Add the Gazzetta del Sud as a source
The wait for residents, tourists and enthusiasts is over. Tomorrow, Sunday 28 June 2026, the famous Aragonese fortress of Le Castella officially reopens its doors to the public. The monumental complex, an identifying symbol of the Ionian coast and often of the whole of Calabria, can be used again following a careful restoration and re-functionalisation intervention.
This reopening is part of a complex season of widespread renewal and structural modernization which is organically affecting all the sites belonging to the Archaeological Parks of Crotone and Sibari. The Institute is in fact at the center of an impressive overall plan of regeneration and infrastructural strengthening, aimed at redefining the standards of hospitality, safety and scientific research of the entire cultural district. The specific work on the Fortress was coordinated by the Institute as implementing body, taking over as part of the institutional synergy with the General Directorate of Museums of the MiC. The interventions were carried out thanks to the resources of the PNRR dedicated to the removal of architectural, cognitive and sensorial barriers, through the project line called MusAiCa_EBA, finding perfect placement in the framework of strategic investments promoted by the Ministry of Culture for the South.
The care and respect for the complex and delicate original structure of the castle on the sea have required careful technical studies on the part of the designers in recent months. The additional time employed made it possible to provide the community with a profoundly renewed and more inclusive visiting experience, focused on the ground floor and open areas of the fortress. The main innovations include the restoration of the terrace flooring and the installation of a new safety parapet, the installation of renewed educational panels and tactile maps in the square in front, as well as the completion of the new toilet block.
In order to guarantee maximum scientific and social accuracy, the solutions for expanded and sensorial use were developed and shared in close collaboration with the Accessibility Commission of the Italian Union of the Blind and Visually Impaired of Cosenza. The relaunch of the Fortress also includes an energy efficiency plan, developed in synergy with the Regional Museums Directorate, which has already seen the completion of the new internal lighting system, which will shortly be followed by the new external lighting and the positioning of the furnishings.
The Director of Parks, Filippo Demma, underlines the value of the operation: “After the happy reopening last March of the National Archaeological Museum of Capo Colonna, inaugurated in the presence of the General Director of Museums Massimo Osanna, we are proud to give back to the province of Crotone, to Calabria and to visitors another exceptional fragment of our history. We have not simply reopened a gate, but thanks to the PNRR we offer cognitive and sensorial accessibility paths designed to welcome every visitor with the dignity they deserve. Public investments and the extraordinary operational effort of our structure is concretely demonstrating how rigorous protection can and must go hand in hand with a modern, inclusive welcome capable of generating economic development and pride for the entire territory, in full harmony with the programmatic lines expressed by Minister Giuli”.
With the reopening of Le Castella, the action of the Archaeological Parks of Crotone and Sibari is consolidated as an active garrison in the territory, capable of enhancing local specificities by inserting them with authority in the large national cultural circuits and confirming the validity of a modernization path that is progressively changing the face of all the museums and archaeological areas managed by the Institute.
Again from this perspective, a further restoration and improvement of the conditions of use is already being commissioned: the new works will begin operationally after the summer and will not involve any closure of the monument to the public.
On the occasion of tomorrow’s reopening day, the Fortress will be open to visitors from 9am to 8pm, a time which will also be observed on Tuesday. From Wednesday 1st July the extended summer opening hours will come into force, which will allow access from 9am to 11pm, while the usual weekly closure for maintenance will remain on Mondays. Access to the site will remain free for the first days of reopening, while paid ticketing will be activated regularly in the month of July.
All the details relating to the visit methods can be consulted on the institutional portal and through the official social channels of the Archaeological Parks of Crotone and Sibari.