Albania's Geography

The shape of the country

Albania runs roughly 340 km north to south and about 150 km at its widest. A coastal plain runs down the Adriatic side from Shkodër to Vlorë; behind it the land rises quickly into hills and then mountains. South of Vlorë the plain ends and the Ceraunian mountains meet the sea directly, which is what creates the Riviera.

Two seas

The Adriatic and Ionian meet at the Karaburun peninsula near Vlorë. The Adriatic coast is shallow, sandy and lagoon-fringed. The Ionian coast is deep, rocky and clear. It is the single most useful geographical fact about an Albanian beach holiday.

Mountains and water

• Highest point: Mount Korab, 2,764 m, on the North Macedonian border.
• The Albanian Alps in the north — karst limestone, deep valleys, the Theth and Valbona valleys.
• The Ceraunian range along the southern coast, topped by Maja e Çikës at about 2,045 m.
• Three major lakes: Shkodër (the largest in southern Europe), Ohrid (among the oldest on Earth) and Prespa — each shared with a neighbour.
• The Drin, the longest river and the source of most of the country's electricity; the Vjosa, one of the last undammed large rivers in Europe.

Karst

Much of Albania is limestone, which dissolves in water. That produces caves, sinkholes, rivers that disappear underground, and springs like the Blue Eye where large volumes of water emerge from nowhere. It is also why the Valbona riverbed runs dry in late summer while water still moves beneath it.