Places
Park·Easy·Family·Popular

Grotta Zinzulusa, Castro

Puglia

The Grotta Zinzulusa at Castro on the Salento coast is a sea cave accessible only by boat or swim — a 100 m passage of stalactites and stalagmites terminating in a saline underground lake called 'Il Cocito'. The cave is home to the Niphargus pugliensis, a blind freshwater amphipod endemic to this single cave. The coastline around Castro is some of the clearest water in the Adriatic.

Duration
1.5 hours
Distance
1 km
Elevation
+30 m
Best season
May – October

Highlights

  • Blind amphipod found in no other cave on Earth
  • Accessible only by boat or swim
  • Saline underground lake inside the cave

With your dog

No dogs inside cave; cliff terrace walk outside.