Vendicari Park is located in the southeast of Sicily in the province of Syracuse. It is a unique nature object and the third nature reserve of the island. The territory of the park is a wide coastal strip consisting of sand beaches, rock-ribbed coasts, dunes and swamps. It is a unique ecosystem that is completely free from the influence of people. Any kind of economical activity including navigation and fishing in coastal waters is strictly forbidden in Vendicari.
Vendicari is a home for thousands of migrating birds. In spring and in autumn tens of bird species make stops here on their long way either to Africa or from it. Though many of the birds prefer to spend winter in Vendicari the time from November to March is considered to be the best time to watch them. At this period the diversity of birds is really huge here: flamingos, herons, cranes, cormorants and ducks. An unskilled ornithologist will surely be very happy here.
A tour of Vendicari is a dive into the virgin nature. The only way to get acquainted with the reserve is walking. While walking here you will hear neither noise of cars nor round-the-clock resorts crash. Here you will enjoy the waves lapping, birds’ singing and wind whispering. The reserve will be a real paradise for everyone who likes swimming in the sea or sunbathing In Vendicari there is a plethora of scenic beaches and lagoons where it is possible to find a place to stay alone and enjoy the sea. The beach of the Capo Passero cape that is in the southern part of the reserve not far from the town of Pakino is especially wonderful.
The nature of Vendicari is marked by several monuments that the park got since the times when fishing was a usual thing for this place and was not a threat for the local ecology. These monuments include a traditional for Sicily tonnara, a Spanish patrol tower Torre Sveva of the 15th century and several ancient fishing huts.
One can get to Vendicari from the Noto-Pakino highway. The best way is to get to the town of Noto. There are three entries along the road next to the park but the middle one is the main one – the Vendicari Tower (Torre di Vendicari). It is the easiest way to get to the southern part of the park as well as to the northern one. As it was stated above, it is not allowed to drive a car in the park, that’s why people leave their cars on a parking by the entrance.
