Description of the attraction
Mattinata is a popular seaside resort located in the province of Foggia in the Italian region of Apulia. The city is located in the Gargano National Park. Most of it is occupied by two hills, closed by mountains from the north, west and east and facing the sea in the south. The north coast of Mattinata is known for its white chalk cliffs, an array of imposing underwater caves and of course the two Faraglioni kekuras (lone cliffs sticking out of the water) in Dzagare Bay. And the area around Mattinata is very popular with botanists, thanks to the incredible diversity of the flora, in particular, there are about 60 species of orchids!
The first inhabitants of these places were tribes of Eastern European origin, mainly from Greece and the Balkan Peninsula, who appeared here around the 5th century BC. And the name Mattinata comes from the name of the Roman settlement Matinum, which in the 1st century AD. was located near the territory of the modern city port. True, the very traces of this settlement remain relatively few.
Modern Mattinata is the result of the migration of people from the town of Monte Sant'Angelo over several centuries. In 1955, it received the status of an independent city. Today Mattinata's economy is based on the service sector and, in part, agriculture and livestock raising. Tourism also plays a very prominent role in the life of society.
Among the main attractions of the city are the necropolis of Monte Saraceno with about 500 Daunian tombs, the ruins of the Benedictine abbey of Santissima Trinita, the ruins of the Roman settlement of Matinum and the aforementioned Faraglioni kekura.
Another seaside resort, Peschichi, is located very close to Mattinata. Its territory is also part of the Gargano National Park. It occupies the northeastern part of Cape Gargano.
