Historical and cultural routes of Cilento
Discover the quaint villages near Castellabate and spend a beautiful vacation in the guest houses of Beauty in Cilento
Around Castellabate there are many small medieval towns that have retained their urban characteristics and in which there are often also good eating options, which never hurts! Book your vacation in Cilento, in one of our facilities: villas with swimming pool, panoramic farmhouses and charming apartments where you can spend days full of adventure and fun.
The ancient village of Torchiara
Torchiara is a town of about 2,000 inhabitants, 400 meters above sea level, in a panoramic position, about 15 minutes from the center of Castellabate. Founded in 1100, its history spans from the 1500s as a fief of local nobles to the 1800s when it was affected by the democratic uprisings of 1848.
It is a famous area for the production of the Cilento white fig and for its processing and dried use during Christmas and winter festivals. Even today there are several companies that produce, process and export dried figs from Torchiara all over the world.
The town has several noble palaces (Palazzo Torre, Palazzo dei Baroni De Conciliis) and the beautiful Church of San Salvatore overlooking the most panoramic point of the town that looks over Agropoli and the Gulf of Salerno. Very nice to visit is the Via San Salvatore, which starts precisely from the Church of the same name and crosses the entire old town, up to the center and the noble palaces. You can combine a visit to the village with a good dinner at the restaurant “Era Ora” and a spectacular ice cream at “Di Matteo” famous throughout Italy.
Vatolla and its onions
All around Castellabate there are many small ancient villages to visit not only for the beauty of its buildings, quiet streets and breathtaking views but also to eat delicious dishes typical of the area, including Vatolla.
Vatolla is a small, ancient and scenic inland town, its foundation dates back to the year 1000 by the Lombards; then it became a fief of the various French and Spanish lords (who took turns in Cilento until 1600) and then the seat of wealthy noble families during the Bourbon period.
It has only 500 inhabitants and is situated in an extremely panoramic position 450 meters above the sea. Absolutely worth visiting is the Vargas Palace, a beautiful noble building whose foundations date from the year 1100. The philosopher Giovanbattista Vico stayed for 9 years from 1686 as tutor to the Baron’s children, making various studies and using the rich library of the Franciscan Convent of Santa Maria della Pietà, just outside the village. The microclimate of the village was so pleasant that Vico called it “perfect air.” The church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, in the center of the village, is also very beautiful.
The village is famous for the production of a particular quality of onion that has now also become a Slow Food Presidium. This vegetable has been grown here for hundreds of years and derives its goodness from the mixture of very light and fertile soil, which used to be forest, as well as the presence of water that flows copiously from several springs. The seed is planted in mid-January and the onion is harvested in mid-July. It has a round or slightly tapered shape, soft pink color and the characteristic is the size, from 400 gr to a 1 kilo. It is very sweet, very digestible and does not make you cry when you peel it!
Trentinara
Among the many villages around Castellabate, there is one that is particularly scenic. It is Trentinara, also called “The Terrace of Cilento.” In fact, if you look closely, the village with 1,600 inhabitants is on top of a 600-meter high hill on the Sele Plain and enjoys a 180-degree view of the entire Gulf of Salerno. The sunset from the small square, called precisely Piazza Terrazza del Cilento, is spectacular.
The town has been inhabited since the ancient Romans because it was in an extremely strategic position controlling the entire valley below. From the year 1000 it became a fief of the various noble families that succeeded each other until 1806, the year feudality was abolished. It has a pleasant historic center made up of narrow streets, arches, and small churches. Very characteristic is the so-called “Via dell’Amore,” a scenic narrow street with many majolica tiles glued to the wall with famous phrases about love.
The villas, farmhouses and apartments of Beauty in Cilento are located in Castellabate, very close to many historical and cultural places in the area. Choose the location of your next vacation:
