Saranda Blue Eye and Lekursi Castle Sunset Tour

The Blue Eye spring

The Blue Eye, Syri i Kaltër in Albanian, is a karst spring in the hills about 25 kilometres east of Saranda where a huge volume of water rises from an underground system whose true depth has never been measured; divers have gone down more than 50 metres and found no floor. From the wooden platform at the edge, the centre of the pool is a dark, almost black blue, surrounded by a ring of pale turquoise over white limestone, which gives the spring its name and its startling resemblance to an eye.

The water is cold all year round and flows away as the Bistrica river between plane trees and oaks. Swimming is not allowed for safety reasons, but you can dip your feet in the river, sit on the platform and watch the surface boil gently where the water rises. Most people spend their hour walking to the spring, photographing it from the platform and the bank, and following the river a short way downstream.

The panoramic train and the path through the woods

From the car park and ticket gate, the spring is about a 15 to 20-minute walk along a flat, shaded lane beside the river. In season a small panoramic tourist train runs the same route, and on this tour your one-way ride from the car park to the spring is included, so you arrive without the walk in the afternoon heat and stroll back at your own pace afterwards, or buy a return ticket on the spot if you prefer.

The train is seasonal and generally does not run in the winter months, roughly October to March; when it is not operating, the walk in both directions is part of the visit and is easy for most people. The lane passes a cafe by the water and several points where the Bistrica runs fast and clear over stones, so it is worth taking the return on foot even when the train is running.

Lekursi Castle at sunset

Lekursi Castle is a square 16th-century Ottoman fortress on the hill directly above Saranda, built with corner towers to watch the strait between the mainland and Corfu. Its walls are low and partly ruined today, but the position is unbeatable: from the ramparts you look straight down on the horseshoe of Saranda bay, south over the Ksamil peninsula and Lake Butrint, and west across the water to the mountains of Corfu.

This tour arrives in the late afternoon and stays about 40 minutes so that you watch the light change as the sun lowers towards Corfu and the town below begins to glow. It is the most photographed sunset spot in southern Albania, and there is a terrace on the hilltop where you can sit with a drink while you wait. On special event days the castle may charge an extra entrance fee, which is paid on the spot.

Saranda bay and the view towards Ksamil

Saranda is the resort capital of the Albanian Riviera, a crescent of white buildings around a deep bay with a long promenade and a harbour from which ferries cross to Corfu in half an hour. From Lekursi the whole town is laid out beneath you, and the view explains why it was built here: the bay is sheltered on three sides, and the sea beyond is some of the clearest in the Ionian.

To the south the coast runs down to Ksamil, the village of small islands and white beaches on the edge of Butrint National Park, and to Lake Butrint, a lagoon separated from the sea by a narrow channel. Both are visible from the castle, and if you are staying in Ksamil, the tour's Ksamil pickup point on the main road means the whole evening is as easy as from Saranda itself.

The drive inland through the Bistrica valley

The road from Saranda to the Blue Eye leaves the coast and climbs through olive groves and villages into the valley of the Bistrica, with bare limestone ridges on both sides. It is a 30-minute drive each way, and your guide uses it to explain the geography of the south, the history of the castle you will visit later and the story of the spring. The return towards Lekursi runs the same way in softer light.

Travelling by air-conditioned vehicle with a driver who knows the road is the simplest way to get to the Blue Eye from Saranda, since there is no public transport to the spring itself and parking at the gate fills up in summer. The combination of the inland valley and the sunset coast in a single afternoon is what makes this short tour so popular.