A steep path through the fragrant maquis saturated with sunlight, the deafening song of the cicadas, the stones rolling underfoot, and suddenly, a sparkling blue rectangle surrounded by rocks, without a soul on the horizon... A dream of peace that seems incompatible with the Italian shores, where there are often long rows of umbrellas and mattresses nested together.
Yet some islands still resist tourism even in the hottest months.
This is the case of the Pontine Islands, an archipelago opposite the Gulf of Gaeta in Lazio, part of which is still totally wild, as are the Egadi Islands, confetti thrown off the coast of Trapani in Sicily, whose protected maritime area is l one of the largest in Europe.
Sardinia also hides some secrets like the Sulcis archipelago,
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travel guide
Pontine Islands, the beautiful volcanic ones
View of Ponza from a restaurant terrace.
ERIC MARTIN
About thirty kilometers from the coast of Lazio, this archipelago of volcanic origin is made up of six islands,
Ponza
and
Ventotene
, the only two to be inhabited all year round, then
Zannone
,
Palmarola
,
Gavi
and
Santo Stefano
.
With its steep cliffs surrounded by celadon blue water, Ponza, the most famous, is the haunt of Romans and Neapolitans, in search of sea bathing, in search of a slightly outdated atmosphere.
The port of Santa Maria is an interlacing of small cubic houses in pastel colors straight out of an Italian comedy of the 1960s.
A single road crosses the island, passing a few villages and beaches.
The spectacular Chiaia di Luna, dominated by imposing cliffs, long closed to the public due to landslides,
will reopen in the summer of 2022.
But the wildest coves are in the north of the island, accessible by paths at the middle of the garrigue.
Cala Feola or La Caletta are natural pools where bathers can be numerous in summer.
The ideal is to rent a motor boat at the port of Santa Maria to discover the less accessible beaches as well as those of Palmarola in the heart of a nature reserve, located west of Ponza.
Its seabed is incredibly beautiful, especially at Cala Tramontana known for its caves plunging into translucent turquoise water.
Around Ponza, the islands of Zannone and Gavi have almost no habitation and lend themselves to superb boat trips.
Closer to Naples, Ventonene is a tiny island 3 km long, not more than 800 m wide and home to barely 600 inhabitants.
Its wild beauty lives up to its history.
The remains of a Roman port carved into the tuff date from the time of Augustus, who exiled the dignitaries of the empire to Ventotene, then called Pandataria.
In 1926, during the Fascist period, Ventotene was once again destined to assume its former function as a place of exile until the early 1950s. Since then, the
How to get there ?
The Pontine Islands archipelago can be reached in 1h/1h30 by ferry from the ports of Formia (the only one that operates all year round), Anzio (the closest to Rome), Terracina, San Felice Circeo and Naples .
Read alsoOur selection of the best pizzerias in Naples, the pizza capital of the world
Egadi, authentic Sicily
Favignana cove, the largest of the Egadi islands.
Press picture
Located off Trapani, the three Egadi,
Favignana
,
Levanzo
and
Marettimo
, are at the heart of the largest marine protected area in Europe, with an area of almost 600 km2.
Wrecks dating from the Punic Wars offer divers unforgettable spots, especially around Levanzo.
Fish abound in these extraordinarily clear waters suitable for snorkeling and fishing.
The Egadi are famous for their ultra-fresh fish couscous that can be tasted in small local
trattorie
.
Favignana, the largest of the islands, is also the most popular with wealthy Sicilian families such as the Florio who founded the famous
Tonnara
(tuna canning factory) transformed into a museum.
Its many beaches and heavenly coves like Cala Rossa, a natural amphitheater overlooking a lagoon-like sea, can be discovered by bike.
Ten minutes by ferry separate Favignana from Levanzo, whose port of Cala Dogana, with its false Cycladic air, is wedged between a bare mountain and the turquoise sea.
The island can also be visited by bicycle, an ideal means of transport for admiring the beauty of the Mediterranean maquis which tumbles down to the sparkling coves.
Marettimo is the wildest, also the furthest from Sicily.
People come here as much for hiking as for swimming in its superb sea caves, nearly 400 in total, accessible by boat or kayak.
Dominated by a mountain culminating at an altitude of almost 700 m, Marettimo has very beautiful hiking routes, where you can come across mouflons and observe many sea birds.
How to get there ?
From the port of Trapani, the connections to the Egadi are managed by two companies, Liberty Lines and Siremar, which regularly offer boats or hydrofoils.
Count on average one hour of journey.
Sulcis, the forgotten archipelago
Carloforte, Sardinia, on the island of San Pietro.
Eli Franssens / Adobe Stock
A stone's throw from the southwest coast of Sardinia, opposite the province of Carbonia-Iglesias,
Sant'Antioco
and
San Pietro
are the two main islands of a small archipelago formed by numerous rocky islets.
Marked by an industrial past linked to the coal industry, this part of Sardinia is poorer and less touristy than the north and south but has sublime beaches that are much less crowded in summer.
If the village of Sant'Antioco lacks a bit of charm, it houses the remains of a superb early Christian church dedicated to Saint Antioch and an astonishing open-air sanctuary where Phoenicians and Carthaginians buried their dead.
The island is punctuated by superb wild beaches bordered by a crystal clear sea, in particular the Spiaggia Grande in the northeast whose blue-green gradients contrast with the vast expanse of golden sand, bordered by rocks, dunes and junipers.
A little further from the coast, San Pietro immediately charms with its village, Carloforte, with pretty houses reminiscent of Liguria where the inhabitants originate, the oldest of whom still speak Tabarchino, a Genoese dialect from the 16th century.
The tuna long slaughtered during
mattanzas
now prohibited (particularly violent harpoon fishing) is the essential local product.
On foot or by bike, San Pietro deserves for its many beaches often sheltered by cliffs, such as Cala Fico, in the northwest, favorite place of the very rare queen falcon native to Madagascar.
How to get there ?
Sant'Antioco is connected by a bridge to Sardinia.
San Pietro can be reached by ferry from Portovesme on the Sardinian coast and from Calasetta on Sant'Antioco with the companies Saremar and Delcomar
