Paestum: Holiday homes

From the 5th century BC on, two important centers of Greek culture were found on the Cilento coast, represented by two central towns: Poseidonia, later to become Paestum, and Elea, present-day Velia.

Discover ancient culture while spending your holidays at Paestum

At Paestum, today, you get to admire three extremely well preserved Greek temples, for which the town has become widely known. Every year, they draw a great number of visitors from all over the world to Paestum; among them, of course, many guests staying at the holiday accommodations we arrange for at/near Paestum.

In 1787, during his trip through Italy, Goethe wrote:
“Finally (…) we could distinguish several longish square masses which we had already noticed from afar as the remains of temples and monuments of a once magnificent town. (…) yes, I praised the genius for letting me see these well preserved remains with my own eyes, as an image can never give you the same impression.”

It was only in 1968 that the Tomb of the Diver was discovered – its five frescoes bearing another significant testimony to antique artistry and, today, adorning countless souvenirs.

Paestum - an excellent starting point for excursions

Paestum, which is often called the gate to the Cilento, is an excellent starting point for excursions to other sights/sites of cultural interest, such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, Velia and Padula. And, the Cilento National Park with its picturesque mountain and fishing villages is located, so to speak, right at its doorstep.

Wide sandy beaches - Paestum is a bathing paradise

Paestum offers not only cultural highlights. It is also a fantastic place for beach vacationers: fine, wide and gently sloping - the sandy beach of Paestum stretches for kilometers on end. It is one of the longest on the Cilento coast.

It is definitely a good choice for families with small children; but it is also great to take walks along the beach in the evenings.

World-famous “mozzarella di bufala”

Water buffaloes – they play the leading role in the plain of Piana di Sele around Paestum and provide the milk for the exclusive mozzarella di bufala. At ecologically run country estate Tenuta Vannulo, for example, you can watch the impressively big but at the same time gentle animals at close range, try wonderful creamy and savory mozzarella and watch the casari at work as they deftly pluck off pieces from the still warm loaf of cream cheese. The origin of the word mozzarella then quickly becomes clear: "mozzare" means 'to pluck off'.

Nearest train station: Paestum (at the excavation site). By train, it takes you about an hour to get to Pompeii and Herculaneum, for example.