The Sea

The Ionian Coast, stretching from Castellaneta Marina (in the province of Taranto) to Nova Siri (in the province of Matera), is a homogeneous and impressive coastal ecosystem approximately 50 km long, overlooking the Ionian Sea. It is characterized by extensive sandy beaches and a pine forest behind the dunes, providing a protective vegetal barrier unmatched in its continuity in Southern Italy. From Castellaneta Marina, it includes the territories of Ginosa Marina on the Apulian coast, and Metaponto, Marina di Pisticci, Scanzano Jonico, Policoro, and Nova Siri on the Lucanian coast.

Castellaneta Marina

The town of Castellaneta Marina follows a unique urban planning model: it is not a concreted seafront, but a true residential village composed of private villas and accommodations completely immersed in the native tree cover of the large pine forest that extends for several kilometers from the beaches inland.
The beach of Castellaneta Marina alone extends for a full 13 kilometers. It is a deep coastline, composed of fine, light-colored sand, characterized by a seabed that slopes gently and steadily toward the open sea. The seafront is equipped with parking and access to public beaches and lidos.

Accessibility features of the coastline

• Depth of the beaches: The beaches in this area have an average width that often exceeds 50-100 meters between the pine forest and the shore, offering natural distancing spaces above the national average.
• No artificial barriers: The sea is open and there are no artificial reefs or breakwaters in front of the beach, ensuring constant water recycling.
• Alternating services: along every kilometer of coastline there are alternating structured beach resorts (concentrated in urban areas) and kilometers of completely free and wild beach.

The Pine forest behind the dunes

The key and distinctive feature of this entire stretch of coast, from Castellaneta Marina to the Lucanian border at Nova Siri, is the uninterrupted presence of the pine forest behind the dunes.

• Structure: This green barrier encircles the beaches for dozens of kilometers without interruption. It is composed primarily of Aleppo pines and spontaneous Mediterranean scrub (juniper, mastic, myrtle).
• Function: In addition to protecting the hinterland from erosion and salty winds, the pine forest physically separates the beaches from state roads and agricultural areas, preserving the wild character of the coastline.
• Accessibility: To reach the shoreline, at almost all points along the coast, you must walk along the shaded paths that cut lengthwise through the pine forest and pass the ridge of sand dunes.

The Ionian Coast

From Castellaneta Marina, continuing south, you cross the coast of Marina di Ginosa, also awarded numerous prizes for the quality of its waters, before crossing the border of Basilicata and entering the heart of Magna Graecia, where the coastlines of Metaponto, Marina di Pisticci, Scanzano Jonico, Policoro, and Nova Siri meet in succession. The coastal morphology maintains the same structural characteristics, further expanding the spaces.

• Metaponto and the Matera coast: The beaches remain wide and sandy, protected behind by the Metaponto State Reserve, where the coastal pine forest continues to dominate the landscape. Here, the sea meets myth. The wide, wild beaches are just a stone's throw from the Palatine Tables, the remains of the Temple of Hera where Pythagoras taught.
• Policoro: In this stretch of coast, the vegetation behind the dunes merges with the remains of the Policoro Forest (Bosco Pantano), a rare example of coastal lowland forest close to the sea. Known for the ancient city of Eraclea, it offers crystal-clear waters and is home to the WWF Policoro Herakleia Oasis. This reserve protects Italy's last lowland forest and the loggerhead sea turtles, Caretta caretta, who often choose these beaches to lay their eggs.
• Nova Siri: The journey ends in Nova Siri, where the coast gradually begins to change texture, revealing the first pebbly sediments on the shoreline as one approaches the Calabrian border, but maintaining the same forest cover behind it.

The stretch of the Ionian Coast in Basilicata also features the mouths of four rivers: the Bradano in Metaponto, the Basento in Marina di Pisticci, the Agri in Policoro, and the Sinni in Nova Siri, all places of rare and wild beauty.