The life and activities of the port of Otranto are closely linked to the town itself and to the historical events that have shaped it over the centuries. Since this Salento town is primarily a tourist destination, the port has always served as an important hub for welcoming visitors’ boats and as a departure point for ferries and other vessels.

Until 1999, there was a ferry service connecting certain areas of Greece and Albania.

Today, however, it is often the focal point of true “journeys of hope” for people from neighboring regions who cross the Adriatic illegally and disembark here in search of a better life. Both yesterday and today, therefore, this port plays a vital role for the entire Salento region, serving as a link to the East and a major hub for trade, as well as holding strategic and military significance. In fact, the Lega Navale has been headquartered here for nearly forty years.

The port of Otranto is a small gulf where various types of boats are moored; it features a wide inlet protected to some extent by the three-armed San Nicola pier, which is equipped with docks and numerous piers facing the shore. The port can accommodate up to 390 berths for boats up to 20 m in length, of which only 10 are reserved for transit.

In addition to tourism, Otranto’s economy is based on fishing, so in the port there is a bustling comings and goings of fishing boats, paranze and boats in general that help recreate the typical atmosphere of places where man competes with nature for survival.

As for its commercial role, in addition to fishing, the port continues to play a key role in major shipping routes and trade, primarily involving materials for industrial production such as cement, lime, and plastic tanks. Until 1994, there were also cargo ships transporting tobacco.

Finally, we must not underestimate the purely distinctive aspect—and the atmosphere—that the harbor brings to the entire population: from many prominent areas of the town, in fact, one can enjoy a stunning view in which the illuminated harbor symbolizes humanity’s attempt to embrace the sea. A beautiful waterfront makes for a charming sunset stroll along the piers.

In 2006, this port was awarded five sails by Legambiente for the environmental quality of its protection of the environmental resources of their territory: quality of bathing water, separate collection of waste, management of water resources, establishment of pedestrian areas, protection of the historic center, etc. In short, everything that contributes to achieving sustainable development that increases quality tourism demand, based on the pursuit of a healthy vacation lived in harmony with the surrounding environment.

For almost a year, however, a letter of protest has been filed against regional authorities to reject the port redevelopment project.

According to the Apulia Region’s Landscape Superintendency, the project would alter the coastal area and irreparably transform the view and landscape—both from land and from the sea—thereby compromising the landscape. Furthermore, the views to and from the historic center would also be altered, both during the day and at night, when the harbor’s lighting would bathe the entire historic center—including its monuments, ramparts, and the historic harbor bay—in light.