Sazan Island Soviet Military Base, Vlorë

Historic Building near Vlorë

CC BY-SA 4.0 / Visem

Sazan is the largest island in Albania, with an area of 5.8 square kilometres, was a Soviet military base, and perhaps even a chemical weapons plant. In 2015 it made the newsfollowing decades of silence, when it was eventually opened to the public. You can spend a day pottering through tunnels and bunkers designed to survive a nuclear assault!

An interesting side effect-the position of Sazan, where the Ionian and Adriatic Seas converge, offers the Albanian mainland a subtropical climate of differing weather conditions for being so nearby.

What Other Travellers Say...

Reviews Summary

4.6 (164)

Sazan Island Harbor at Porti i Sazanit, Zvërnec, Albania, offers a small, attractive beach on a former military island where visitors can be admitted for short visits to swim and explore; reviewers praise the clear water, striking white rocks, pleasant compact beach area, and organized tours that make the island accessible despite its military past.

De is van Bodegom

5 months ago

"Beautiful small "private" beach on a designated military island. You ca ot stay here long but you may be admitted for half gour to look around andtake a swim...."

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Alem Veshaj

5 months ago

"Sazan Island, an Albanian pearl, an extraordinary beauty and full of history since the time of communism, has been a military base, one of the mostfortified in the Balkans and beyond, now remains a tourist and beach destination..."

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Mandy Fullgrabe

6 months ago

"AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING. Trips4Fun did the best tour!!!! Water was amazing!!"

The Sazan Island Soviet Military Base appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Vlorë!

Moira & Andy

Hey! We're Moira & Andy. From hiking the Camino to trips around Europe in Bert our campervan — we've been traveling together since retirement in 2020!

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