History & culture
An olive-grove coast with one of Albania's oldest castles above it.
Borsh is the most underrated stop on the Riviera. A long open beach, the largest olive grove in the Balkans behind it, and a Byzantine-era castle on the hill above.
Sopot Castle
On the limestone hill above Borsh stands Sopot Castle — one of the oldest fortifications in Albania, with phases of construction dating from the Byzantine period (5th–6th c CE), the Despotate of Epirus (13th c), the Venetian period, and a late restoration under Ali Pasha of Yanina in the early 19th century. Most of what is visible today is Venetian-into-Ottoman, but the foundations are early-Byzantine. The walk up takes 45 minutes from the coast road and offers the best inland view on the Riviera.
Liquid gold
Borsh is the centre of Albanian olive cultivation. The grove behind the beach is one of the largest in the Balkans — over 60,000 trees, some claimed to be more than 1,000 years old. The local olive oil cooperative presses fruit from across the surrounding hills; the oil is among the most highly-regarded in Albania. October — when the harvest happens — is the moment to come if you care about food.
Why it matters today
Borsh is the most underrated stop on the Riviera. Its beach is long enough that you can almost always find space, the prices are visibly lower than the famous bays north of it, and Sopot Castle is the single best half-day walk on the coast. If you want to see what the Albanian Riviera was like before Instagram, this is where to start.
Most of the Riviera coast is short on space. Borsh has space, olive groves, and a thousand years of fortification above it.
