Place Porto Palermo Castle

Porto Palermo Castle is a castle near Himarë in southern Albania, built by the mighty Ali Pasha of Ioannina. It is located in the bay of Porto Palermo, a few kilometers south of Himarë along the Albanian Riviera. The area, along with Llamani beach, will be declared a protected area with the status of a protected landscape by the Albanian government. The entrance fee is a symbolic €3 and you can explore this spacious castle from the ramparts overlooking the azure bay to the cells inside the massive stone walls that provide a pleasant coolness.

Thanks to its strategic location, the shores of Porto Palermo were used for defensive purposes from ancient times until the Second World War. The fortress served as a former Soviet submarine base during the communist regime in Albania. The well-preserved castle is said to have been built by Ali Pasha from Tepelena at the beginning of the 19th century, in 1921 the castle was called Venetian.