The beach and coastline
The bay has a broad beach that is mainly free to access, with soft sand and a seabed that generally slopes gradually. Near the tower the landscape changes as sand gives way to a more rugged rocky coast.
Its position makes it easy to continue exploring the Ionian coast towards Punta Prosciutto and the other seaside resorts around Porto Cesareo.
The Salina dei Monaci
Behind the dune system lies the Salina dei Monaci, a back-dune wetland separated from the sea by the beach. Regional sources describe a brackish environment of about 25 hectares, surrounded by coastal vegetation and used by greater flamingos, herons and other waterbirds.
The salt marsh is part of the Litorale Tarantino Orientale Regional Nature Reserves, a protected system including dunes, wetlands, Mediterranean scrub and other habitats in the Manduria area.
The 16th-century tower
Torre Colimena belongs to Salento’s coastal defence system. CartApulia records a defensive building on the same site as early as 1544; the present tower was built from 1568 and completed in 1582.
The structure has a square plan, sides of about 16 metres and a height of about 17 metres. Historically it maintained visual contact with Torre San Pietro and Torre Castiglione.
