From The Past To The Present

Castro is an important bathing touristic spot in the province of Lecce, named “The pearl of Salento” for its timeless atmosphere and its blue and crystalline waters.

It has received numerous awards, such as: Blue Flag of Europe, 4 and 5 Sails of Legambiente, Plastic Free and, in 2017, "City" for "memories, historical monuments and current importance" by President Mattarella.

This charming town stands on a promontory overlooking the sea. Its rocky slopes, on which a tangle of house’s stand out, gently guide the gaze towards the sea that has been the home since ancient times of countless sailors and travelers.

The oldest part, Castro Superiore, is made up of a small medieval village, dominated by the Aragonese castle. This imposing military architecture of the thirteenth century was commissioned by Carlo D'Angiò and is, today, the seat of the MAR (Archaeological Museum of Castro) whose findings, coming exclusively from excavations within the municipal territory, tell a millenary mythical and glorious story. From the Messapians to the Romans, from the Normans to the Aragonese family, it is possible to retrace the historical milestones that explain the importance of this town.

Walking around the alleys of the historic center you will come across the Byzantine church, the Romanesque Cathedral (1171), the Vescovado, the eighteenth-century arches and the city walls.

Through the suggestive "Walk of the walls", walking along ancient paths among old olive trees, it is possible to admire the archaeological excavations of the “Capanne” locality, surrounded on the background by the blue sea of Castro. Here once stood a Doric temple dedicated to the goddess Minerva; Maybe the one that the Greek hero Aeneas saw when he landed on the "lower shore of Italy". The identification of the old port of the city and the bay, both mentioned by Virgil in the third book of the Aeneid made him earned the name of "Port of Aeneas".

Today the bay of Castro is the landing place for many tourists who choose to spend their holidays here fascinated and conquered by the remains of history, by the breathtaking views and by the marvelous treasures that nature has given to Castro, such as the rocky and jagged coast, from where thousands of sources of pure water gush out or the karstic caves that penetrate the hinterland from the coast with mysterious and fascinating paths. Grotta Zinzulusa and  wrote important chapters of Italian prehistory: they were the house of Neanderthal men about 69,000 years ago. Grotta Zinzulusa is also a destination for about 120,000 visitors and is certainly a driving force for the tourist development of Castro.
Grotta Romanelli

This small town in Salento between the magical blue and green of the landscape is, without a doubt, a splendid treasure that deserves to be discovered.