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Otranto offers
the tourist many places to visit:
 The
Aragonese Castle was erected
by Ferdinando of Aragona in 1485, making use of the ruins of a
pre-existing blockhouse of Bizantine execution. The three towers
weren't part of the old structure, but they were added by the
Aragoneses. The so-called "cutting Edge", that is the
spike that leans forward the sea is due to the Spanish viceroys
(1587). The castle has a little square in the entrance hall and
an upper gallery along its inner edge; the upper rooms of the
Castle were used in order to disorientate the enemies. The round
rooms of the towers have windows with loop-holes; the triangular
room is the work of architect Ciro Ciri; the rooms at the bottom
are full of short cuts, basements and escape routes. Powerful
walls were built in defence of the town, fortifying the ruins
of the Byzantine ones after the Turks' assaults (in the following
decades there were many attacks). These walls were alternated
with three main towers: Ippolita, Duchesca and Alfonsina, which,
together with the Castle, keep, as a precious case, the ancient
centre of Otranto.
 The
"Cathedral of Our Lady of the Annunciation"
was consacrated in 1088. It is an imposing church where the Romanesque,
Greek, Norman style and the style of the Renaissance blend. The
external rose window has a Gothic design. The portal is a subsequent
extension. The Church consists of a nave and two aisles, which
are separated by two lines of seven pillars each.
At the end of the right aisle there is the "Martyrs' Chapel".
The paintings laid out in the church are important Byzantine evidences.
The mosaic on the floor is a remarkable work of art. It is imputed
to Pantaleone, a priest in the nearly St. Nicola of Castle Abbey,
and it was made from 1163 to 1166.
 The
small "St. Peter's Church"
(9th - 10th century B.C.), of Byzantine design, was a real point
of reference for the little village. It is built on the plan of
a Greek cross with a little nave and two little aisles.
The four central pillars hold up a dome without tambour. On the
walls very remarkable frescoes portray Jesus Christ's life.
 For
those people who like excursions: don't miss the Martyrs'
Hill, the Snake's Tower,
the Hypogeum in Torre Pinta,
the Light house at Palascia
(Otranto Cape) and the ruins of the St.
Nicola di Casole Abbey.
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