Some of Italy's most beautiful
beaches are to be found on its islands, according to the 2017
edition of an annual survey of the 15 most beautiful beaches in
Italy released by travel website Skyscanner.
The top four beaches on the list are on the islands of
Sicily, Sardinia and Ponza.
Five other Italian regions made it into the top 15: Puglia,
Campania, the Marche, Abruzzo and Liguria.
However, the islands dominated the list, with three Sardinian
beaches, three Sicilian beaches, and the lone Lazio beach on the
island of Ponza.
The classification relied on tips from travelers and also
took other criteria into account, including water and beach
cleanliness and the uniqueness of the surrounding the scenery
and landscape.
The top beach honour went to Tonnarella dell'Uzzo, in the
Zingaro nature reserve on Sicily - a seven-kilometre stretch of
beach that runs from San Vito lo Capo to Castellammare del
Golfo.
The island of Sardinia took second place with its Cala dei
Gabbiani beach, which is still little-known because it is
overshadowed by the fame of nearby Cala Mariolu beach.
In third place is the island of Ponza with its Cala Feola
beach, located in the region of Lazio not far from Rome.
Sicily also took fourth place with the protected marine area
known as Plemmirio, which was celebrated in the ancient world in
the epic poem Aeneid written by Virgil between 29 and 19 B.C.
Nowadays it's a favorite destination for scuba divers.
The third Sicilian beach in the top 15, at number six, is
Capo Graziano on the island of Filicudi, one of the eight
Aeolian Islands just northeast of Sicily, which are part of
Sicily's province of Messina.
Campania took the fifth place spot, with its Marina Grande
beach in Positano, a town perched high on a cliff along the
Amalfi Coast.
The two other Sardinian beaches on the list are in eighth and
14th place: Cala Cipolla at number eight with its white sands,
and Cala Luna, made famous in the 1974 Lina Wertmuller film
Swept Away, at number 14.
Puglia took the seventh and 10th spots with Torre di
Sant'Andrea and Baia di Punta Rossa, respectively.
photo: Tonnarella dell'Uzzo beach
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