The celebrations for the 81st anniversary of the discovery of the Castellana Caves (Ba), an occasion to celebrate the events of January 1938 when the speleologist Franco Anelli and Vito Matarrese from Castellana revealed to the world one of the most important karst complexes in Europe.
Grotte di Castellana srl organized two events to commemorate this important anniversary. The festivities began in the morning in the Grave of the Castellana Caves with a Holy Mass officiated by the Bishop of the Diocese of Conversano-Monopoli, His Excellency Mgr. Joseph Favale A large representation of students from Castellana schools also participated. Following this, as is tradition, the Puglia Grotte Group conducted a celebratory descent into the Grave, reliving Anelli's exploratory feat 81 years later.
In the evening, the Castellana Grotte City Hall will host a public conference with remarks by Castellana Grotte Mayor Francesco De Ruvo, Castellana Grotte Councilor for Tourism Giovanni Filomeno, and members of the Grotte di Castellana srl Board of Directors (President Victor Casulli, Vice President Francesco Manghisi, and Councilor Maria Lacasella). This will be an opportunity to review the 2018 financial statements and outline guidelines for 2019.
He was the mayor Francesco De Ruvo to open the conference by speaking "of the responsibility of each administrator in managing a natural asset of such great importance both for the city and for the entire region", also anticipating what will be one of the most important moments of next year with the renewal of the agreement between the Municipality of Castellana Grotte and the company Grotte di Castellana srl.
The commissioner Gianni Filomeno He first presented the data on visitors to the Castellana caves (319.392), which increased in 2018 and contrasted with the tourist flow data for the Puglia region, which decreased in the same year. He then commented on the need to implement and improve infrastructure and roads to serve tourism.
The president of Grotte di Castellana srl, Victor Casulli, gave an overview of the activities carried out in 2018 with the result "To have surpassed 2017 in visitor numbers, a record year for the Castellana Caves, and to have reached the highest number since 1986. This figure stands at between 350 and 400 visitors if we also include the numerous events organized both within the karst site and in the outdoor area. In this regard, I feel compelled, on behalf of the entire Board of Directors, to thank all the company's employees and collaborators for their commitment and dedication in achieving the expected results.".
“The activity carried out – President Casulli then commented – It allows us to look to 2019 with a view to pursuing our goals of deseasonalization and, above all, improving visitor services. The 100% Accessible Caves project will be one of the key elements in eliminating all barriers to accessing the beauty of the Castellana Caves. We will also develop new options for certain visitor groups, starting, for example, with tourists accompanied by their four-legged friends.
The speeches of the vice president will also follow Francesco Manghisi (who recalled not only the promotional work, but also the maintenance work on the buildings and the care of the area outside the Castellana caves) and the councilor Maria Lacasella (who invited everyone to reclaim their emotions by rediscovering the pleasure of a visit to the Castellana Caves).
The public conference was closed with the reports of Valeria Intini, member of the Technical-Scientific Committee, of Stefano Scagliuso and Dionisio Beatrice, respectively artistic director and communications manager of Grotte di Castellana srl, on the accessibility project and the company's new logo.
Further information is available on Grotte di Castellana srl's Facebook and Instagram social media channels and on the website. www.grottedicastellana.it.
