Cheradi Islands

The Cheradi Islands, the small archipelago which surrounds on the south-west the dock of the Mar Grande in Taranto, stands out of the turquoise Ionian sea.

The two islands of San Pietro and Paolo, military property, can be reached by boats and can be entered since 2004.

The stretch of sea inside the gulf is characterised by shallow water with fine sand and large expanses of Posidonia Oceanica. In the south, instead, it is more different and characterised by a sea bed with rubbles and rocks, which gives shelter to fish.

The small island of San Pietro, with its 117 hectares, is the largest one. It has a triangular shape and three points: in the West, punta La Forca, in the North punta Lo Scanno and in the East punta Il Posto. Here, amid jagged cliffs, beaches with fine sand alternate with beach umbrellas and sun beds, while behind them appear the thick pine forest with benches and tables.

The island dedicated to San Paolo is instead smaller and it has a pillbox of the Napoleonic period.

In the past, near punta di Rondinella, there used to be also the small island of San Nicolicchio, which has disappeared because of the widening of the trading port.

The island of San Pietro has the typical vegetation of the Mediterranean area, with a large pine forest, holm oaks, oaks, plane and palm trees and here fly over barn owls, seagulls, common kingfishers, turtle doves and cormorants. Moreover, in this area there is a large quantity of algae, where molluscs, sponges, sea urchins, starfishes and several species of fishes.