Tirana- Benja Thermal Baths and Langarica canyons have always been an attraction to local and foreign tourists, especially in recent years. The increased demand to visit them has prompted the creation of private ventures which organize tours to each of the destinations. Despite the increasing number of visitors, the period tourists stay and the services provided are limited. Indeed when tourists spend less time at a destination, even their expenditure will be less.

Benja Thermal Baths are very close to Fir of Hotova National Park. Pools are the main attraction but not the only one of the area. You can find there Kadiu Bridge and Langarica Canyon, natural caves and other attractions with little or no use at all.

To provide a new vision on improving Benja Thermal Baths, relation of attractions to each other and their incorporation with the rest of the park, the Albanian Development Fund has contracted a company to design a comprehensive project with investment ideas to turn this park into a well-managed destination that will offer a variety of activities and where tourists can spend more than a day.

The new project to improve this spot are being planned as part of the second component of the Integrated Urban Development and Tourism program funded by the Albanian Government and the World Bank and implemented by the Albanian Development Fund.

(You can read more about the program here: https://www.albaniandf.org/projekte/projekte-ne-zbatim/projekti-per-zhvillim-te-integruar-urban-dhe-turistik-pzhiut)

Local stakeholders as Përmet and Gjirokastra Municipality Office, Regional Directorates of Protected Areas and Regional Directorates of Cultural Monuments participated in the presentation and discussion activity about this project. Active participants in the discussions were representatives of central institutions such as the Ministry of Infrastructure, National Agency of Protected Areas, Institute of Cultural Monuments, tourism and environmental experts, etc. as well.

The new project proposes interventions for the development of services, parking and campers spaces, camping areas, construction of facilitating infrastructure for access to natural and cultural monuments, orientation signage, connections to the other part of the park, etc. In this way visitors will make full use of the park and at the same time creating the prospects for the development of agritourism in the nearby villages.

There are two main itineraries that are planned to be created. In these two itineraries are planned various activities in function of tourism. According to the proposed project, Benja Thermal Baths can be turned into an entrance gate to the Fir of Hotova National Park. Missing services such as ticketing, information points, parking lots, dressing rooms and toilets, etc., are planned to be built after this entryway. To facilitate access to thermal pools or the natural caves and panoramic views, the project proposes wooden trails and the construction of rest terraces along the routes leading to the park. Orientation signage is another important element in the project. The signage will not only orient but also raise tourists and visitors awareness of the park and preserve it.

During discussions on the project, stakeholders demanded that interventions be the smallest and designed to provide visitors with facilities. Likewise they requested to take into consideration natural phenomena at different seasons of the year for the design of the implementation project. On the other hand, all considered that these interventions are indispensable for a new dimension of development of the park and Benja Thermal Baths, where visitors come not only for thermal baths but also for outdoor walking, river activities, visits to natural monument, etc.

The project for the expansion of activities that will be offered to tourists visiting Benja Thermal Baths aims to make them stay longer in the area. This is seen by local stakeholders as a very good opportunity for agritourism development in the surrounding villages, especially in Benja.

The proposed project will represent the comments made by stakeholders and after it is approved the next stage will begin for the design of the implementation project.

Cover photo, courtesy of Into Albania