Right on the waterfront in Taranto we wandered across the moat into the courtyard. There wasn't a…read morefee, but we were asked to sign a release before going inside. We peeked inside rooms from the main courtyard, Visiting the barracks, kitchen, and lots of ruins seeing broken pottery and coins. The castle was built on the site of an older fortifications dating back to Greek occupation in the 3rd & 4th centuries BC. In 1481 the low ground in front of the fortification site was excavated to allow the passage of boats, & to create a moated defensive position. The present fortress was built for the then-king of Naples, Ferdinand II of Aragon in 1496 to reinforce the naturally low-lying link between the old town of Taranto on a peninsula, and the mainland.

We were more impressed than others but we want to see how it was built. Hundreds of years gone by…read moreand many conquering owners. But the castle and moat still exist and you have an imagination to use. You only need a couple hours. Well Done!

We were very underwhelmed with the Castello Svevo. Yes, it's a castle which is intersting in and of…read moreitself, but it's basically an empty shell. There are no original period furnishings and they make it so you can't even look out the windows to see the ocean views. They had a few exhibits on predatory birds and some recreations of sculptures but nothing that was original to the castle. The ruins underneath were interesting but there wasn't much info on them. The ruins under the Cathedral were far more impressive. The film was interesting but very basic. We all felt it was over-priced for 9 euros.

Great to know the history of this old ancient castle on top of the hill in Bari…read more Our tour guide Daniella was so knowledgeable. They preserved what ever left of it since it was looted until it was declare by UNESCO as a one national monument. When in Bari visit the area and experience ancient history . The tour will take you by bus and walking is moderately needed. Be careful with knee problem.