Top Five Pool Options in Ksamil, Albania
At its heart, Ksamil is a beachside resort town, designed for sunbathing, swimming, and enjoying the beach vibes. The beaches are all lined with sunbeds, and as of 2023, the going rate for a pair of beds and an umbrella was around 2000 Lek per day (~20 Euros). However, I am much more of a pool girl myself (the sand! It gets everywhere!). So during my six day visit here, I was on a mission to find the best pool options in Ksamil. Here are my suggestions, in order of preference.
5. Hotel Pools
A small minority of hotels in Ksamil, such as these ones, are equipped with pools for guests to use. For example, on the main beach strip, we frequently walked by Poga Boutique Hotel, which appeared to have a very nice pool.
In other places we’ve visited, like Corfu, hotels tend to let non-guests use their pools in exchange for buying drinks or for day use fees. This is not the case for hotels in Ksamil. So, if you book a hotel with a pool, one benefit is that you will be getting pretty exclusive access. On the other hand, as not many hotels here have pools, they do come at quite a premium. It may be worth calculating the added cost/benefit, in comparison to simply paying the day use fee at one of the other available pools in the area.
4. Lake Park Ksamil
Another pool option is Lake Park Ksamil, which appears to be a relatively new establishment.
Like on the beaches, a pair of sunbeds here is 20 euros for the day, and they grant you access to the pool. However, when I visited one late afternoon, the staff seemed confused about the day use rules, the cost of drinks, and generally how to handle customers. The place was also rather out of the way and quite deserted. Overall, the vibes seemed off so I didn’t stay. Maybe I just caught them on an off day.
3. Bianco Lounge Bar
Bianco Lounge Bar was the first pool we tried in Ksamil. This lounge is a pretty bougie place, which is reflected in its gorgeous infinity pool, its extremely comfortable sunbeds, and its high prices (for Albania). A pair of sunbeds here costs 60, 80, or 100 euros, depending on their proximity to the swanky pool. All of them come with a bottle of prosecco and a plate of fruit. We really enjoyed our day at the Bianco Lounge. But, it was a bit too high-brow for a repeat visit.
2. Veranda by Apollonia
Not far from Bianco is another lounge called Veranda. Here, the beds are more reasonable at 20 euros for the day, and they grant you access to both the pool and the nearby beach. The atmosphere is family-friendly from morning to mid-afternoon, and then transitions into more of a club/party scene in late afternoon. The drinks and food are also decent. We thought this was a great place to hang out, and we visited multiple times.
- Orange Beach Club
The Orange Beach Club is right on the main beach strip. This club has, granted, expensive drinks, but buying a drink grants you access to their saltwater infinity pool (which has no day use fee). It doesn’t need to be an alcoholic drink, either. We liked this system better because we didn’t feel pressured to park ourselves there all day in order to “make the most” of our sunbed fees. Also, being child-free ourselves, we enjoyed the adult vibe of the club, which is really a bar with a pool attached. The staff were very laidback and friendly as well. Overall, this was our favorite pool in Ksamil. Until next time, Orange Beach Club!
