The Head of the Regional Cultural Heritage Office, Ardis Duka said Sunday that the number of visitors to Gjirokaster’s ancient fortress has almost doubled since January.

“Number of visitors has doubled since January this year. Around 202,000 local and foreign tourists have visited the city’s castle, which remains one of the most popular attractions for the visitors to the stone city,” Duka told Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA).

According to him, around 70% of visitors are foreigners and 30% are Albanian visitors.

Duka said that Spanish lead the number of foreign visitors to the museum city this year.

“Spanish lead visitors number growth in Gjirokaster and its castle, followed by Italians, French and other tourists from all over the world,” Duka said.

The medieval Gjirokaster castle is one of the biggest in the region. Gjirokaster castle is mentioned for the first time as a citadel and a castle in 1336. Situated on the hilltop overlooking the city, the castle extends across the 1100-foot-high hillside, like a giant ship made of stone.

The combination of museum values, diverse tradition with cultural events hosted by the municipality is attracting a significant number of visitors on weekends.

Gjirokastra is a very important historical and cultural town that is known for its extensive use of stone in building the houses, which resemble small fortresses, and cobblestone streets, which is how it got the name “The City of Stone”.

The old town and the domineering 4th century Gjirokastra castle and fortress grant Gjirokastra the UNESCO World Heritage Site status because it’s a rare and wonderful example of a very well-preserved Ottoman town. And it’s one of the prettiest towns in Albania.

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