Mirror Beach, Albania: The Bluest Water In the World, But It Sucks

Mirror Beach (Plazhi i Pasqyrave) in Albania has a reputation for being one of the best beaches in the world. In 2024, a fairly crude study conducted by CV Villas recognised Mirror Beach as having the bluest water in the world. Given the subsequent media hype, Beck and I decided to visit this beach and were extremely disappointed.

In this guide, we’ll tell you why it actually isn’t worth visiting Mirror Beach in Albania. Don’t worry, we’ll also recommend a much better beach to visit along the Albanian Riviera (Kroreza Beach).

What Is Mirror Beach?

Mirror Beach is a small pebble beach in Albania. It’s known for having some of the bluest water in the world.

Why Is It Called Mirror Beach?

The beach is called Mirror Beach because the white cliff walls adjacent to the water reflect sunlight onto the water as a mirror would. In Albania, the beach is called Plazhi i Pasqyrave, which translates to Beach of Mirrors. The beach is also known as Pasqyra Beach and Plazhi Pasqyra.

Where Is Mirror Beach in Albania?

Mirror Beach is located on the Albanian Riviera, between Saranda and Ksamil. Most people who visit Mirror Beach will do so from Saranda or Ksamil.

How to Get to Mirror Beach in Albania

There are several ways to get to Mirror Beach in Albania, as listed below.

• Public Transport (Bus)
• Taxi
• Car Hire
• Boat Tour

Beck and I used public transport to get to the beach. You’ll need to catch the Saranda – Butrint bus, which runs between Saranda, Ksamil and the Butrint National Park. Once on the bus, in whichever direction you are heading (for example, going to or away from Saranda), you’ll alight at this bus stop. From the bus stop, you’ll walk around 1.3km to reach the beach. It’s an uphill walk from the bus stop, so bear this in mind on a hot summer’s day.

Otherwise, you can catch a taxi to this beach. But, taxis in Saranda and Ksamil are very expensive. We were quoted €35 for a return trip from Saranda to Mirror Beach!

Of course, if you have hired a car in Albania, which is usually relatively cheap, you can simply drive to Mirror Beach. Although, bear in mind that the road leading to parking areas is narrow and often gets congested. Also, the parking areas are unsealed, rocky and bumpy. And, the road quality gets worse the lower you get towards the beach.

The final option is to do a boat tour that visits the beach. We’ll look into this option below.

Do Boat Tours Visit Mirror Beach?

Some boat tours starting from Saranda and Ksamil include visiting Mirror Beach as part of their itinerary. Here is an example of a boat tour starting from Ksamil that visits Mirror Beach. While, this is a private sunset boat tour that visits the beach from Saranda.

Admitedlly, the most popular boat tours on the Albanian Riviera don’t tend to visit Mirror Beach. Most boat tours from Saranda and Ksamil tend to visit Kroreza Beach and other beaches north of Saranda (Mirror Beach is south of Saranda). On that note, Beck and I highly recommend this boat tour to Kroreza Beach. In this section below, we’ll tell you why Kroreza Beach is better to visit than Mirror Beach.

Why Did Mirror Beach Become So Popular?

As mentioned, in 2024, CV Villas published a blog on their website that claimed Mirror Beach has the bluest water in the world. This claim was made after they cross-referenced and compared unedited Google Map screenshots of the water of several beaches around the world with the RGB code of the world’s bluest shade of blue (YInMn Blue).

From this pseudo-science assessment, CV Villas judged Mirror Beach, in Albania, to have the bluest water in the world. Because of this, in 2024, many online media companies ran with stories, detailing how Mirror Beach had bluer water than beaches in the Maldives and Bora Bora. As a result, Mirror Beach suddenly became very popular!

Why You Shouldn’t Visit Mirror Beach, Albania

Despite Mirror Beach having some of the bluest water in the world, the beach still isn’t worth visiting. Honestly, Beck and I didn’t enjoy our visit to this beach at all. Overcrowding and exploitation of the beach have essentially ruined it for tourists and locals alike.

The beach itself is quite small and doesn’t have much space. Sadly, you’ll find that every square inch of the beach is covered in umbrellas and deck chairs. Not only does it make the beach look ugly, commercial and unappealing, but it also creates overcrowding.

FYI – it’s €20 to use an umbrella.

On top of that, it’s not even a sand beach, it’s a pebble beach. Surely, if a beach is going to be voted one of the best in the world, it’s got to have sand.

So, if you decide to visit Mirror Beach in Albania, expect swarms of umbrellas, deck chairs and people. With that, the serenity, peacefulness and beauty of this beach is lost. This is especially true during summer when it’s busiest.

Our Recommendations If You Do Visit

If you do visit, do so very early or late in the day to avoid the crowds. Otherwise, perhaps it will be better to visit outside of summer and to avoid the weekend. We definitely don’t recommend visiting on a weekend during summer!

Better Alternate Beaches Nearby

Unfortunately, many of the small beaches between Ksamil and Saranda have been similarly overexploited and so, have become overcrowded.

For example, the Cave of Pigeons (Shpella e Pëllumbave) is the next beach south of Mirror Beach. It’s another sensational blue water beach. Unfortunately though, you’ll likely have a similar poor experience visiting the Cave of Pigeons. It’ll be busy and jam-packed full of umbrellas, taking away from its splendour. For that reason, we don’t recommend visiting the Cave of Pigeons either.

Thankfully, some of the beaches north of Saranda such as Kroreza Beach are much bigger with a lot more space for visitors. So, despite many of these beaches having large areas of umbrellas, it’s much more spaced out. This means you won’t feel so cramped and uncomfortable visiting a beach such as Kroreza Beach. In addition, we guarantee that the water at Kroreza Beach is just as blue as the water at Mirror Beach.

Read more: Kroreza Beach: The Ultimate Visitor’s Guide

Other Things to Do Near Mirror Beach, Albania

Located between Ksamil and Saranda, there are plenty of things to do near Mirror Beach in Albania. Even if you don’t visit Mirror Beach, there are still plenty of worthwhile places to visit nearby such as Butrint National Park, the Blue Eye and Kantina e Veres Isak.

Butrint National Park

Located just south of Mirror Beach and Ksamil, the Butrint National Park (AKA the Butrint Archaeological Park) is one of the most significant historical attractions in Albania. The UNESCO World Heritage site is certainly worth a visit during a trip to the Albanian Riviera, even if you’re not a history buff.

The Blue Eye

Another must-see attraction near Saranda and Ksamil is the Blue Eye. The water spring is a truly wondrous natural attraction with cultural significance. Of course, similar to Mirror Beach, expect hoards of tourists visiting in summer. Make sure to visit early if you visit during peak season to avoid the crowds.

Kantina e Veres Isak

Compared with the Butrint National Park and the Blue Eye, Kantina e Veres Isak is a lesser-known place to visit for tourists. Still, if you want to experience a fun day out at a winery, we highly recommend visiting Kantina e Veres Isak.

Read more: Kantina e Veres Isak – An Honest Review of This Albanian Winery

Are you travelling to other Balkan countries? Read this guide to find out about the best things to do in Kotor and Perast in Montenegro.