A few kilometres north of Otranto, Baia dei Turchi is the long stretch of pine-backed sand where, according to tradition, the Ottoman fleet under Gedik Ahmed Pasha came ashore on 28 July 1480, launching the siege that ended in the massacre of the 800 martyrs.
Today it is one of the most beautiful beaches on the Salento coast — fine pale sand, transparent water, and a fringe of Aleppo pine and Mediterranean macchia that has kept it largely free of construction. The beach is part of a protected nature reserve, so reach it by a 10-minute walk down through the pines from the car park rather than driving up to the sand.