Discover Sperlonga

Sperlonga is a coastal town of about 2,986 people in the province of Latina, in Lazio, roughly halfway between Rome and Naples. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia.

The town stands on a spur of Monte San Magno, in the south-western corner of the Aurunci mountains, where they reach into the Gulf of Gaeta. Its neighbours are Terracina to the west, Fondi to the north, Itri to the north-east and Gaeta to the east.

Its name comes from a cave. The Latin spelunca refers to the great grotto later incorporated into the villa of the emperor Tiberius, and the town is best known for that sea grotto, found in the grounds of the villa and holding the Sperlonga sculptures, which are displayed in a museum on the site.

The beach is the other half of it: fine golden sand alternating with rocky spurs that reach out into the sea and form coves, often reachable only from the water. Those formations lie south of the town, towards the Gaeta promontory.

The white town itself is a defensive one. After the sixth century the population moved up onto the promontory of San Magno, 65 metres above the sea, to escape both the unhealthy marshes and Saracen raiding — and the many watchtowers along the coast towards Gaeta show how real that danger was.

Why is Sperlonga called that? The name probably derives from the great grotto — Latin spelunca, a cave — that was absorbed into the villa of Tiberius.

What is the villa of Tiberius? A Roman villa on the shore, enlarged from an earlier late-Republican one, whose natural cave was fitted out as a summer dining room with water features and sculpture groups of the Odyssey cycle.

When were the sculptures found? In 1957, in fragments, during the construction of the coast road — though the grotto itself had been known to archaeologists since 1908. They are displayed in a museum on the site.

How do I get there? By road along the Via Flacca from Terracina or Gaeta. There is no railway station in Sperlonga; the nearest is Fondi-Sperlonga, inland, with a bus connection.

Where is it, relative to Rome and Naples? About halfway between the two.

Is it one of the official "most beautiful villages"? Yes — it is a member of I Borghi più belli d'Italia.

What are the beaches like? Fine golden sand, alternating with rocky spurs that reach into the sea and form coves — many of them, south towards Gaeta, reachable only from the water.

Why is the old town up on a rock? After the sixth century the population moved to the promontory of San Magno, 65 metres up, to escape the unhealthy marshes and Saracen raids from the sea.

What happened in 1534? The small centre was destroyed by the Ottoman fleet under Barbarossa, and many inhabitants, especially women, were enslaved in the Barbary slave trade. Corsairs raided again in 1623.

What is Torre Truglia? A tower built in 1532 on the point of the town's promontory, destroyed in a raid by Barbarossa, rebuilt in 1611 and destroyed again in 1623.

When did it become a tourist town? After the Via Flacca, the Terracina–Gaeta coast road, was inaugurated on 9 February 1958 — before which the town was isolated and extremely poor.

When should I go? Late May to June or September. July is the driest month but also the fullest.