Dive trip Parco Marino di Trapani, la Riserva dello Zingaro
Swimming, diving, snorkelling and apnea in Italy in Parco Marino di Trapani, la Riserva dello Zingaro
During your diving holiday in Sicily, be sure to stop off at the Riserva dello Zingaro, which runs for 7km along the Tyrrhenian Sea. The Zingaro Marine Park, which is also a terrestrial nature reserve, is located off the San Vito lo Capo peninsula. It covers an area of 1,700 hectares between the villages of San Vito lo Capo and Scopello. The nearest towns, Castellammare del Golfo and Trapani offer a greater variety of hotels and bed & breakfasts for your diving trek in Sicily. The Zingaro Marine Park has no coastal road. Initially, the government planned to link Scopello and San Vito La Capo by road. The Sicilians rallied around and signed a petition to stop the project. The first protected area in Sicily was the Zingaro reserve, in 1981. Its location has been known since Antiquity for its abundance of fish and tuna. In fact, just a stone's throw from the Zingaro nature reserve is the Tonnara di Scopello and the Tonnara del Secco, former complexes reserved for tuna fishing until 1984. Here, your Sicilian holiday will take place between high rocky cliffs tumbling into the blue and small coves with gentle slopes down to the sea.
For birdwatchers and botanists, the Riserva dello Zingaro is home to 650 plant species, some of them endemic and rare, including 25 species of orchid that bloom in spring. Some 39 species of nesting birds live here, including 1 pair of Bonelli's eagle (Aquila fasciata) and peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus). Whether you're a beginner or an experienced diver, discover some of Sicily's best dive sites in the Zingaro reserve during your diving holiday in Trapani. Near Cala Marinella or Ficarella, explore the Il Vulcano diving spot, accessible to PADI Advanced Open Water divers. You'll pass through a cave and then a magnificent siphon with walls full of prawns. Halfway along the Zingaro trail, Punta Leone is not only a safe shelter for the dive boat if the wind does not blow from the east, but also makes for a quiet launch. Follow the wall on your left to discover a large cavity in the rock where large groupers are hiding. Schools of jacks swim past offshore.
At the entrance to the Zingaro nature reserve, in Sotto La Galleria, discover a series of small underwater caves with passages that will enchant you with their play of light in the crevices. The walls are covered in sponges, and lobsters and galatheas, nest here. Choose your dive center wisely to explore not only the Zingaro nature reserve but also the Sicilian coast as far as Castellammare del Golfo and Trapani. From the Sub Atlantis dive club, you can enjoy more and more varied dive sites, exploring Sicily's most beautiful wrecks and penetrating magnificent caves! Stay in Castellammare del Golfo or Trapani and take a PADI Wreck Diver or PADI Cave Diver course! Explore the wreck of the cargo ship Capua, 45 meters long and 8 meters wide, which lies 40 meters deep in the Zingaro nature reserve. Fly over the deck and holds to discover lobsters, conger eels, and moray eels. Or take a wreck dive on the cargo ship Kent, 46 meters down, near the port of San Vito lo Capo. For the record, it was carrying books for Muslims, Korans, hence its nickname, the Koran wreck. Enjoy your time in Sicilia!
Marine species in the area
Dive sites
Near Cala Capreria, in Castellammare del Golfo, you will be seduced by the topography of the dive site Sotto la Galleria, alternating between drop-offs, tunnels, and arches formed by the juxtaposition of large boulders. The anfractuosities create a wonderful play of light. Shallow in places, the site is also ideal for snorkeling. Discover starfish, scorpion fish, and bream. Scour the sandy seabed where pinna nobilis trees grow. Then weave your way between the rocks, some of which are covered in false coral and yellow sponges. Here you can sometimes spot bream and dentex. Go cave diving in the Grotta della Ficarella, located inside the Zingaro nature reserve. The entrance to the cave is 14 meters below the surface. In front of you is a 10-meter-long tunnel, which you can explore if your diving level allows. You may come across corbs.
Halfway through the tunnel, the initially salty water becomes inexplicably cool. As soon as you come out of the tunnel, still in the cave, you will discover a magnificent and truly surreal landscape of stalactites descending from its ceilings. Following your guide's instructions, you can stand upright on this shallow seabed, take your head out of the water and remove the regulator, breathing in the ambient air. There are other dive sites dotted along the Sicilian coast, all with catchy names: Faraglioni di Scopello, Secca Cala Rossa, Secca Cataratta, Grotta dei Gamberi, Parete Cane Morto, Cala Della Disa, Testa Della Porta or Punta Leone...
Others Activities
The Zingaro reserve is accessible all year round by boat, either from the village of Scopello or from the village of San Vito La Capo. Access
to the reserve is subject to a charge. Visiting times are between 8 am
and 4 pm. If you leave from San Vito La Capo, you'll have more parking
spaces. And the 7km coastal path starts not far from there. If you leave
from Scopello, the best beaches and coves of the Zingaro reserve are
closer. Diving center boats will also take you there! Taking a path south from Scopello and heading north, you will pass through small pebbly coves such as Cala della Capreria, Cala del Varo (accessible by sea), Cala della Disa or Zingaro, Cala Beretta, Cala Marinella, and Cala Torre dell'Uzzo.
The turquoise sea is so transparent you'll feel like you're in the tropics! You choose your route according to your stamina and the level of difficulty. If you're feeling sporty, you'll prefer to take a loop around the reserve to reach the village of Cusenza. You'll pass through a forest full of dwarf palm trees whose fan-shaped leaves grow up to 3 m high. The paths along the sea are less strenuous! Take the opportunity to swim in the coves. Take something to eat and drink with you, as there are no restaurants or bars on site. There are a number of museums to visit, including the naturalist museum, the Museum of maritime activities, the Museum of rural civilization, and the environmental education center.
Parco Marino di Trapani, la Riserva dello Zingaro : Dive shops
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Centro Sub Atlantis
Italy
- Castellammare del golfo
 
The Sub Atlantis centre is located in Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily. Set in wooden bungalows on stilts, the semi-rigid boats, approved for 15 people, are right in front of you, moored to the pontoon. Come aboard Sub Atlantis to explore the sites of several local diving areas: in the Zingaro reserve and along the coast from Castellammare del Golfo to San Vito Lo Capo and towards Trapani. Wreck lovers will be delighted to discover the Cypriot cargo ship Kent and Le Capua lying in the Zingaro Reserve in the Gulf of San Vito Lo Capo.
Affiliated as a PADI 5* centre, Sub Atlantis is the ideal place to start diving with a discovered scuba diver, in crystal clear turquoise waters. Specialised in teaching, the Sub Atlantis instructors will take you from beginner level with Scuba Diver courses to Open Water Scuba Instructor level. Accompanying non-divers and families can enjoy snorkelling trips in superb locations such as Faraglioni di Scopello, on board the boat. Alternatively, there are walks in the Zingaro reserve. Scuba divers can hire diving equipment on-site. The Sub Atlantis centre can help you find accommodation, whether a hotel or bed and breakfast. [+] - PADI 5 star Dive Resort
- Protected Marine Park
- Wrecks
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Sea creatures
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