CASTELLANA CAVE

Located at the gateway to the Itria Valley, the Castellana caves form a huge collection of galleries and cavities. With more than three kilometres in length, they are the deepest in Italy. The history of these caves begins in the Upper Cretaceous, about 90 million years ago, when Puglia was submerged by the sea. Absorbed by fractures in the limestone soil, the waters carved a tortuous bed into the subsoil. This explains the presence of deep caverns and entire galleries dug into the rock. The originality of these caves lies in the multiplication of stalagmites and stalactites that form a surrealist setting of great beauty. It is one of the most visited places in Puglia.

The site is fascinating, with its chasms with mythological names, galleries, vaults, stalactites and stalagmites defying all the laws of gravity. This buried treasure was officially discovered by the speleologist Franco Anelli on 23 January 1938, even though the existence of these caves had been known since the 18th century. They were then explored by Vito Matarrese.

There are itineraries for visitors starting from the immense Grave, which is 60 metres deep. Then, a small speleology museum (free entrance), named after the speleologist Franco Anelli, displays rocks, fossils and a geological section to better understand the formation of underground cavities. It also provides interesting information on the discovery of the Castellana caves, and has a library and archive photographs.

Visits to the Castellana cave system, which must be accompanied by a guide, are possible along two routes (check the website for the times of the visits in English):

"Itinerario parziale". The visit to the first part of the caves takes about 50 minutes (round trip distance: 1 km), and will take you to the Grotta Nera (black cave), the Cavernone dei Monumenti (hall of monuments), the Cavernone della Civetta (hall of the owl), the Cavernetta del Presepe (cave of the nativity).

"Itinerario completo". The second itinerary is 3 km long and lasts about two hours. It will take you to the famous Grotta Bianca (white cave), defined by many as the most beautiful in the world. This alabaster case, located at the end of the underground route, forms a fairy-tale cave, which is a must to discover

Finally, a piece of advice: bring a good sweater as the temperature varies between 14 and 18 °C all year round