National Park
Parco Nazionale del Gargano
One of Italy's largest national parks, a place of sweeping coast and deep, ancient forests, sits on the spur of southern Italy in Puglia, jutting out into the Adriatic Sea.
Matt Munro
Promontorio del Gargano
The coast surrounding this expansive promontory seems permanently bathed in a pink-hued, pearly light, providing a painterly contrast to the sea, which softens from intense to powder blue as the evening draws in. It's one of Italy's most beautiful corners, encompassing white limestone cliffs, fairy-tale grottoes, sparkling sea, ancient forests, rare orchids and tangled, fragrant maquis (dense scrub vegetation).
Once connected to what is now Dalmatia (in Croatia), the 'spur' of the Italian boot has more in common with the land mass across the sea than with the rest of Italy. Creeping urbanisation was halted in 1991 by the creation of the Parco Nazionale del Gargano. Aside from its magnificent national park, the Gargano is home to pilgrimage sites and the lovely seaside towns of Vieste and Peschici.
Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Promontorio del Gargano.
Cave
Santuario di San Michele
Over the centuries this sanctuary has expanded to incorporate a large complex of religious buildings that overlay its original shrine. The double-arched entrance vestibule at street level stands next to a distinctive octagonal bell tower built by Carlo I of Naples in 1282. As you descend the staircase inside, look for the 17th-century pilgrims' graffiti. The grotto/shrine where St Michael is said to have left a footprint in stone is located at the bottom of the staircase.
Tomb
Tomba di Rotari
A short flight of stairs opposite the Santuario di San Michele leads to a 12th-century baptistry with a deep sunken basin for total immersion. You enter the baptistry through the facade of the Chiesa di San Pietro with its intricate rose window squirming with serpents – all that remains of the church, destroyed in a 19th-century earthquake. The Romanesque portal of the adjacent 11th-century Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore has some fine bas-reliefs.
Cathedral
Cathedral
Built by the Normans on the ruins of a Vesta temple, this 11th-century 'co-cathedral' (so called because its bishopric is shared with another) is in Pugliese-Romanesque style with a fanciful tower that resembles a cardinal's hat. Of note are its beautiful paintings, swirling interior columns and Latin-inscribed altar.
Castle
Castello di Peschici
Peschici's medieval hilltop castle stands sentinel over the town's port, and inside there is a fascinating Museum of Torture with life-sized replicas of some of history's most devious and chilling methods to extract information through extreme coercion.
Amphitheatre
Roman Amphitheatre
Dating to the last (Augustan) days of the Roman Republic, Lucera's amphitheatre was built for gladiatorial combat and accommodated up to 18,000 people. Uncovered in 1932, it's the largest amphitheatre in southern Italy, and has been much restored.
Park
Museum & Nature Centre
There is a small centro visitatori (visitors centre) in the middle of Foresta Umbra that houses a museum and nature centre with fossils, photographs, and stuffed animals and birds. Half-day guided hikes are available by reservation (€10 per person) and you can hire bikes (per hour/day €5/25) and buy walking maps (€2.50). The centre is on SP52bis close to the junction with SP528.
Castle
Castle
At the highest point of Monte Sant'Angelo is this rugged fastness, first built by Orso I, who later became Doge of Venice, in the 9th century. One 10th-century tower, Torre dei Giganti, survives, but most of what you can see are Norman, Swabian and Aragonese additions. The views alone are worth the admission.
Cathedral
Cathedral
On the former site of Lucera’s Great Mosque (itself built by the Saracens over an existing church as a symbol of conquest) Puglia’s only Gothic cathedral was built in 1301 by Charles II of Anjou. The altar was once the castle banqueting table.