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- The Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast (Albanian pronunciation: [brɛˈɡdɛ:ti adriˈa:tik] — Albanian: Bregdeti Adriatik) stretches in the Southeastern Adriatic Sea beginning at the Gulf of Drin in the north, across the port cities of Shëngjin, Durrës and Vlorë, to the Bay of Vlorë in the south, where the Albanian Riviera as well as the Albanian Ionian Sea Coast begins. Albania is geographically located in South and Southeast Europe within the Balkan Peninsula. It borders on Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, North Macedonia to the east, Greece to the south and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. The total length of the coastline is approximately 274 kilometres (170 mi), 178 kilometres (111 mi) of which are taken up by white sandy beaches and the remaining by different landforms. The Adriatic Sea is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea extending all the way from the Strait of Otranto in the south up to the Po Valley in the north. The sea is apportioned into two major basins, wherein Albania is entirely located within the deepest and southernmost one. The coastline is one of the wealthiest scenery of the country in terms of biology, holding an outstanding diversity of ecosystems and biodiversity found within a precious mosaic of wetlands, estuaries, capes, sand dunes, marshlands, forests and marine habitats. At different times, numerous ancient people, most notably the Illyrians and later the Ancient Greeks and Romans, have established significant settlements around the shores. They were considerably influenced by their direct proximity to the sea because it provided routes for trade, colonization and war, as well as food; the Via Egnatia, that crossed through the mountains of Albania, was at that time among the most significant routes in the Roman Empire. The coastline is populated by more than 1.5 million people. The most sizable cities are Durrës and Vlorë placed in the north and south, respectively. Durrës is served by Port of Durrës, one of the largest on the Adriatic Sea, which connects the city to Italy and other neighbouring countries within the Adriatic. (en)
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