41.013° N, 17.193° E
Complete guide
San Vito (Polignano a Mare): beach guide
What the beach is like
San Vito beach lies in the hamlet of the same name in the municipality of Polignano a Mare, in the province of Bari, in Apulia. According to Wikipedia, the hamlet has 88 inhabitants; the beach lies right below the abbey. The locality of San Vito is a natural harbour. The small free beach is partly sandy and partly pebbly. Colourful fishing boats are moored in the bay.
The abbey of San Vito is a Benedictine foundation and was designed in the tenth century. From the sixteenth century it was home to the Conventual Friars Minor of the Santi Apostoli, and in 1785 it passed to the Regio Demanio, the royal state property. In 1866 the State sold it to the La Greca marquises, who, according to the article, still own it entirely. The church, on the other hand, belongs to the Fondo di Edifici di Culto of the Ministry of the Interior and is granted to the Chiesa Matrice Santa Maria Assunta, which celebrates Mass there on Sundays.
The building has an irregular quadrangular plan, with a large portico on the main façade divided into loggias with round arches. The transept is topped by a small circular dome, and the bell tower is a tower worked in Lecce Baroque style. Inside, the portico of the façade opens onto a small cloister with a well. An external staircase is connected to the loggia overlooking the sea.
Getting there
The beach is 3.3 km as the crow flies north-west of Polignano a Mare. Mola di Bari is 10 km as the crow flies north-west of the beach, Monopoli 11.3 km to the south-east. The hamlet lies along the Strada statale 16 Adriatica.
Those arriving by car from Bari continue towards Brindisi on state road 16 and take the Polignano a Mare Nord exit. From Brindisi, take the state road towards Bari and exit at Polignano a Mare/Conversano. By train, get off at Polignano a Mare station, on the Adriatic railway line, which is connected with the stations of Bari and Brindisi.
When to go
According to Wikivoyage, Polignano a Mare is a destination to enjoy from March to October, and summer remains the busiest season. The feast of San Vito Martire is celebrated on 14, 15 and 16 June. According to Wikipedia, on the afternoon of 14 June a large raft carrying the image of the saint leaves the small harbour and is taken in a procession by sea to Polignano a Mare, to the small beach of Cala Paura. In 2026 the municipal programme included, on Sunday 14 June, the procession of the relic of the arm of San Vito from the Chiesa Matrice to the Abbazia di San Vito and, in the evening, the procession by sea of the image of the saint.
The beach faces north-east. With the north wind (tramontana), the north-east wind (grecale) and the east wind (levante), the wind comes from the sea and the beach is exposed to waves and rough sea. With the south wind (ostro), the south-west wind (libeccio) and the west wind (ponente), the wind blows from the land and the beach is sheltered, with calmer water near the shore. The sirocco (scirocco) and the mistral (maestrale) blow across the shoreline instead. These indications are derived from the orientation of the coast and are not weather forecasts.
Seabed and sea
The beach faces the Adriatic Sea. According to QualeSpiaggia data, taken from OpenStreetMap, the beach bottom is sand. Rocks stretch all around, where the regional tourism portal suggests stopping to read a book or take a dip. In the 2025 season the European Environment Agency rated the bathing water quality at the monitoring point associated with the beach as excellent.
For the municipal territory of Polignano a Mare, Wikipedia lists the cliffs dropping sheer into the sea and the many sea caves as of considerable natural interest.
Facilities and free beach
In 2026 San Vito appears on the Blue Flag (Bandiera Blu) list for Polignano a Mare, together with Cala Paura, Cala San Giovanni, Ripagnola / Coco Village and Cala Fetente. On 26 June 2026 the municipality raised the blue flag at the public beaches of Cala Paura and San Vito. For these two public beaches, in 2026 the municipality brought forward to 15 June the start of the bather assistance and rescue service.
In 2026 the municipality also installed toilets and placed two semi-automatic defibrillators, one at Cala Paura and one at San Vito, available until 14 September. In the same year it bought lifeguard towers and the related equipment for the first time. In a press release of 17 June 2026 the municipality states that the rescue stations on the Blue Flag beaches are staffed by qualified personnel and equipped with a rescue boat.
It is a good idea to bring water and sun protection.
Rules and protected areas
In the same press release the mayor asks residents and visitors not to leave litter and to use the services provided in the area properly. Even picking up a piece of litter found on the beach, the note says, can be a small contribution to protecting the sea.
Nearby
The San Vito area also has a Baroque-era watchtower, which Wikipedia describes as in very good condition. A walk in the surroundings leads to the Saracen tower and the fish pond where eels used to be farmed. Around the abbey there are plots where the Carota di Polignano is grown, recognised as a Slow Food presidium.
Porto Contessa, a small sandy cove, is 0.3 km as the crow flies south-east of the beach. Porto Cavallo, which can be reached on foot along a narrow lane, is 0.8 km as the crow flies to the south-east. There is also a sandy cove in the hamlet of San Giovanni. Cala San Giovanni is 0.6 km as the crow flies north-west of the beach.
The oldest part of Polignano a Mare stands on a rocky spur rising sheer above the Adriatic Sea. The bridge of the Via Traiana, still passable, crosses the Lama Monachile. Lama Monachile is 2.8 km as the crow flies south-east of the beach. Several films were shot in the hamlet of San Vito, including the opening scene of Cado dalle nubi, as well as scenes of the TV series Le indagini di Lolita Lobosco.
Sources
- Wikipedia (it) — San Vito (Polignano a Mare)
- QualeSpiaggia — open data spiagge (CC BY 4.0)
- San Vito - Spiagge - AI Smart
- Wikivoyage (it) — Polignano a Mare
- Wikivoyage (en) — Polignano a Mare
- POLIGNANO A MARE CELEBRA SAN VITO MARTIRE: FEDE, TRADIZIONE E COMUNITÀ PER LA FESTA PATRONALE 2026 / Avvisi / Novità / Homepage - Comune di Polignano
- OpenStreetMap
- EEA — Bathing water quality 2025 (IT016072035003)
- Wikipedia (it) — Polignano a Mare
- FEE Italia — Bandiera Blu 2026, elenco spiagge
- 19-esima Bandiera Blu Polignano a Mare: consegnati i riconoscimenti alle spiagge candidate. / Avvisi / Novità / Homepage - Comune di Polignano a Mare
- ATTIVATI I SERVIZI DI BALNEAZIONE SICURA NELLE SPIAGGE BANDIERA BLU DI POLIGNANO A MARE / Comunicati / Novità / Homepage - Comune di Polignano a Mare