"Disaster at Dhermi!" Dhermi by salmayo

Dhermi might have been a really great place to spend a couple of relaxed and laid back days of our recent trip to Albania, but before we had even got out of the car, the anticipation of the stench and flies emanating from the piles of rubbish dumped everywhere was enough to turn us off...

Unfortunately the magnificently clean and clear sea wasn't a big enough temptation to make us stay either. We had to cross the pebble beach to get to it and the worst build up of refuge was perhaps to found there.

We were amazed at the seemingly blissful ignorance of the travellers we saw holed up in the hotels near the beach. It would have been a great place to have a cool drink and admire the sea views were it not for what had been dumped on the beach 10 metres below.

The beach at Drymades was much less busy than Dhermi and for this reason much cleaner. It's a nice place for a swim but unfortunately the only accommodation in the area was fully booked (Drymades Hotel [there is the hotel up in the town and bungalows down on the beach so be sure to be clear about which one you want] Tel: 069 20 74000) so it was on to Himara for the night.