LECCE – A route in stages approximately 300 kilometers long, accessible to everyone, and divided into five rings, excellent for day excursions, which embraces the entire Ionian ridge between coastal areas, extra-urban routes and natural parks in the territories of at least ten municipalities which are part of the Ionian-Adriatic Green Community project, led by the Municipality of Nardò.
The slow mobility route for two wheels, created by Vivilitalia, a company specializing in environmental tourism, thanks to the Ionian-Adriatic Green Community project, financed with Pnrr funds, was presented in the morning at the provincial headquarters of Palazzo Adorno. The initiative is promoted in collaboration with the Province of Lecce.
In addition to the route, the functionality of the app was also illustrated, which makes navigation along the cycle route easy and intuitive, highlighting the network of paths, secondary and rural roads, points of interest and bike-friendly structures.
From today there is another way to discover and appreciate Salento, in a slow and sustainable way, involving all five senses and with the use of two wheels. Thus was born the Ionian Salento cycle route: a route in stages crossing farms, wild beaches, villages rich in art and food and wine. It is one of the many projects linked to the Green Community which in some of the municipal entities that have signed the relevant memorandum of understanding (including Gallipoli and Ugento and Nardò itself), is already accelerating the procedures also for the creation and recovery of old and new cycle stations and the provision of bike sharing stations and the supply of the relevant electric and traditional bicycles.
“From today, Salento has an additional tourist product designed for a world, that of those who take cycling holidays, which is growing dramatically with a turnover that has reached 5.5 billion euros in the last year” he explained Sebastiano Venneri, president of Vivilitalia, “our work was not limited to just tracing an itinerary, but we are working to create a truly welcoming community, made up of administrators, associations and economic operators who exchanged ideas between meetings and rides and who they decided to bet on a strongly deseasonalizing holiday proposal, demonstrating that another kind of tourism is possible even in Salento. There is in fact another Salento, not just the one best known for its beaches, pizzica and nightlife”.
The routes of the Ionian cycle route
305 kilometers long, 82 percent characterized by asphalt routes and the remaining 18 percent on dirt roads, the cycle route winds mainly along secondary roads with low traffic intensity.
The main route is then divided into five ring routes which, between the sea, parks and internal villages, allow you to organize your own bike trip to measure: the routes are Ugento-Racale; Gallipoli-Racale; Nardò-Gallipoli; Porto Cesareo-Nardò and finally Manduria-Torre Lapillo. A journey created thanks to the knowledge and experience of those who live in the area every day and work to enhance it.
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The municipalities of Alliste, Avetrana, Galatone, Gallipoli, Manduria, Nardò, Porto Cesareo, Racale, Taviano, Ugento are part of the Ionian-Adriatic Green Community. From each of these centres, thanks to the modular structure of the route, it will be possible to start the journey by covering the entire ring, with or without passing through Lecce.
“This project fits fully into the Italian path to cycle tourism”, says Roberto Guido, creator of the route, “offering an extraordinary travel experience in Salento that brings together the treasures of the hinterland with the sea, but above all with nature, going beyond the clichés of seaside tourism. The Salento Ionian cycle route, in fact, crosses five parks and green areas, all on the coast, from Ugento to Manduria, united by the thread of authenticity and wonder. Thus we discover that cycling in the heart of the South is an immersive experience in a landscape that creates amazement and beauty in all seasons.”
The Province and Municipalities are aiming for cycle tourism
Taking part in the presentation conference of the Ionian cycle route were Sebastiano Venneri, president of Vivilitalia, Stefano Minerva, president of the Province of Lecce, Giulia Puglia, councilor for the environment of the Municipality of Nardò, leader of the Green Community project, Roberto Guido, creator of the cycling route and Alberto Riva, co-founder and commercial manager of MobilitySquare. Ludovica Casellati, director of Viaggi in bici and founder of Luxurybike hotels, moderated the meeting.
“The Ionian Salento cycle route opens the doors to a new chapter of sustainable tourism for the whole of Salento, with the possibility of increasing presences in the provincial territory, especially in what are considered low season periods, such as spring and autumn and that for the sector they are, instead, the most intense periods and in which there is more cycling” comments the president of the Province and mayor of Gallipoli, Stefano Minerva, “this initiative proposes a use of the territory that respects the nature of Salento and, at the at the same time, it offers an opportunity for tourism prospects, which stimulate the local economy and strengthen the idea of eco-sustainable development”.
“Our pride, as a Province, is that the ‘networking’ model that we constantly replicate with the local authorities in the area works. The result demonstrates that the key is always working as a team, which is why my applause goes to the municipal administrations and Vivilitalia, who managed to seize the opportunity of the Pnrr funds to take our territory a further step. The cycle path is not just a work for the ten Municipalities that have been able to come together, but an infrastructure that enriches the tourist and leisure offer of the whole of Salento and Puglia”.
The Salento Ionico cycle path is the icing on the cake of the Green Community. This is what the mayor of the leading city of Nardò, Pippi Mellone, also claims.
“For years we have been working on a ‘slow’ tourist offer, which focuses on the experiential and identity factor” explains the mayor of Nerito, “for this reason the possibility of cycling along an itinerary that borders the sea and cuts through the hinterland and contexts rich in art, culture and food and wine, it is one of the most effective things.”
“We are very happy, just as we are happy in general with the Green Community, an extraordinary experience of safeguarding the cultural and natural values of the territory, of protecting valuable landscapes and biodiversity, of promoting the sustainable development of the local economy” he concludes Mellone, “we take up with great determination together with nine other municipalities the challenge of the green and of a more balanced approach, the approach of those who administer and have public responsibilities, but even before that of the citizens”.
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Tags: cycle Puglia presented Salento Ionico cycle routes
