City · Vlorë
Sarandë
The Ionian resort town facing Corfu, and the arrival point for most visitors to southern Albania.
- Route
- Vlorë – Llogara pass – Dhërmi – Himarë – Borsh – Sarandë
- Character
- Two-lane mountain road with hairpins; slow in July and August
- Note
- The only through route on the Riviera — closures affect the whole coast
In plain language
The SH8 is the road that runs along the southern coast. It climbs over the Llogara pass and then winds above the sea all the way to Sarandë. There is no other through road on that coast.
Simple explanation
The SH8 is the road that runs along the southern coast. It climbs over the Llogara pass and then winds above the sea all the way to Sarandë. There is no other through road on that coast.
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Connected subjects
Nearby
City · Vlorë
Vlorë
Where the Adriatic meets the Ionian, and where Albanian independence was declared in 1912.
Town · Vlorë
Himarë
The centre of the Riviera coast: a Greek-speaking historical community, an old hill village and a string of coves.
Protected area · Vlorë
Llogara National Park
A pine-forested pass at 1,027 m where the road drops from mountain forest to the Ionian in a few kilometres.
Village · Vlorë
Dhërmi
An old white village on the slope above one of the Riviera's longest pebble beaches.
Related subjects
Subject · Vlorë
The Albanian Riviera
The 120 km of Ionian coast between the Llogara pass and Sarandë, where the Ceraunian mountains fall straight into the sea.
Guide
Driving in Albania
The roads are better than the reputation and the driving is worse. What that means in practice.
Guide
Driving Albania End to End
Shkodër to Sarandë is about 400 km. Done properly it takes two days; here is how the country splits up.
Sources
- Wikipedia.
SH 8 (Albania) — English Wikipedia
· retrieved 13 Oct 2026
Used to ground the deep-research section and as a discovery aid; not relied on alone for contested claims. - Wikidata.
Wikidata item Q2171414
· retrieved 13 Oct 2026
Source of the population, area and elevation figures shown in Quick facts, each with its own observation year. - Wikimedia Commons.
Photographs
· retrieved 13 Oct 2026
Each photograph carries its own creator, licence and file link beneath it. Only public-domain, CC0, CC BY and CC BY-SA files are published.
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