T: +39 06 9422062 | M: +39 388 7617243
To recount the Mediterranean beauty of Sperlonga evocative photos and descriptive texts manage to give only a vague idea of its atmosphere. The area, populated since the Upper Paleolithic, is that of the mythical city of Amyclae founded by the Lacoons near the promontory.
But it was the Romans, impressed by its breathtaking views and unique climate, who settled there and dotted it with luxurious residences.
Important was the villa of Emperor Tiberious also including a vast cave with marble statues that recalled the events of Ulysses.
In later centuries the ruins of Roman villas gave shelter to a growing population that tended to climb the hill of San Magno.
To protect themselves from pirate attacks. Thus watchtowers were built, destroyed and rebuilt several times after the landings of legions commanded by Kaireddin Barbarossa. Stories told in the murals painted on the typical white walls of the historic center.
Until the 1950s Sperlonga remained a little-known seaside village living off fishing and agriculture and a basically poor population. At that time the Via Flacca linking Terracina with Gaeta was finished, and tourism began to discover this “pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea.”
Archaeological excavations gave new light to the splendors of the past. Even the cinema, always on the lookout for special locations, noticed this town then.
Music videos and several commercials followed a 1957 Austrian science fiction film. Raf Vallone liked to invite his friends here to his summer residence, among them: Albert Camus, Arthur Miller, Marlene Dietrich, and Brigitte Bardot.
Other famous people who have frequented Sperlonga include: Luchino Visconti, Andy Warhol, Irene Papas, Ornella Muti, Natalie Ginzburg and Carlo Verdone.
Sperlonga, elected among the “Most Beautiful Villages in Italy” has a strong tourist vocation not only in summer. It has been “Blue Flag” for over 25 years and with its mild temperatures attracts tourists from Northern Europe in winter.
The table offers local food and wine delicacies, which have become excellences known even abroad. In addition to blue fish, products such as tomatoes and local vegetables, not the least of which is the Sedano Bianco di Sperlonga IGP (White Celery of Sperlonga), are prized.
The narrow streets lined by the walls of characteristic white houses overlook an azure sea dotted with spurs of rock smoothed by time.
The Parish of S. Maria Assunta in Cielo (in Piazza Europa, very close to the Town Hall) is very visited, as is the former church of Santa Mariae De Spelonche. Building mentioned in a document from 1135 as an important place of worship in Latium.
Of great impact is the Truglia Tower, which stands at the very tip of the San Magno promontory. Beyond these words and the splendid photos on the page, we leave it to the reader to discover the Mediterranean beauty of Sperlonga by experiencing it personally.
