Santa Croce Camerina, Italy: travel guide to ancient Kamarina and the beaches of the Ragusa coast

Santa Croce Camerina is a town in the province of Ragusa, in the far south of Sicily, set just inland from the Channel of Sicily about 20 kilometres south-west of Ragusa. Home to around 11,000 people, it is the heir of the ancient Greek colony of Kamarina and is famous today for its archaeology, its sandy beaches and its starring role in a beloved television series.

For travellers searching for Santa Croce Camerina, Kamarina, Punta Secca and Inspector Montalbano, or beaches near Ragusa, the town blends classical history with the seaside.

History and archaeology

Kamarina was founded in 598 BC as a colony of Syracuse on the hills above the mouth of the Ippari river, and grew into an important Greek city before being repeatedly fought over and destroyed. Its remains, including stretches of the archaic walls, a great tower and Hellenistic houses, can be visited along with a regional museum, while nearby Kaukana preserves a remarkable late-antique and early-Christian village protected for centuries by the dunes.

Beaches and the Montalbano connection

The town's coastal districts of Punta Secca, Punta Braccetto, Caucana and Casuzze are popular summer resorts with fine sandy beaches and clear sea. Punta Secca, a small fishing village with a lighthouse and a pretty little square, became famous as the home of Inspector Montalbano in the RAI television series based on Andrea Camilleri's novels, where it stands in for the fictional town of Marinella.

Practical information

Santa Croce Camerina lies about 20 to 26 kilometres south-west of Ragusa, on the southern coast of Sicily, within easy reach of the UNESCO Baroque towns of the Val di Noto and the Greek and seaside sites of the province.