The Pontine Islands

The Pontine Islands (Isole Pontine) are a pretty archipelago off the Italian coast south of Rome. With a long history, attested by Roman and pre-Roman ruins, the islands are nevertheless little-known to international tourists.

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Pontine Islands Tourist Information

There are only two islands large enough to offer accommodation possibilities and regular ferry connections: Ponza and Ventotene. The other islands in the Pontine archipelago, including the nature reserve of Zannone, can be visited in boat trips from the two larger islands.

Ponza is the main tourist destination, and is hugely popular with water-lovers; the island offers superb swimming opportunities, particularly for those who hire boats. Around 8km long, the island has two principal settlements, connected by bus.

Ventotene is smaller - under three kilometres long - and is more suited to those looking for some serious peace and solitude. The island's ancient and only port was dug out of the volcanic rock. The small island of Santo Stefano, offshore, is dominated by a prison, built by the Bourbons and in use until 1965.

Palmarola is smaller still, craggy and uninhabited. There's a small landing-place for boats and a restaurant (summer only). The green isle of Zannone is a nature reserve, and also the site of a ruined monastery, built in 1213. The remaining island is little Gavi, inhabited only by wild rabbits.

Ventotene and Ponza have several archeological sites; the Emperor Augustus exiled his embarassing daughter Julia to Ventotene (then known as Pandataria); and Nero later did the same with his wife Octavia. The remains of the Roman Villa Giulia can be seen on the tip of the Eolo headland. Over the centuries many other notable exiles arrived on the Pontine islands, including the early saint Flavia Domitilla, Sandro Pertini (a prisoner of the Fascists and later President of Italy) and Mussolini (confined here for a few days in 1943).

Fortresses and prisons mostly date back to the period when the islands belonged to the Bourbons, ownership having passed from the aristocratic Farnese family in 1734. In 1813, Ponza was briefly captured by the British during the Napoleonic Wars before being returned to the Bourbon dynasty.

As well as swimming and sunbathing, the islands offer plenty of opportunities for boating and diving. If the action gets too much, there are restaurants and bars for unwinding after dusk, while pleasant daytime hours can be spent wandering through the dramatic landscape, past scattered ruins and breathtaking views.

Pontine Islands Travel Information

Get to the Pontine Islands
Rome is the best airport and starting point for the islands, although Naples is also an option. Ferries and hydrofoils run to Ponza from Anzio (42km), which is an hour's train journey from Rome. Other ferries travel to Ponza and Ventotene from Terracina and Formia, both on the Latina coastline between Rome and Naples. In the summer there is also a hydrofoil service from the island of Ischia to Ponza. Services are drastically reduced outside the main tourist season (which runs roughly May-September). See the foot of this page for links to the websites of ferry companies serving the islands. Ventotene can be reached from Formia with Vetor (55mins).

Get around
For travelling around the shorelines, or between the islands, boats are the obvious option. If you haven't arrived in your own yacht, small boats can be hired cheaply on Ponza and Ventotene. You can also take trips to the smaller islands, with time usually set aside for swimming. On Ponza, the largest of the islands, a bus service connects the settlements of Ponza Porto and Le Forna. The principal beach, Chiaia di Luna, is a few minutes on foot from the port.

Pontine Islands Accommodation

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Hotel Calabattaglia, Ventotene ***

Hotel Calabattaglia, a modern construction in Mediterranean style, is situated away from the island's main settlement, with views looking over the islet of Santo Stefano.

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Hotel Chiaia di Luna, Ponza ****

Built in a traditional Ponzese style, the Hotel Chiaia di Luna is an attractive hotel located right above the Chiaia di Luna beach. The rooms are freshly refurbished in 2004 and the hotel also offers breakfast by the swimming pool, a bar and restaurant.

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