What to see in Gjirokastër

Gjirokastër highlights

The places you can’t miss. In the app we sort them by day and close to each other.

1. Gjirokastër Fortress

   A citadel with a weapons museum.

2. Zekate House

   An 1812 Ottoman house with towers.

3. Çerçiz Topulli Square

   The cobbled square of the old bazaar.

4. Bazaar Mosque

   An Ottoman mosque from 1757, in the bazaar.

5. Gjirokastër Ethnographic Museum

   A house museum about Ottoman-era life.

6. Skenduli House

   An 18th-century Ottoman tower house.

7. Fico House

   A restored Ottoman house next to the bazaar.

8. Antigonea

   An archaeological park of an ancient Greek city.

Day trips from Gjirokastër

We take you straight to the best-rated tour on GetYourGuide, with its reviews and dates.

• Blue Eye ★ 4.8 (622 reviews)

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Typical food of Gjirokastër

The dish you have to try there and how to make it at home, to whet your appetite before the trip (or to go back to Gjirokastër from your kitchen).

Qifqi

Rice balls with egg, mint and herbs, fried in a pan with hollows: the signature dish of Gjirokastër, the stone city of southern Albania.

• Serves 4
• 50 min

Ingredients

• 300 g short-grain rice
• 3 eggs
• 1 bunch of mint and parsley
• 50 g butter
• Pepper, salt and a pinch of cinnamon
• Oil

How to make it at home

1. Cook the rice in salted water until overcooked and sticky. Drain and let it cool slightly.
2. Mix it with the eggs, chopped herbs, butter and spices.
3. Shape into walnut-sized ovals.
4. Fry them in a pan with oil (or a pan with hollows, as in Gjirokastër) until golden on all sides.
5. Serve hot with yoghurt.

The trick: Wet hands stop the rice from sticking as you shape them.

Frequently asked questions about Gjirokastër