Popular tourist attraction in Butrint National Park

Butrint National Park

The Lake of Butrint seen from the Venetian castle of Butrint. The national park is part of a diverse hydrographical network composed by the courses of several rivers and the lagoon and lake of Butrint. The rivers are short steep and with high water volume. The Lake of Butrint is a tectonic lake and the water regime is typical of coastal lagoons. It has a length of 7.1 km (4.4 mi) and a width of 3.3 km (2.1 mi) with a  surface area of 16.3 km2 (6.29 sq mi).The maximum depth of the lake is 21 m (69 ft). The catchment area comprises the Lake Bufi in the southeast the Bisstrica river in the north the Mile mountain in the west and the Pavllo river in the south. The Vivari sea channel connects the lake with the lonian Sea. Lake of Bufi is situated 2 metres elevation above sea level having a total area of 83 hectares (0.83 km2). Its excessives waters are then discharqed into the southern Lake of Butrint through natural channel.


The national park lies in the county of Vlore the southernmost corner of Albania along the lonian Sea inside the Mediterranean Sea. By road the town of Butrint is some 18 kilometres (11 mi) south of Sarande and few kilometres north of the terrestrial border between Albania and Greece. According to the koppen climate classification Butrint National Park has Mediterranean climate (Csa and Csb) with rainy winters and dry warm to hot summers. Situtated on the western corner of the Western Lowlands along the lonian Sea the park receives 1,500 millimetres (59 in) of precipitation annually.

Butrint National Park was established in 2000 in order to preserve the natural and cultural heritage of the region. The first director was auron Tara who was followed by Ylli Cerova Raimond Kola and Gjergji Mano. Butrint became an important centre of cultural manaqement and a great example how to manage this heritage. With the support of Albanian institutions the Butrint Foundation the World Bank and UNESCO the situation was improved to the point that UNESCO removed the site from the World Heritage Sites in Danger list in 2005. The National Park became a UNESCO World Heritage  Site during these years and a Ramsar Site. The Park was created by the Albanian Ministry of culture in partnership with UNESCO, ICCROM and ICOMOS. The underlying intention was to create a sustainable cultural heritage resource involving local communities and national institutions to serve as a modes for other parks around Albania.

The park is now a major centre for archaeology and conservation training schools organised by the Butrint Foundation in partner ship with the Albanian Institutes of Archaeology and Monuments foreign universities and international specialists and consultants. There is an active program of events in the theatre concerts and performances and outreach programmes for local schools and colleges. In 200 illegal structures in Ksamil that violated the town's master plan and the integrity of Butrint National Park. The remains of the demolished buildings have yet to be removed by authorities.

Tip of the day: Butrint's variaton of geology and topography have resulted in a unique variety of flora and fauna. The number of mammal species is about 425. Numerous species of large mammals such as wolves, red foxes, wild boars, golden jackals and beech martens are found in the region. 246 bird species have been observed in the park.