Himare
Himarë is the Riviera stop people actually stop at. Pre-Roman walls above the town, a beach at the mouth of a canyon reachable only on foot, and hostels from four euros.
Himare in a nutshell
Himare: what to expect
Before writing this we counted 93,000+ planned stops in Albania on Stippl.
Himarë is the quiet end of the Riviera, four hours south of Tirana and ninety minutes north of Sarandë. The old town stands two and a half kilometres above the modern one inside walls whose earliest sections are Chaonian, from the fifth century BC. Gjipe sits at the mouth of a canyon and can only be reached on foot, by boat or in a four-wheel drive, which is precisely why it is worth the effort. Porto Palermo's triangular fort is on a spit ten kilometres south.
Himarë is the Albanian destination people actually commit to. It has the lowest share of day stops and the lowest share of single nights in the country, so travellers who write it down mean to stay. It is also the most seasonal place in Albania, with nearly nine in ten of its trips starting between May and September, and Sarandë sits below its floor: three Riviera bases now measure as alternatives to one another rather than as a sequence.
Two or three nights, and treat it as a base rather than a stop. Spile is the town beach, Livadhi is south and Potami north, and Dhërmi and Palasa ten kilometres up the coast are worth their own day. A boat gets you the coves the road cannot reach. Do not come for nightlife or a choice of restaurants, and do not come out of season, when much of the town closes and November alone brings 309 millimetres of rain.
Who Himare is for
The Riviera, no crowds
This is the explicit contrast sources draw with Ksamil
Staying put for days
The data agrees: the lowest one-night share in the country
Walkers
for the Gjipe canyon and the coast paths
Budget travellers.
Sources put hostels at €4–15 and hotels at €35–55, the cheapest bands quoted for any Albanian coastal town
No nightlife, few restaurants
it is a small town. It is a small town; Sarandë is ninety minutes south
Not out of season.
Much of it closes, and November brings 309 mm of rain
When to go to Himare
Closed
November–March
148–309 mm a month and most businesses shut.
Opening
April–May
warm and quiet; May is the first month the sea is comfortable.
The window
June
26 mm, warm, and before the August crowd.
Peak
July–August
43.8% of all planned starts in two months, and 13–16 mm of rain.
The second window
September
16.4% of starts, warm sea, and 120 mm.
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Things to do in Himare
Photo by Valter Zhara via Pexels
Photo by Adventure Albania via Unsplash
Photo by Doğan Alpaslan Demir via PexelsHimarë Castle and the old town.
A hilltop settlement inside walls whose earliest sections are Chaonian, from the 5th–4th century BC, with Byzantine churches, stone lanes and a view over Livadhi and the Ionian
Gjipe Beach.
A beach at the mouth of a canyon, reachable only on foot, by 4×4 or by boat, which is exactly why sources rate it
Porto Palermo.
Ali Pasha's triangular fort on a spit in a bay 8–10 km south, with a beach in front
The town beaches
Spile in the centre, Livadhi to the south, Potami north
A boat trip along the coast
which reaches the coves the road does not
Dhërmi and Palasa
8–12 km north and treated by sources as separate destinations worth their own day
The neighbourhoods of Himare
Livadhi
beach days
The long beach south of the centre, with more of the newer accommodation and beach clubs and a slower feel than the seafront
The long beach south of the centre, slower than the seafront.
Himarë town & the seafront
first visits
The modern town along the bay: Spile beach, the promenade, most of the restaurants and accommodation, and the bus stop. Flat and walkable
Spile beach and the promenade, with the bus stop and most of the restaurants.
Castle Hill (Himara Fshat)
history
The old town 2.5 km up behind the modern one: stone lanes inside pre-Roman walls, Byzantine churches, and a view over Livadhi, the Ionian and Corfu on a clear day. A handful of guesthouses
Pre-Roman walls above the town, with a view over Livadhi and the Ionian.
Gjipe, Jale & the northern coves
day trips
The coastline north toward Dhërmi, where the road runs high and the beaches sit at the bottom of tracks and canyons. Not a base, a set of excursions
Gjipe sits at the mouth of a canyon, reached on foot, by 4×4 or by boat.
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Where to stay in Himare
The stock is small guesthouses and apartments. There are no large hotels, which is part of the quiet
Livadhi
The long beach south of the centre, with more of the newer accommodation and beach clubs and a slower feel than the seafront
Himarë town & the seafront
The modern town along the bay: Spile beach, the promenade, most of the restaurants and accommodation, and the bus stop. Flat and walkable
Castle Hill (Himara Fshat)
The old town 2.5 km up behind the modern one: stone lanes inside pre-Roman walls, Byzantine churches, and a view over Livadhi, the Ionian and Corfu on a clear day. A handful of guesthouses
Gjipe, Jale & the northern coves
The coastline north toward Dhërmi, where the road runs high and the beaches sit at the bottom of tracks and canyons. Not a base, a set of excursions
What to eat in Himare
Fruit brandy (grape, apple, plum), the national spirit
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Himare customs and what not to do
Greek is spoken here
and is officially recognised; Greek is a co-spoken everyday language here
The old churches are Orthodox
reflecting that history
Daily budget in Himare
Budget
€40–55
Dorm bed or basic guesthouse, the cheapest coastal bands quoted anywhere in our sources (hostels from €4), buses along the coast road, market food, free beaches
Mid-range
€90–130
Private room or small hotel, a share of a hire car, restaurant meals, paid sunbeds, entry fees and a boat trip
High-end
€200+
Boutique hotel or Riviera resort, private transfers or an automatic hire car, beach clubs, guided treks
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Fun facts about Himare
The castle walls are pre-Roman. The earliest Chaonian fortifications date to the 5th–4th century BC, which makes Himarë's old town older than anything else on this coast by well over a thousand years
Greek is a living everyday language here, alongside Albanian
July averages 13 mm of rain and November 309 mm: a factor of 24, the widest seasonal swing in any Albanian sources
Himarë holds both of Albania's stay minimums at once. The lowest zero-night share (6.2%) and the lowest one-night share (31.2%): it is neither skipped nor rushed, which no other Albanian destination manages
Local tips for Himare
One coast road
The coast road is the only road. The SH8 runs the length of the Riviera and everything here is a stop on it
Three buses to Sarandë
Buses to Sarandë run about three times a day, first around 08:00 and last in the evening, taking an hour and a half
Gjipe needs a 4×4
Gjipe cannot be reached by ordinary car. The options are a 4×4, a boat, a 3 km walk down the track, or the canyon path, which AllTrails rates hard at about 7 km with 470 m of gain and three hours, [commercial: walkmyworld.com, sandaltanman.com, adventurealbania.com, alltrails.com]
A car beats the bus
A car makes this destination work much better than the bus, because the beaches are spread along the coast
Safe, petty theft aside
Albania is consistently reported as safe for visitors, petty theft aside
Gjipe is a real hike
The Gjipe canyon path is a genuine hike, rated hard at roughly 7 km with 470 m of ascent and three hours. It is not a beach stroll
Himare questions, answered
Pick the base first and the beaches second, because they are strung along the coast road rather than clustered. Himare carries 5.35% of everything planned in Albania on Stippl, and almost all of that is beach time. Lay Gjipe, Dhermi and Porto Palermo out in Stippl against the days you actually have wheels.
Two at the least, four if the beaches are the point. Most people give Himare 2 nights in the plans they build on Stippl, and the extra ones go on the coves rather than on the town, which you will have walked end to end in one evening.
A base. Only 31.2% of Himare stops planned on Stippl are a single night, the lowest share anywhere in Albania, because there is nothing here to tick off and a great deal to sit still for. That is the difference between Himare and Sarande, which people use as a hub.
Himare is smaller, quieter and cheaper with better beaches within reach; Sarande has the restaurants, the nightlife, the Corfu ferry and the bus connections. Travellers pick one as a base rather than sleeping in both. Choose Himare if you want the coast itself, Sarande if you want to get places from it.
Four ways, none of them straightforward. On foot down a rough three-kilometre track from the road, by four-wheel drive with a driver who knows it, by boat from Himare or Dhermi, or on the canyon path, which is a hard three-hour walk. Most people end up taking the boat.
For the town, no. For the beaches, effectively yes. The coast road strings Gjipe, Dhermi, Porto Palermo and the smaller coves out over tens of kilometres, and the buses along it are infrequent and stop where they like. A scooter works if you are confident on mountain bends.
Every guide is written by the Stippl editors and checked against the trips our travellers actually plan. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.
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