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My inspiration to holiday in the Tremiti Islands, Italy, was based on a rare newspaper article on the archipelago, a group of islands so small I couldn’t locate it on my atlas.
WHERE ARE THE TREMITI ISLANDS?
The Tremiti Islands are located in the Adriatic Sea, 22 miles off the southern coast of Italy. The islands are part of the Gargano National Park. San Domino is the largest of the Tremiti islands and is where I stayed.
GETTING THERE
I travelled to the Adriatic coastal town of Termoli where I got the morning ferry to San Domino. Termoli is a resort town on the Bari-Venice railway line and has a large expanse of free public beach. The quaint old town that overlooks the beach to its north and the ferry terminal to its south is perfect for a passeggiata. I highly recommend Locanda Alfieri for accommodation in the old town.
As no cars, apart from residents’ vehicles, are allowed on the Tremiti Islands, I and every other tourist arrived as foot passengers.
For further travel information on Italy check out my Italy country guide.
THE INDIVIDUAL ISLANDS
SAN DOMINO:
San Domino is approximately 2km2 in size and with that information I decided to walk from the ferry to Hotel Eden, completely underestimating the island’s heat and the weight of my bag.
San Domino’s small size is ideal for pure escapism. No matter what direction you walk and how lost you get you will return to your departure point within an hour, provided you don’t get sidetracked by the island’s many coves.
San Domino is also a nature-lover’s paradise with a wide variety of flora and, by the number of critters I picked out of my beach bag, an equally ample number of fauna. Pine trees cover most of the island with their sweet aroma permeating the air.
With neither Italian language skills nor a map I initially felt utterly stranded but after a while was at ease with the escapism the islands offered.
The only other non-Italians I heard or met were four German tourists at Calle delle Arene, San Domino’s only sandy beach. The lack of international tourists meant that restaurants began serving dinner at the Italian hour of 10pm, something my body clock will never get used to. However, I had no trouble getting used to the view from my room.
SAN NICOLA:
I took the quick boat ride to San Nicola island for an afternoon trip where centuries-old buildings house artisan craft shops and cafes. Boats depart San Domino to bring visitors to all of the islands. The journey takes a couple of minutes.
TREMITI ISLANDS, ITALY: ARE THEY WORTH VISITING?
Yes, absolutely. I’m an old-school traveller whose travel inspiration comes from leafing through the atlas and the travel pages of newspapers and magazines before researching through guidebooks and cyberspace. It’s a method that works well for me.
In this case the internet played more of a role in the earlier planning. The change in the planning process paid off as my holiday on the Tremiti Islands was a happy time indeed.
Arrivals Hall 