Tour de medio día a Saranda y centro arqueológico de Butrinto

Información

You will meet with the guide and you will be transferred south 40 minutes drive towards the biggest and most important archaeological site in Albania. The ancient city of Butrint, which is declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was first inhabited by Illyrians. Butrint is a special archaeological site – a microcosm of Mediterranean history from the age of the archaic Greeks until the Venetians. The ancient city of Butrint is much preferable to be visited as an archaeological center, where antiquity and beauty intertwine.

The archaeological excavations show that Butrint has been an important center of the Kaonian Illyrians, one of the big tribes of southern Illyria. According to discoveries made in the area, it has been proved that the site was inhabited as early as Paleolithic period. In the 6-th century BC Greeks from Corfu settled here, alongside with Illyrians and the new colony prospered as the result of the trade. By the fifth century BC, Buthroton was an Illyrian fortified city. In the fourth century BC Butrint had fallen to Epirus, and in 167 BC it was taken by Rome. Butrint was captured by the Normans in eleventh century and passed to Venice from 1690 to 1797, when Ali Pasha Tepelena captured it. With the fall of the Pashallek of Janina, in 1822, Butrint passed under Ottoman rule until 1913. Several excavations dating from the 1-st and 4-th centuries AD and today, we will visit, among them the Old Amphitheatre, the temple of Asclepiads or Aesculapius, the Baptistery, Nymphaeum and the ancient city walls.

After visiting Ancient Buthrotum, you will be transferred to the Saranda city center for a visit of the Old Onchesmi and the Old Synagogue. Saranda 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.

Meeting/pick-up point: Hotel Brilant.
Duration: Four and a half hours.
Start/opening time: At 8am.