An iconic city in the Cilento area, Paestum is known mainly for its archaeological zone, whose temples are considered (along with those of Agrigento and Athens) one of the best preserved in the world. But Paestum offers its visitors a variety of other astonishing historical attractions, very often ignored by tourists.
What are the must-sees of a visit to Paestum?
The Basilica of Paestum
When you mention the large archaeological area of Paestum, whose buildings date back to the 6th-5th centuries BC, you cannot allude to the basilica (the temple of Hera), the oldest of the three large buildings in the area. Probably created as a building of religion, it is one of the few structures that have been conserved in a similar state of preservation.
The Archaeological Museum
Definitively setting itself up as one of the centres of Paestum’s cultural life, the construction of the museum was completed in 1952. The main purpose of the structure was to give a home to figurative panels and metopes found in the sanctuary of Hera at the estuary of the Sele River. A visit to the museum is a must: one of the most important relics is certainly the ‘Tomb of the Diver‘, discovered in 1968.
The Legambiente Oasis Torre di Mare
Few people know Paestum for its magnificent natural areas. Among these, the Legambiente Oasis is a small area of beach of about 200 hectares, particularly stunning for its alternation of golden dunes and dense patches of vegetation.
The beaches of Paestum
If your tour takes place in the summer, a must-visit is the beaches of the Paestum coastline, and in particular the ‘Tower of Paestum‘ beach, very close to the archaeological site. On this site you can see two important military constructions: a bunker and a tower from the Second World War period.
The Cinta walls
The city of Paestum is surrounded and protected by walls. A walk along the city walls is a must. At about 7 m high, the wall extends for almost 4.7 km and is among the best preserved in the whole of Magna Graecia!
"The Houses"
Recently about eight blocks of houses of various sizes dating back to the Roman period have been discovered. A visit to the ‘House with marble impluvium‘ is recommended.
