For decades, no civilian could approach within several kilometers of its coast. Saseno, the island that rises opposite the Gulf of Vlorë in the southern Adriatic, has remained sealed off from the outside world for almost half a century, transformed by the communist regime of Enver Hoxha into a military fortress equipped with underwater bunkers carved into the living rock. Today, after the fall of the regime in 1991, the island is accessible to visitors on day trips, and what remains of that clandestine history coexists with one of the most intact marine ecosystems in the entire Adriatic basin.
Saseno is located about five kilometers from the Karaburun Peninsula, in the municipality of Vlorë, and can be reached by boat from the city of Vlorë. The island measures about five kilometers in length and two in width, with a total area of just under six square kilometers. There are no permanent residents, no hotels, and no paved roads leading to any tourist-recognizable destinations. This forced isolation has, paradoxically, preserved nature in an extraordinary way.
A layered story among European powers
Before communist Albania definitively took possession of it, Saseno had already experienced various dominations. The island was occupied by Italy during World War I and remained under Italian control until 1947, when the Paris Treaty officially assigned it to Albania. During the Italian period, some military structures and basic infrastructures were built that can still be observed today in a state of abandonment among the relentless advancing Mediterranean vegetation.
With the rise to power of Enver Hoxha and the creation of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania, Saseno became a naval base of primary strategic importance. In the 1950s and 1960s, with the support of the Soviet Union first and then China, underwater bunkers capable of hosting military submarines were dug on the island. These artificial tunnels, which penetrate the limestone rock of the island, are still visible and represent one of the most impressive elements that a visitor can physically observe: huge openings that overlook the sea directly, sized to allow military hulls to enter.
The sea that no one has touched for fifty years
The military isolation has had an extraordinary side effect: the waters around Saseno have remained practically untouched for decades. The seabed of the channel between Saseno and Karaburun hosts coral formations and a marine biodiversity that divers describe as exceptional for the Mediterranean. Underwater visibility can reach very high levels, and the fauna includes groupers, morays, and schools of fish that are now rare elsewhere in the southern Adriatic.
The coves that open along the rocky coast of the island feature intensely turquoise waters, with bottoms that drop off quickly from the shore. There are no bathing facilities, umbrellas, or equipment of any kind: those who arrive must bring everything they need. This total absence of infrastructure is both the limit and the main charm of Saseno. The ruins of military buildings emerge from the Mediterranean scrub, with peeling walls on which vegetation has slowly reclaimed over the last thirty years.
The visible ruins and what to expect while walking on the island
Walking along the unmarked paths of the island, one encounters abandoned buildings in various states of decay: barracks, warehouses, command structures with partially collapsed ceilings. The writings in Albanian are still legible on some walls. The smaller bunkers, of the type that Hoxha had built by the hundreds of thousands throughout Albanian territory during the Cold War, also dot the hilly landscape here. At the top of the island are the remains of older defensive structures, with panoramic views of the Strait of Otranto and, on clear days, the Apulian coast.
The atmosphere is that of a place that time has abandoned twice: first isolated from the world, then abandoned by the military. The silence is almost total, interrupted only by the wind and the sound of the sea on the limestone rocks.
How to organize the visit in a concrete way
Day trips to Sazan typically depart from Vlorë and are often combined with a visit to the Karaburun-Sazan Marine National Park, which also includes the island. It is essential to book through authorized local operators, as independent access to the island is not allowed and private boats cannot dock freely. Organized tours generally last a full day and include stops for swimming and, in some cases, guided diving. Indicative prices for a day tour are around 30-50 euros per person, but they vary based on the operator and the services included. The best time to visit is between May and September, when sea conditions are favorable. Bringing water, food, and sunscreen is essential, as nothing of this can be found on the island.
