The city of Margherita di Savoia

In the north-eastern Puglia, near Barletta, we can find the beautiful city of Margherita di Savoia.

The coast extends for about 15 km: it’s sandy and bathed by crystal clear waters, often elected “Bandiera Blu”-“Blue Flag” (awarded to beaches and waters that meet high-quality criteria).

The territory of this city is full of Salt Pans called “Salinis”, existing since the III century B.C. and included in the Salapia territory (a pre-Roman center).

In the XII century, the place took the name of Sancta Maria de Salis: the inhabitants of this area are called indifferently “Margheritani” or “Salinari”.

Margherita di Savoia’s wetlands

The wetlands nearby Margherita di Savoia do have a long history:  located along the ancient Via Salaria, which goes from Rome to Santa Maria di Leuca since 1971 have been protected by the convention of Ramsar (intergovernmental treaty adopted in Iran which provides the framework for the conservation of the wetlands worldwide).

In this area, especially close to the southern coast of Gargano, can be found Lake Salpi, a coastal basin of marshy waters that gave its name to the ancient Salapia, a lagoon city in Apulia’s Daunia.

In the beginning, it was 37 km large: nowadays a part of it it’s included in the Margherita di Savoia’ Salt Pans protected area.

Those Salt Pans become a natural reserve in 1977 because they are characterized by a unique ecosystem: very rare species of flora and fauna can be seen here (more than 100!).

Also here nidify one of the largest populations of pink flamingos in all of Europe!

Amazing, don’t you think?

The landscapes offered by the Margherita di Savoia Salt Pans are dazzling: the contrast between the water, the flora and fauna and the Salt Pans themselves produces an incredible game of suggestive reflections and makes this place one of the most instagrammable places in Puglia!

Thermal baths

In Margherita di Savoia there are also Thermal baths, which use the mud and thermal waters derived from the Salt Pans.

The first official thermal bath in this area was opened in 1930: legend has it that Annibale, one of the greatest Carthaginian leaders and politicians, used the Salt Pans’ mud to regenerate!

A stranger on the moon

As you can see, the Margherita di Savoia Salt Pans are beautiful and, at the same time, disruptive. The large amount of salt can look like snow or, even more, weird: it could look like a lunar landscape.

In 2021 indeed, we chose this charming landscape as one of the many locations for a video clip made for the singer Pietro Verna. It is a fantastic project we have worked on and we’re very proud of the result.

There’s an astronaut on the moon!

In the pics below, you can see how incredible the power of this landscape is when a bit of creativity comes in and makes the difference!

Tips:

It’s not allowed to visit the Margherita di Savoia Salt Pans without permission: you must contact the salt extraction company (which is still in full operation) to make an appointment.

To discover the historical evolution in the processing of salt you can visit the Historical Museum of the Salt Pans, by booking the visit through the following contacts.

The Margherita di Savoia Salt Pans are one of the most beautiful instagrammable places in Puglia but it’s not the only one!

Do you want to discover other instagrammable places in Puglia?

Check out our article (click here to take a look!) and don’t forget to watch our new column on Instagram #instagrammableplaces of Puglia, to know other places not to be missed!

See you in Puglia!