Grotta Fetida (Terme di Santa Cesarea)

Below the cliffs of Santa Cesarea Terme, Grotta Fetida is one of four coastal caves through which sulfurous mineral waters emerge. The cave offers a view into the karst chambers that form the geological heart of the town's thermal tradition.

Why it matters

The springs at Santa Cesarea are classified as sulfurous, saline-bromine-iodine mineral waters. An analysis conducted with the University of Salento in 2025 recorded a temperature of 29 degrees Celsius and a dry residue of 36.89 grams per litre. The cave is one of four named thermal caves—Gattulla, Solfatara, Fetida and Solfurea—that connect the area's geology to its history as a bathing destination.

What to notice

The cave's warm mineral waters and damp rock surfaces reveal the relationship between the springs and the coastal limestone. The name Fetida reflects the sulfurous character of the water. Grotta Fetida belongs to the same underground system as the other named thermal caves.

Context and history

Local legends explain the springs through stories of the Leuterni giants slain by Hercules and of Cisaria, a young woman whose father was struck down by sulfurous flames. The names Fons Gigantum and Santa Cisaria preserve these mythic and devotional associations. The Salento physician known as il Galateo wrote of the waters in the fifteenth century. The spa's historical sources cite a 1548 inventory of the State of Castro and a 1742 land register describing this stretch of coast. After the 1480 destruction of Otranto, settlement returned in the nineteenth century alongside the developing thermal industry; Santa Cesarea Terme became an autonomous municipality in 1913.