Discovering Permet: Albania’s Ecotourism Gem No One’s Talking About

Tucked away deep in Albania’s southern interior, I learned of Permet by way of hearing news of Albania’s brand new protected area: the Vjosa Wild River National Park.

Following decade-long pressure from local groups (and helped by the outdoor clothing brand Patagonia), the government of Albania decided in 2023 to fully protect the entire Vjosa river — from near its source in Greece all the way 190 kilometers (118 miles) down to the Albanian coast. 

This means no dams, no industry, no taming the river in any way. In fact, the Vjosa is one of Europe’s last truly wild rivers, flowing freely and undisturbed through narrow canyons and sweeping bends. The new park will ensure it will stay that way, protecting its ecosystems and local livelihoods.

Inspired by this nature conservation success story, I searched for the best place to experience the wild Vjosa river — and all signs pointed to Permet.

This small city is not well known yet, but after visiting I have a feeling it will start showing up in more Albania travel guides. It’s the best place to go rafting along the Vjosa, you can do an epic hike through the canyons of one of its tributaries, and enjoy an authentic side of Albania. 

Not many bloggers have visited Permet yet, which is exactly why I went to tell you all about it. I hope you enjoy this detailed guide!

Why visit Permet?

Permet is a low-key and under-the-radar travel destination where you can enjoy several epic nature activities and culinary highlights. I loved these attractions in particular: 

1. Located in the middle of the new Vjosa Wild River National Park, you can enjoy the Vjosa river for lazy days by the river or an action-packed rafting trip.
2. There are several fantastic hikes in the area, most notably the Langarica Canyon hike, which was an absolute highlight for me. I’ll be gushing about it in a moment!
3. Permet is also profiling itself as a slow food destination, benefiting from the many locally produced cheeses, meats, honey, and sweets. It’s the perfect place to sample traditional Albanian food in one of the many cosy tavern-style restaurants.

One thing not to expect is some kind of deeply historical town. Yes, there is a small section of historical streets with stone houses to the back of Permet, but honestly it’s quite unremarkable. It probably just gets mentioned to pad out the ‘things to do’ lists.

Despite not having a historical aesthetic, Permet is still delightful. It has a flower-filled park by the riverbank and a cosy center that becomes fully pedestrianized at night. It’s not overly touristy but has just enough restaurants, cafes, and local tour companies to ensure an easy stay.

From a drone’s perspective (or seen from the top of the City Stone) the town doesn’t always have perfect looks, revealing mostly a jumble of high-rise flats. But… I only mention this because of today’s Instagram-driven travel culture. Make no mistake, the town is actually rather cute and appealing at ground level, especially around the main square. Don’t let a zoomed-out drone shot give you the wrong impression!

Located just an hour from Gjirokastër, it’s an easy day trip — and there are so many cool things to do that I totally recommend it. However, I think Permet is worth staying overnight to experience it fully. If you happen to be on your way to/from Korçë, Permet will be a convenient stop on your way. Otherwise, it might be a slight detour on your Albania itinerary.

I stayed for 4 nights so I could create this detailed guide, but I would normally recommend 2 or 3 nights if you plan to do any rafting or hiking.

Where to stay in Permet

First things first: I need to give a specific shoutout here to Honey House Kastrioti. This is the guesthouse I stayed at, and it added a whole other dimension to my enjoyment of Permet. If you’re looking for some traditional family hospitality, look no further!

Honey House is a short walking distance from the centre yet scenically located on the edge of town facing the river. At a long wooden table under a tree with views of the wild Vjosa river, I was served a yummy homemade breakfast every day that included fresh bread, fruits, yoghurt, and a type of Albanian pancake. 

Many ingredients come straight from the garden and some of the wild herbs are even harvested personally by the owner during his early morning mountain hikes. The owners are also beekeepers so you can enjoy some excellent homemade wildflower honey with your yoghurt every day. It doesn’t get more local than this! 

I strongly recommend booking a stay at Kastrioti and Marinella’s wonderful guesthouse. It has half a dozen good quality and clean rooms, but what really makes it special is the warm hospitality and the generous local knowledge they will happily share. 

stay at honey house kastrioti

Honey House is one of the highest-rated options in Permet, so I do advise booking well ahead. If it’s not available or you’re looking for a different type of stay, I suggest the following alternatives:

Hikes & trails

Permet offers several excellent hiking possibilities, with the off-trail hike through Langarica Canyon being perhaps my favorite in Albania after the northern Alps. Let me discuss it first before detailing several other worthwhile hikes.

Langarica Canyon hike

This hike takes you straight into a deep river gorge and is almost endlessly stunning. I set off in the morning when the stark shadows and crossing light rays made the steep cliffs look even more impressive.

At 8 AM, there were almost no other people, so all I could hear was the gently rippling water and the chatter of birds reverberating through the increasingly narrow spaces.

It was pure zen. 

If you’d like to take just a quick look at Langarica Canyon, you can follow the river upstream and after just 10 to 15 minutes you’ll see some of the most impressive rocky walls and escarpments. The gorge is located just north of the thermal springs of Bënjë, so you can easily combine both activities on the same trip.

But if you’re up for a bit of adventure, then it’s highly worth hiking further upstream for another hour or two. Several sections feature expansive rocky walls, others feature narrow, smooth and undulating eroded surfaces.

The different nooks, crannies, and even some ivy-covered overhangs gave off a certain ‘Indiana Jones’ vibe at times. 

The hiking difficulty will depend a lot on the water level.

I should mention that traversing this canyon can turn into a mild form of canyoning: some clambering and even some swimming may become necessary as you go deeper. It’s best to bring footwear that can get wet (something sturdy, not flipflops) as you often need to cross over to the other side. In one case, I had to wade through waters reaching my hips. 

For what it’s worth, I did this during a dry period in July. It was during a heatwave, so the natural shading and cool water made this hike much more pleasant than ones in the full sun. After about two hours of hiking, I turned back the way I came, but I heard that at the 3-hour point, you will reach a dam, letting you switch to the upper canyon trail (described in the next section).

In my opinion, the hike is not necessarily so challenging that you need to gear up for it with wetsuits and all. However, you may feel more comfortable doing it with a guided canyoning tour, a more official and safer way to go and a good option for families or groups.

See ‘Getting Around’ for details on how to get to the trailhead.

Upper Langarica hike

If you wish to see the gorge from a different perspective then you can follow the upper path that lets you hike in a circle around it. I didn’t do this myself to avoid the full sun during the heatwave, but my host showed me photos from his many trips up there as well as instructions on how to do it. 

It starts and ends at the Benji thermal baths; you just have to go up, rather than into the gorge. The path is easy to follow especially if you have a map app such as Maps.me, which will also indicate several great viewpoints along the way.

A footbridge lets you cross over the gorge after which you’ll circle back on the other side. You’ll see less of the gorge from the higher vantage point, but you can follow regular paths the whole way.

Hike up the City Stone

Okay, this is not exactly a hike — merely a walk and climbing some stairs — but it’s a good warmup and something you’ll probably want to do anyway while in Permet.

The Permet Stone is a 42-meter high rock formation and a symbol of the town. It overlooks the Vjosa river on the edge of town, giving great views of the valley and mountains. A few crumbled walls of an ancient structure from the 4th to 6th centuries still persist.

Simply stroll along the flower park boulevard by the river and make the easy climb upstairs. It’s a lovely spot to enjoy the sunset.

Hike to the Church of Leus

This is a fun shorter hike, taking at most 1 ½ hours (there and back). It gives you lovely views of Permet and the valley and ends in a hamlet with old stone houses where you can visit a small 18th-century Orthodox church. 

The trail starts in Permet, so you don’t have to travel anywhere to begin your hike, making this a nice snackable activity not requiring much preplanning.

That said, I recommend doing this hike before 11am if you want to take a look inside this church, because later in the day its doors may be closed. I’ve heard that locals around the church may be able to open the door for you if asked, but I went in the morning when I could just walk in.

The interior features some decayed but beautiful post-Byzantine frescoes painted the typical color scheme dominated by bright blues, reds, and gold details. The blog Wander Lush did a wonderful writeup of this hike which you can check for further details.

There is one guesthouse in Leuse, the Chri Chri Guest House, should you want to stay somewhere in nature that is still very close to Permet.

You can find the trailhead here. Leuse is signposted, though you won’t miss it as this dirt road has only one destination.

Hike to Sopot waterfall

This is a hike I attempted and ultimately aborted, but I want to share the initial details here so you might have better luck than I did. 

I’d been shown photos of the trail-end at the base of the mountains that were quite enticing. However, I was unsure of the correct path so I headed back early (I was solo, so better safe than sorry). 

It starts in the hamlet of Strembec, but to get there by car you have to follow a narrow and adventurous dirt road and traverse a somewhat questionable wooden bridge. The little village has several abandoned-looking farmhouses. After passing these, the trail got more difficult for me to discern and it was often obstructed by spiderwebs and prickly plants, so I decided to turn around.

I might have missed something obvious, but if you want to try this off the beaten path hike I suggest studying the route info online or perhaps using a guide. While the waterfall itself doesn’t seem too impressive, the hike is actually much more about reaching the towering cirque glaciers (bowl-shaped glacial cliffs) at the base of the mountain, which were the main motivation for me to go.

Water activities in Permet

River rafting

The best way to enjoy the Vjosa river is to paddle along it. Rafting is what has tentatively put Permet on the ecotourism map with multiple companies offering rafting trips at times throughout the day. 

If rafting seems a little too action-packed for you, I should mention that the river is actually very calm in summer. There are only a few real rapids to conquer, so think of this experience more as chill river tubing or kayaking than some extreme sports activity.

In fact, several sections are calm and deep enough for swimming, so here you can disembark the paddleboat and float or swim beside it for a while. There’s also a stop about midway where you can rest or jump into the waters from a cliff.

The rafting is mostly Class II (with a Class III here and there), meaning it’s mostly easy to navigate with occasional action. The instructor will tell you exactly what to do as a group, so as long as you can follow the commands ‘left’, ‘right’, and ‘stop’ you should be golden. It’s super fun and suitable for a wide audience including kids.

On my trip we were twice given the option for a slower or faster route through a rapid. Each time we chose the latter, picking up speed and even doing a small “boof” (a purposeful bump against a rock) for some added excitement.

However, the biggest scream actually came when a truly giant cicada (the size of one’s palm) landed suddenly on someone’s shoulder. You never know what surprises nature has in store.

The typical rafting tour takes about 3 hours including a short bus ride to the drop-off point. I did mine with Funky Guest House whose guide was super friendly and humorous. If you book this rafting tour on GetYourGuide you will be rafting with Funky — it’s the exact tour I did and which I recommend. 

The rafting season lasts roughly from May to October.

book this rafting tour

Bënja thermal springs 

Several small hot spring pools form a key attraction here for Albanians and foreign tourists alike. Besides being comfortably warm at around 28°C, the waters are believed to have healing properties.

Upon my arrival, an Albanian pensioner immediately began gushing at me about just how great it is for arthritis and other ailments. “Water very good. Reumatizma, no! Water very good. Skin, good!”, at least according to my local source.

With or without arthritis, it’s fun to go for a dip and enjoy some great views of the ancient Ottoman Bridge built in 1760. You can also crawl into a little cavern near the foot of the bridge from where you can take a cool picture of the bridge framed by cave walls. The main pool is beside the bridge but if you go a bit further upstream you’ll find a few more smaller ones.

Bring snacks or drinks if you plan to spend some time here as there is nothing here apart from a parking lot. (Though in 2025 a structure is being built that looks to become a cafe or shop.)

See ‘Getting Around’ for details on how to get here.

Swimming in the river

The easiest way to enjoy the wild Vjosa is to simply cool off in the waters. When I visited in early summer, the temperatures were gently refreshing and perfect on a warm day. (As a sidenote, this is quite different from certain other Balkan rivers. I remember nearly freezing my skin off in the icy waters in Mostar, Bosnia!)

You could put your feet in the river directly from Permet; there’s a path near the City Stone where you can reach the river level on foot. Besides this I suggest going to the village of Petran, halfway towards the Bënja hot springs.

Here at the confluence of the Vjosa and Langarica river you have a nice wide section where you can chill and where kids can play if you have little ones in tow. At Bar Restaurant Alvi, you can sit for lunch or grab some drinks to go, and you can explore the wooden footbridge to the other riverbank. 

If you have your own transportation you can also go around and find other suitable spots along the river. Further away, the Kanikol bridge makes for another scenic swimming spot. 

Note: these two pics are from the Petran swimming spot:

Slow food & drink

If all the hiking and rafting has got you tired and hungry, fret not, because Permet has some fantastic dining options for you to refill and recharge. 

Several restaurants in town even joined the Slow Food movement focused on promoting local food and traditional cooking. Consider Trifilia and Te Culi where you can try traditional dishes like stuffed lamb or sides like dollma (rice and herbs wrapped in vine leaves). 

Since I was backpacking solo I wasn’t seeking sophisticated dining every day, but I found Sofra Përmetare to be a wonderful casual and budget-friendly option for Albanian fare. Be sure to try traditional clay pot dishes like Tave Dheu, or Te Mbushura (stuffed peppers).

Permet is also known for its organic and traditional products, including cheeses, wildflower honeys, and a sweet known as Gliko Permeti which you can find made with walnuts, plum, cherry, and other ingredients.

The fiery liquor known as Raki is popular here too, with the local version known as Raki Permeti. It equally comes in many varieties, being made from plums, grapes, mulberry, and other fruits. 

Getting around Permet

Transportation options are somewhat limited in this small town, but the key spots are easy enough to visit. You can get to the thermal baths and nearby hikes by taxi or bus.

Public transport

Some taxis can be hailed from around the main square which can help you cover shorter distances. There are not many of them though so you may have to be patient or ask your accommodation to call one.

There is also a convenient shuttle bus directly to the Bënja thermal springs and the Langarica canyon. If you’re on a budget or in Permet without your own wheels, then this is your ride.

It leaves in the morning at 8am from this exact pickup point. There are two return trips: one at 12.30 and one at 17.00. 

If you go with an organized tour then you won’t have to worry about the timetables.

Vehicle rental

I usually like having my own wheels to explore independently, but just so you know the options for this are somewhat limited in Permet. I’d seen some vloggers ride around on electric scooters but I couldn’t find a place to rent them individually — only as part of a pricey day tour. I also looked for a motorbike scooter rental and couldn’t find any, but perhaps you’ll have better luck.

There are no official brand name car rentals in Permet, though you can still rent a car if you don’t mind doing it through a local business. There is a stationary shop in town that doubles as a car rental, offering regular and offroad 4×4 cars. 

The older man who runs the shop doesn’t speak English, so he’ll ask you to write him on WhatsApp so he can reply to you with Google Translate, but it’s a pretty easy process. The rental contract will be between you and a private individual rather than a company. 

My car had a few years on it and several warning lights did start blinking on my dashboard while I was already deep into the valley. I texted the owner and was given a very Balkan-style solution: “Ignore. Is ok, no problem.” To their credit, the car drove perfectly fine, just expect a fairly artisanal local car rental and not a more polished enterprise.

Aerial view of a small Orthodox church with a terracotta roof and bell tower by the Vjosa River, flowing through rocky plains, with a steep mountain rising in the background near Tepelena.

Roads to explore

As for where to go on a road trip, I first headed south towards Greece. The road gets narrower and quieter the further you get from Permet, winding its way through grand mountain scenery. Don’t miss the Vjosa river bend viewing point and other nice views along the way. There may not be too many attractions down in this valley, but the drive itself is highly rewarding. 

I also drove west to the town of Tepelenë, but to be honest this wasn’t so remarkable. Its castle isn’t noteworthy (it’s just a few walls) and despite the town being quite scenically located there isn’t anything to do in Tepelenë.

I mention this just to potentially avoid wasting time exploring in this direction. I’ve heard Tepelenë will be developed into an alternate tourism hub, but as far as I could tell there isn’t much there yet.

You can also drive north over the mountain pass to Osumi Canyon. I haven’t done this but met some travellers who did, who raved about their amazing off-path adventure. Just keep in mind the road from Permet is mostly a backroad requiring a four-wheel drive for at least half of the way. 

Google Maps will actually refuse to create any routes between Permet and Osumi, so consider this literally off the beaten path. (Google Maps and Apple Maps are generally very poor in Albania; I highly recommend using an OpenStreetMap-based app like Maps.me which will actually show the smaller dirt roads and paths!) 

Getting to/from Permet

From Tirana: According to the oft-cited website Gjirafa Travel, there are various daily connections, but when I went to look for one it didn’t actually seem to exist. Consulting local in-person sources for transport info is often still a good idea in Albania.

I took a furgon (informal minibus) directly from Tirana to Permet. There is at least one scheduled furgon per day leaving from Tirana’s central bus station at around 3pm, though I actually managed to catch a random one passing the street in front of the bus station around 10am. The trip cost 1200 LEK.

To/from Gjirokaster: This is the easiest jump to make, the trip taking only about 70 minutes or so and with many options throughout the day. The UNESCO World Heritage listed town of Gjirokaster is a major tourist attraction so from/to there you can easily connect to other places in Albania. 

Onward travel: It may be best to ask your hotel, the tourist information centre, or to walk to the Permet bus stop in the morning and simply check your furgon options. I actually don’t feel very confident listing timetables for Albania… things usually aren’t so formalized and online timetables aren’t so reliable in my experience. 

I was heading to the Albanian Riviera next and found furgons to Sarandë and Vlore leaving between 9 and 10am from Permet.

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So there you have it: everything you need to know for a visit to Permet. While the thermal baths and culinary highlights take the spotlight in most guides to Permet, as you can tell it was the hiking and river activities that I personally got excited about the most.

I consider Permet a lovely hidden gem to visit, and doing so will lend your support to the sustainable tourism model that is developing around the Vjosa Wild River National Park. The nature-focused Permet pairs very well with the more historical Gjirokaster, not too far from it, so be sure to also read my travel guide to Gjirokaster for a complete picture for exploring this region.