It is hard to imagine that this picturesque but desolate spot was once the most vibrant and indispensable port of Arta. For eight centuries it witnessed the movement of emperors, invaders, armies, merchants, fishermen, and foreign visitors, who landed here on their way to either Arta or Ioannina. The place name is obscure but most interpretations focus on the word “salt” (alas in Greek) and the role of this port in the production and trade of salt. Salaora soon became an indispensable link in the trade between the Adriatic Sea and the mountainous interior of Epirus. Ships loaded honey, grain, acorns, hides, salted fish, and fish roe that was brought here in large caravans.