include Roman villas, ancient Greek gates, and Venetian towers.
If you have more time: the rope ferry and Ali Pasha’s castle
Near the entrance of the archaeological site, the rope ferry is a unique feature — a wooden platform carrying people and cars to the other side of the Vivari channel. A smaller Venetian castle lies there, as well as less-visited traces of a Roman suburb called the Vrina Plain. Further to the west of the main archaeological site, on a small island at the mouth of the channel, is one of the many imposing castles that 18th-century Ottoman ruler Ali Pasha of Tepelenë built in the region.
