Delta del Po

Cervia is a characteristic village of salt miners and a town that was completely re-built at the end of the 17th century. It also offers a great deal from a naturalistic point of view: embraced by over 300 hectares of pine forests, 827 hectares of salt pans, it is a true naturalistic oasis rich in birdlife!

Let's start with its characteristic historical town centre: the Magazzini del Sale (Salt Warehouses), which today host exhibitions and the MUSA Salt Museum, the Torre San Michele (St. Michael’s Tower) and the Cathedral are its most significant landmarks. Torre San Michele, a veritable fortress overlooking the Cervia canal, was built at the end of the 17th century for purely defensive purposes. It was necessary to protect the port, and especially the salt warehouse, from attacks by Turks and brigands. Later it was used as a lighthouse, rising just above the sea and today, it provides an extraordinary panoramic view of the city. After this breath-taking experience, we move onto the Magazzino del Sale “Torre“ (“Tower” Salt Warehouse), an imposing building that once stored the city's salt and now houses a rich collection of artefacts, documents, equipment and historical photos that bear witness to the memory of working in the salt pans. A true historical testimony demonstrating how Cervia played a role of paramount importance in the production, harvesting and processing of 'white gold'.  

For lunch, let's savour some of the extraordinary fish-based dishes that this village has to offer, then delve deep into the town's lush greenery to discover a true unicum: the Casa delle Farfalle (House of Butterflies), immersed in the marvellous setting of the Cervia pine forest, where hundreds of colourful tropical butterflies flutter around every day.

Finally you will be able to dive deep into the natural heritage provided by the Salina di Cervia (Cervia Saltworks), the southernmost station in the Po Delta Regional Park, where you will be literally catapulted into an environment of high naturalistic and landscape interest, a resting and nesting area for numerous bird species such as the Pink Flamingo, the Black-winged Stilt, the Avocet, the typical herons of the Po Delta and other protected species. Of Etruscan origin and still in operation, the Salina (Saltworks) bears witness to the interaction between the forces of nature and human activity, providing guided tours on foot, by bike and electric boat or even by canoe, for an experience that will leave you speechless!