Gjirokaster: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Gjirokastër is built of one material: grey stone for the walls, the streets and even the roofs. This walk climbs from the bazaar through the steep lanes to the tower houses, where the great families lived above their storerooms. It passes the birthplaces of a writer and a dictator. About three hours; the cobbles are slippery, so wear proper shoes.

A short history of Gjirokaster

The citadel on the ridge was built as early as the 12th century, and the city fell to the Ottomans at the beginning of the 15th century. Most of what can be seen here today, the houses of grey stone with slate roofs, was built in the 17th and 18th centuries, and they earned it the name "city of stone". At the beginning of the 19th century Ali Pasha of Tepelenë enlarged the citadel. Enver Hoxha, ruler of communist Albania, was born in the city in 1908, and in 1936 the writer Ismail Kadare was born here; he wrote about it in "Chronicle in Stone". Thanks to its status as a "museum city" under communism, its centre was preserved, and in 2005 it was declared a World Heritage Site.

The ten best sights in Gjirokaster

1
Gjirokastër Castle
Huge and cool inside even in summer; come for the view over the Drino valley
2
Military Museum
Inside the castle: old guns, tanks and an American jet that landed here in 1957
3
Skënduli House
A family house that is also a museum; the owners show you round
4
Zekate House
The grandest tower house in town; the climb to it is steep
5
Ethnographic Museum
Built on the site of Enver Hoxha's family home; folk life, not politics
6
Ismail Kadare House
The childhood home of Albania's great novelist, rebuilt as a museum
7
Bazaar Mosque
The only mosque left in the old town; at the centre of the bazaar
8
Zall Tekke
A Bektashi lodge on the edge of town; quiet, with a view back to the castle
9
Antigonea
Ruins of a Greek city on a ridge across the valley; few visitors, big views
10
Libohovë Castle
A square fort over a village under the mountains; ten minutes is enough

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What is an audio walk?

Tours in Gjirokaster →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Gjirokaster:

Free walking tours in Gjirokaster

The city of stone

Old Bazaar · The bazaar grew in the 17th century on the ridge below the castle, where five roads met. It burned in the 19th century and was rebuilt in the same grey stone, which is why the town is called the City of Stone.
Bazaar Mosque · Built in 1757, it is the only mosque in the old town that survived the communist campaign against religion; the others were destroyed or turned into stores. It is again in use.
Skënduli House · A classic Gjirokastër tower house: a stone ground floor for storage and cisterns, and living rooms above under a roof of stone slabs. A member of the family who built it still lives here and shows visitors the rooms.
Ismail Kadare House · Ismail Kadare was born in Gjirokastër in 1936 and set his novel Chronicle in Stone in these lanes during the Second World War. The family house burned in 1999 and was rebuilt as a museum.
Ethnographic Museum · Enver Hoxha, who ruled communist Albania for four decades, was born in a house on this spot in 1908. It burned down, and in 1966 a new house in the old style was built here as a museum of the region's folk life.
Zekate House · Built in 1811–1812 for Beqir Zeko, an official at Ali Pasha's court, with two towers joined by a high arched front. The top-floor guest room has painted and carved ceilings and windows on the whole valley.

Castle and bunker

Above the town, the castle tells the story of power in Gjirokastër, from Ali Pasha to the communist prison. Beneath it is the bunker that was built for the next war. The walk ends at the edges of town, at a Sufi lodge and a spring-fed lake. About three hours, with a steep climb at the start.

Çerçiz Topulli Square · The statue is of Çerçiz Topulli, a local man who led an armed band against Ottoman rule in the years before Albanian independence in 1912. The square is the hinge between the bazaar and the road up to the castle.
Cold War Tunnel · Under the town lies a bunker of corridors and rooms dug in the 1970s, meant to shelter the local party leadership in case of nuclear war. It was kept secret for decades and is now shown on short guided visits.
Gjirokastër Castle · One of the largest castles in the Balkans, enlarged by Ali Pasha in the early 19th century. Later governments used it as a prison, and since 1968 it has hosted Albania's National Folklore Festival.
Military Museum · In the castle's long galleries stand guns and tanks from the war, and outside on the walls a US Air Force jet. It landed in Albania in 1957, and the regime displayed it as a captured spy plane.
Zall Tekke · The Bektashi are a Sufi order whose world headquarters moved to Tirana in 1925, and Gjirokastër was one of their strongholds. Walk out at the end of the afternoon for the view of the castle from the south.
Lake Viroi · The lake is fed by a karst spring that rises from under the mountain, and in wet winters it floods the road. Families come at dusk to walk around it and eat at the cafés on the shore.

Ali Pasha's valley

The Drino valley was the heart of Ali Pasha's realm, and his forts still stand on the hills around it. By car, the day crosses the valley to a Greek city, drops south to the Blue Eye spring and returns north along the river to his home town. Roads are good on the main valley and narrow off it. A full day, with lunch at the cold springs.

Antigonea · Pyrrhus of Epirus founded the city around 295 BC and named it after his wife Antigone. The Romans burned it in 167 BC, and the excavated houses and walls still lie under a layer of that fire.
Libohovë Castle · Ali Pasha of Tepelenë built this fort in the early 19th century for his sister Shanisha, who was married into the Libohova family. It is the kind of small castle he scattered across the region to hold it.
Blue Eye · The spring pushes up from a karst shaft so deep that divers have never reached its bottom. The water stays at about 10 degrees all year, which is why the colour is so clear.
Kardhiq Castle · Kardhiq resisted Ali Pasha for years. When he finally took it in 1812 he had hundreds of its men killed, in revenge for an insult to his mother and sister decades earlier.
Uji i Ftohtë · The name simply means cold water: springs come out of the hillside here into the Vjosa valley, and their water is bottled and sold across Albania. Stop for grilled lamb in the shade.
Tepelenë Castle · This is where Ali Pasha came from, the Albanian lord who ruled much of the Balkans for the Sultan and often against him. Lord Byron rode here in 1809 to meet him and described the visit in his letters.

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Getting to Gjirokaster and getting around

Gjirokastër Bus Station · Down in the new town on the main road; buses to Tirana, Sarandë and the Greek border

Cheap eats in Gjirokaster

Gjirokastër has its own dish: qifqi, small balls of rice bound with egg and fresh mint, fried in a special pan with round hollows. Ask for it by name; it is cheap and found almost nowhere else. The bazaar also has byrek counters and grills for a quick lunch. A coffee is about 100 lek, a full lunch rarely more than 1,000.

Byrektore · Byrek in the bazaar; a slice about 100-150 lek
Buffet Bazar · Quick plates at the heart of the bazaar, about 300-600 lek
Liti · Fast-food counter on Ismail Kadare street; a wrap about 250-400 lek
Fast Food Sara · Wraps and sandwiches, about 250-400 lek
Kafe Pasticeri Zabi · Coffee and cakes in the bazaar; coffee about 100 lek

Museums in Gjirokaster

Skënduli House · Tower house shown by the family; about an hour
Ethnographic Museum · Costumes, kitchen and guest room of an old family
Zekate House · The grandest tower house; painted guest room
Military Museum · In the castle; weapons, tanks and the jet
Ismail Kadare House · The writer's family home; read Chronicle in Stone first

Nature and day trips near Gjirokaster

Blue Eye · Cold spring in an oak forest; come early, it gets crowded
Lake Viroi · Flat walk around a spring lake on the edge of town
Benja Thermal Baths · Warm sulphur pools under an old bridge; free
Uji i Ftohtë · Cold springs and shade by the Vjosa

Things to do in Gjirokaster with kids

Gjirokastër Castle · Tanks to look at and a plane on the walls
Cold War Tunnel · A real secret bunker; older kids love it
Antigonea · Open ruins to explore on a ridge

Where to eat in Gjirokaster

Odaja · Local dishes in the bazaar; try the qifqi
Kujtimi · Terrace in the bazaar; qifqi and grilled meat
Kurveleshi · Traditional food in the bazaar
Rrapi · Grills and home cooking on the craftsmen's street

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Frequently asked questions about Gjirokaster

What is there to see in Gjirokaster?

The top sights in Gjirokaster are Gjirokastër Castle, Military Museum and Skënduli House. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Gjirokaster?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Gjirokaster without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Gjirokaster?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Gjirokaster, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The city of stone.

How do you get to Gjirokaster and get around?

The main ways are Gjirokastër Bus Station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Gjirokaster, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Gjirokaster that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

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