Mottola

This hilltop town in Apulia's Taranto province with a concentration of historic churches in its centre, Mottola sits high on the Murgia plateau with sweeping views across the Gulf of Taranto — a position that earned it the local nickname "the Ionian Spy." Its territory falls within the Terra delle Gravine natural park, where ravines shelter cave villages and rock-cut churches, giving the town a second identity as a "city of caves." Local agriculture produces olives, wine, citrus, and dairy products typical of the Murge.

• Population15,310
• Nearest water1.6 km
• Nearest mountain6.6 km
• UNESCO within 50 km8