Butrint, located about 20 km away from Saranda, remains one of the most visited archaeological sites by local and foreign tourists.
Director of the National Park of Butrint Everest Elmazaj told ATA today that, “Since January until now, 68,962 local and foreign tourists have visited Butrint”.
Elmazaj said that, “The flow of visitors is increasing every year. Thus, if compared to last year, there are 23,655 or 52% tourists more.
Elmazaj added that, “Out of 68,962 tourists, 38,647 are foreigners, mainly Italians, Spaniards, Poles, and French”.
The tourists get introduced in about two hours to different stages of history, all within one place. The archeology traces show the legacy left by different cultures in the past: The Greeks, the Romans, the Byzantines, the Venetians, the Turks, the French and the Ottomans, who saw Butrint as a strategic area to expand their influence. The greatness of this place remained hidden until 1927.
The first archaeological excavations began with the Italian Archaeological Mission in 1928 and resulted in the discovery of one of Albania’s most ancient cities. Although the archaeological work has never been completed, it is thought that what we see today may be only one fifth of what is underground.
