Travel Guide Tepelena

Tepelena/Tepelenë has a population of around 4,000. It is the capital of the municipality of Tepelena (8,000 inhabitants). The town is 29 km northwest of Gjirokastra (frequent minibus connections) and 42 km northwest of Përmet.Situated on a hill near the confluence of the Drino and Vjosa rivers, Tepelena is reputed to be the birthplace of the famous Ali Pasha (1740-1822). An imposing statue of the bloodthirsty governor of Ioannina, shown here reclining, has greeted visitors at the southern entrance since 2002. In fact, the Albanian hero was born in Beçisht, a village on the opposite side of the Vjosa, on the slopes of Mount Shëndelli (1,802 m above sea level), which can be reached on foot via an impressive 260 m-long footbridge (Ura e Beçishtit). Albanians also love to visit the "Fortress of Ali Pasha" (free access), which dominates the city to the north... and was built by the Byzantines. Few, however, visit the ruins of the internment camp (to the north-west), where hundreds of political prisoners died during the communist period. As for the municipal museum, it was plundered in 1997 and is now closed most of the time. Nevertheless, the area around Tepelena is full of pleasant surprises. If you're a hiking enthusiast, you'll love the Nivica canyons, a difficult-to-reach but absolutely grandiose site.