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GARGANO

The Gargano was recognized as a National Park in 1991 and offers very varied panoramas and beauties to be discovered, from the coasts that alternate sandy beaches and cliffs, to the hilly hinterland (with mountains that reach 1000 meters), to ancient and beautiful towns.
The landscape is typically Mediterranean, with olive and citrus groves that descend gently towards the sea and mountains that plunge into one of the most beautiful seas in Italy.
The Gargano is a compendium of nature, the sun shining all year round, the still uncontaminated sea, the forests, the fragrant pine forests, the wind and the sea waves modeling the karst stone of the coast, have created true masterpieces of nature such as caves, stacks, bays, inlets that follow one another along the rocky coast, the genuine flavors of a gastronomy of ancient and noble origins that has been handed down by the ancient wisdom of using the land and the sea for nourishment.
The Gargano compendium of sacredness and mysticism has always attracted popes, kings, crusaders and simple pilgrims who have traveled the difficult routes of the Mountain, paying homage to the Archangel Michael (in Monte Sant'Angelo) through the "Via Sacra Longobardorum" which united from the Spain in Jerusalem an incredible amount of shrines.

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THE COAST AND THE BEACHES
Manfredonia is the southern gateway to the Gargano. Founded by Manfredi, son of Federico II of Svevia, it is dominated by the castle overlooking the sea. Along the way you must stop to admire the churches of San Leonardo di Siponto and Santa Maria di Siponto.

The church of San Leonardo located further south towards Foggia, once belonging to the knights of the Teutonic order, offers suggestions and mystery.
North of Manfredonia, up to Vieste, the coast becomes rocky and particularly beautiful. In this stretch there are beautiful coves, which protect equally beautiful beaches, often accessible only by sea.
The first beach of the Gargano is that of Mattinata (called "the white butterfly of the Gargano" for its shape and color), behind which olive groves, almond groves and citrus groves extend.
Following the Baia delle Zagare or Baia dei Mergoli, dominated by the two picturesque faraglioni. The limestone nature of the rocks of the Gargano, the erosion of atmospheric agents and the weather have made it possible to form, in this stretch of coast, several caves with names, sometimes suggestive, such as the cave of bats, dreams, smugglers , of the two eyes. Before reaching Vieste, at the tip of the promontory, there are other beautiful coves. The bay of Vignanotica made up of white rocks, lined with silicon, with a beach of white pebbles. The vast bay of Pugnochiuso alternates sandy beaches and rocky spurs.

Finally, the Baia di Campi, characterized by a cave with three openings and several islets.
After Baia dei Campi, before arriving in Vieste, we cross the San Felice tower which heralds the fascinating Baia San Felice and its striking and photographed "Arch".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Vieste is the most important and famous tourist center of the Gargano. The city has a picturesque medieval village that climbs through narrow alleys and consists of white houses, joined by very suggestive arches. Vieste is also dominated by a thirteenth-century castle, from which you can enjoy a wonderful panorama of the sea. Near the 11th-century cathedral is the bitter chianca where the pirate Draguth Rais caused the enemies to behead.
The white sand beach of Vieste is dominated by the imposing and very famous Pizzomunno, an imposing vertical rock set in the sand.
The stretch of coast between Vieste and Peschici still gives us coves and suggestive views such as the bay of Manaccore and the bay Zaiana and numerous caves.
Along the road that runs along the coast you can admire the remains of various towers built by Angevins and Aragonese.
Peschici, an ancient village, stands on a spur of rock, defended by high walls. On foot of the village there is the ancient Benedictine abbey of Santa Maria di Càlena.
Beyond Rodi Garganico the landscape changes and suddenly, there is a very particular lagoon area. Here are two coastal lakes of Varano, the largest in southern Italy, and Lesina separated from the sea by a strip of sand over 10 kilometers long.
These lakes are a refuge for many bird species and are an ideal place for fish farms including the famous eels.
Off the coast of the Gargano, there are the very famous and often unreachable Tremiti islands: San Domino, San Nicola, Capraia, Cretaccio and Pianosa.
The islands have a wild aspect and an unspoiled nature as well as an ancient history. They are covered with Mediterranean scrub, have a deep and transparent sea that became a marine reserve in 1989, a paradise for divers from all over the country. On the island of San Domino, the largest, you can visit several caves. On that of San Nicola there is instead the main inhabited center of the archipelago, San Nicola in Tremiti, where you can admire the ancient church of Santa Maria a Mare.
 

THE GARGANICO HINTERLAND
The Gargano, famous above all for its beautiful coast, jealously hides and guards a very interesting hinterland rich in culture, monuments and suggestive traditions.
Monte Sant'Angelo famous for the cave of the apparition of San Michele Arcangelo, the medieval Rione Junno, the beautiful Abbey of Pulsano, the castle of 837-838 with a tower designed by the architect and military engineer Francesco di Giorgio Martino, the complex monumental Romanesque tomb of Rotari and S. Maria Maggiore.
San Giovanni Rotondo, where Padre Pio lived and worked and the famous church of the architect Renzo Piano.
Vico del Gargano ancient agricultural center of the Gargano with its castle built in 1240 by Frederick II and famous for the patronal feast dedicated to St. Valentine, on February 14, whose statue is carried in a procession covered with oranges and orange blossoms of local production.
Finally, the Umbra Forest, the true green heart of the Gargano National Park, is located behind the Gargano coast and covers practically all the municipalities of the Gargano. It is a vast forest, consisting mainly of holm oaks, beeches, cypresses, pines and mastic trees and inhabited by deer, roe deer, fallow deer and wild boar and can be explored through one of the 11 marked trails.

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THE GARGANO IS THIS AND MUCH MORE.

We have created an interactive guide for you so that you will not lose anything of what our extraordinary land can give.

How to get to the most beautiful neighboring villages, what to visit and where to eat. Daily excursions not to be missed in Vieste and surroundings.

Trekking itineraries in the Umbra Forest. In the guide you will find this and much more.