Katiu Bridge
A single stone arch from the mid-1700s.
Christoph Strässler — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Sali Jonuzi — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Christoph Strässler — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Christoph Strässler — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wasserwiki.eu — CC BY 4.0
Llixhat e Bënjës, the Bënja thermal baths, are small spring-fed pools along the Lengarica river where it leaves its limestone canyon, about 14 km by road east of Përmet, beside an Ottoman bridge. Their mineral-rich water, smelling of sulphur, rises at about 26 to 31 °C, so the pools feel tepid rather than hot. Villagers have come for centuries to treat scabies and other ailments, and the water is still sought for rheumatism and skin complaints. The Katiu Bridge, dated to the mid-18th century, spans about 15.5 m in one arch; it linked Bënjë with the villages across the river and was repaired in 1982 after Second World War damage. A cave nearby was lived in from the Copper Age to the Iron Age, and the springs and canyon became natural monuments in 2002. An easy path of about 500 m leads from the car park to the bridge, where the warmest pools cluster; cooler ones upstream need stepping stones or wading. Works since 2025, still unfinished, have rebuilt the pools as tubs with changing booths. Beyond, the Lengarica canyon winds about 4 km between walls some 100 m high, walkable partly in the river. The baths are 73 km by road from Gjirokastër's Old Bazaar, via the Këlcyrë gorge and Përmet. Come early, before the midday crowds. The steep cobbled bridge has no parapet, so take care when it is wet; crossings deepen with snowmelt, and heavy rain muddies the pools. Bënjë village and its St Mary's Church among cypresses lie about 1.6 km away in a straight line.
A single stone arch from the mid-1700s.
Tepid spring water that smells of sulphur.
Limestone walls about 100 m high.
Beside the Katiu Bridge, Bënjë, about 14 km east of Përmet by road
Katiu, also spelled Kadiu, comes from kadi, the Ottoman title for a judge, pronounced kati locally; the bridge was probably named after a kadi who commissioned it or played a leading part in building it. It has been a protected cultural monument since 1973.
Yes: upstream of the pools you can follow it for several kilometres over rocks and slippery mud, often wading in the river, and one visitor guide rates the walk through it as difficult, about 5 km and three hours. Wear grippy water shoes, and go only when the river is low and clear.