The park spans a territory of 222.3 square kilometres (22,230 ha) containing remarkable features such as wetlands, salt marshes, coastal meadows, floodplains, woodlands, reed beds, forests and estuaries.

The forests and woodlands are ascertained by a mixture of varied species of deciduous, coniferous and mixed trees, due to the lower river valleys and sea coast.

[13][14] The forests are important because they provide shelter for a large number of animals, including the red fox, golden jackal and roe deer.

The park provides important spawning and nursery habitat for economically valuable fish species that are exploited by a local fisheries cooperative.

However, a new resort complex project inside the park has been proposed by the construction giant Mabetex owned by Kosovo-Albanian businessman Behgjet Pacolli, fiercely opposed by environmentalists and local authorities.

The park lies mostly between latitudes 40° and 55° N and longitudes 19° and 29° E. It occupies 222.30 km2 (85.83 sq mi) in Fier County in southwestern Albania comprising a substantial section of the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast.

[16] The bodies of water of the park are chiefly affected by the inflow of those rivers, which bring sand, silt and shells, which in turn form numerous small islands and narrow spits.

At Gryka e Shkumbinit, the river, which until then was trapped in a narrow valley, breaks through the Skanderbeg Mountains and enters the coastal region until it reaches the northern part of the park, where it flows into the Adriatic Sea.

[18] Based on its particular location and the mosaic distribution of various types of habitats, the great availability of water, influenced by the configuration of the terrain, has resulted an admirable fauna.

The sheltered open waters of the wetlands and the outlying coasts provide resting areas for migrating birds on their way between Europe and Africa through the Adriatic flyway.