The Ionian Sea Port Authority - Port of Taranto is the public body that manages, plans, and promotes the port of Taranto, one of the main ports in Southern Italy and central the Mediterranean. Located in a strategic position between the Great Sea and the Small Sea, the port serves commercial, industrial, logistics, and maritime connection functions, handling traffic of goods, bulk cargo, containers, project cargo, and activities related to shipbuilding and cruising.
The Church of San Pasquale Baylon, often simply referred to as San Pasquale, is one of the historical places of worship in Taranto, located in the city's Borgo district and linked to the Franciscan tradition. Dedicated to the Spanish saint San Pasquale Baylon, the church preserves a serene and devotional atmosphere, with architectural and decorative elements typical of Southern Baroque: a simple facade, a single nave interior, side altars, sacred works, and liturgical furnishings that attest to the long religious continuity of the complex.
Palazzo Archita is an important historical building in the Umbertine district of Taranto, linked to the history of the city's education and the figure of Archita, a philosopher, mathematician, and statesman of ancient Taranto. With its monumental architecture, orderly facades, large windows, and the stern layout typical of public buildings from the 19th and 20th centuries, it is one of the urban landmarks of the new city.
The San Paolo Dolphin Refuge, affiliated with the Jonian Dolphin Conservation, is a center for research, education, and hospitality dedicated to the protection of cetaceans in the Gulf of Taranto. It is conceived as a point of reference for environmental education activities, citizen science, meetings, workshops, and initiatives related to the monitoring of dolphins and other marine organisms. Its function is to bring citizens and visitors closer to the knowledge of the sea, promoting responsible behavior and supporting the conservation of the Ionian ecosystem.
The Island of San Pietro is the largest of the Cheradi Islands, located in the Mar Grande of Taranto, in front of the city and at the entrance of its natural harbor. It is an area of great landscape and environmental value: low sandy coasts alternate with rocky stretches, pine forests and Mediterranean scrubland, with clear waters that make it one of the most suggestive places on the Taranto coastline.
The Funerary Hypogeum of Palazzo delli Ponti, in Taranto, is an underground environment of archaeological interest integrated into the structures of a historic building. It is a hypogeum tomb, dug into the rocky bank, originally intended for burial and the celebration of funeral rituals. Its function was both practical and symbolic: to receive the deceased, preserve their memory, and testify to the social status of the family or group to which they belonged.
The Cloister of the convent of San Domenico is one of the most suggestive spaces in the Old Town of Taranto. It is the inner courtyard of the ancient Dominican complex: originally it had a practical and spiritual function, connecting the rooms of the convent and offering the friars a place for passage, meditation, study, and community life. Its compact structure, with arcades and openings towards the central area, preserves the silent atmosphere typical of monastic cloisters.
Piazza Ebalia is one of the most recognizable urban spaces in the Borgo area of Taranto, located near the seafront and the main routes of the city center. It is a functional square used for transit, connecting important roads, regulating urban mobility, providing pedestrian areas, flower beds, and parking spaces, and is often used as a point of reference and meeting place. Its location also makes it an ideal gateway between the modern city, the waterfront, and the path towards the Old Town.
Cisternino is one of the most charming villages in the Itria Valley, a harmonious mix of white alleys, stone arches, and flower-adorned balconies that tell the authentic soul of Puglia. Listed among the “Most Beautiful Villages in Italy”, its historic center retains its medieval structure, with winding streets that lead to panoramic views of the countryside dotted with centuries-old olive trees, dry stone walls, and trulli.
The Doric Columns of Taranto, in Piazza Castello, are one of the oldest symbols of the city and a rare testimony to the ancient Greek Taras, an important colony of Magna Graecia. They are the remains of a Doric temple dating back to the late 6th to early 5th century BC, traditionally associated with the worship of Poseidon, although the attribution is not certain.