A relaxed pebble shore beneath one of the coast's most beautiful stone villages — with a fortress bay just down the road.
Updated October 2026
Qeparo is two places. By the water: a long, easy-going pebble beach with tavernas and rooms that stays relaxed even at peak season. On the hill: Qeparo i Sipërm, the upper village — a half-abandoned, half-revived maze of stone houses, fig trees and silence, with terrace views over the whole bay.
Add Porto Palermo's island fortress five minutes south and you have one of the richest single stops on the Riviera.
Qeparo is about 20 minutes south of Himarë on the SH8, just past Porto Palermo. The newer village and the beach sit by the sea; Old Qeparo (Qeparo i Sipërm) is on the mountainside above.
A long, open pebble beach with tavernas and a few beach bars. It stays relaxed even in August — a good antidote to Himarë and Jale at their busiest.
Drive up the winding road, or walk the old path from the coast — allow about an hour up. Go early or late in summer, as there's little shade. Full details in our Old Qeparo guide.
Parking along the beach road is usually straightforward. In the old village, park where the road ends and explore on foot.
Porto Palermo's fortress is a few minutes north, and Borsh, the longest beach on the coast, is a short drive south.
June and September for warm water and quiet lanes. Most beach bars run from June to mid-September.
Low-rise hotels and rooms line the beach road — nothing flashy, everything close to the water.
Stone houses in Qeparo i Sipërm have been converted into atmospheric guesthouses — the coast's most characterful sleep.
Farm stays behind the village serve their own oil, cheese and wine with the rooms.
Hotels, tavernas, beach bars and boat trips can be featured on the Qeparo Beach page. Visitors contact you directly — no booking commission.
Get featuredGrilled fish, oven-baked lamb and village salads with the pebbles a step away.
A taverna dinner in the old village, with the bay lit up far below, is a Riviera essential.
Qeparo's groves are famous — whatever you order, the oil on the table was probably pressed within sight.
Climb to the upper village and get deliberately lost — alleys, chapels, fig shade and that view.
Five minutes south, Ali Pasha's fortress sits on its own tiny peninsula — explore the walls, then swim in the cove beside it.
Walk to the far southern end of the beach for the calmest water and thinnest crowds.
Being two places in one: a quiet pebble beach by the sea, and Old Qeparo, a stone village on the mountainside with views over the whole bay.
By car up the winding mountain road, or on foot along the old path from the coast — allow about an hour going up.
Much less than Himarë, Jale or Ksamil. Even in August you'll find space.
About 20 minutes by car, heading south on the SH8 past Porto Palermo.
Pebbles. Bring water shoes if you find them uncomfortable.
Beachside rooms and small hotels by the sea, restored stone houses in Old Qeparo, or base yourself in Himarë and visit for the day.
One of the best-preserved old villages on the coast — stone lanes, fig shade, near-total silence and a terrace view over the whole bay.
Ali Pasha's triangular fortress on its own tiny peninsula — dark vaulted halls, rooftop sea views, and a swimmable cove right beside the walls.
Cold mountain water surfacing among the largest olive grove in Albania — with restaurants set over the running springs and a castle watching from above.
Seven kilometres of shoreline fed by mountain springs, backed by Albania's largest olive grove — room for absolutely everyone.
