Otranto, the most eastern town of Italy, like a mirage out of time, is a powerful fortress city, perched on the blue sea.

Walking through its cobbled streets, putting in the labyrinthine depths of the Aragon Castle, lost in the maze between monuments and wonderful glimpses of breathtaking is the best way to be seduced by the charm of this millennial city. Otranto has one of the oldest cathedrals in Apulia with a majestic mosaic of the Tree of Life, unique in the West.

A few miles out of Otranto, there are the lakes Alimini, one sweet and one savoury, with white sandy beaches lost between the Mediterranean vegetation.

If you have time you can drive along the scenic road going from Otranto to Santa Maria di Leuca, the Finis Italiae, where the Adriatic See meets the Ionian one and where, when the air is clear of the mistral, you can see the mountains of Albania. Do not miss Castro Marina and its marine reserves: the Zinzulusa cave is overlooking the coast. Just after the Cape of Santa Maria di Leuca the landscape changes: lower cliffs alternate with long sandy beaches, dotted with towers till Gallipoli.