 Introduction
Massa Lubrense is an ideal place for a great holiday, more than 100 km of marked trails in the country side, country landscape, famous for its cuisine (7 restaurants in the top 20 of Campania, one of the best 3 in Italy), a coastline almost 20 miles long in the middle of the Protected Marine Area of Punta Campanella. The shores of Massa Lubrense are the closest to Capri (only 3 miles away) and you can reach Positano (13 miles), Amalfi (25 miles), Pompeii (21 miles), Ercolano (28 miles), Vesuvius (30 miles) and obviously Sorrento (3 miles) in less than one hour.
Massa Lubrense is an extremely charming spot located in the heart of the Sorrentina Peninsula. Its still intact natural assets, age-old olive groves, a gentle climate and the intense azure sea have been fascinating travelers from all over the world for centuries.
Wooded hills rise all around, crossed by ancient paths, and inlets, bays and coves, both gentle and wild.
The weather is beautiful practically all year round: a characteristic that makes this area ideal for vacations in any season. During the year there are numerous fairs centered on typical gastronomical products and many religious events, evidence of a folk culture with very ancient roots.
A stay in Massa means having all this within reach in addition to the possibility of visiting not to be missed tourist destinations such as Sorrento, which is a few minutes away, Positano, Amalfi, Ravello, Pompeii, Ercolano, Vesuvius and Naples.
The park of the natural marine Reserve at Punta della Campanella: the enchanting promontory that divides the waters of the Gulf of Naples from those of the Gulf of Salerno. There are many paths to walk in the Park that wind throughout pristine nature to access archeological sites immersed in landscapes of unequal beauty.
From Massa Lubrense you can continue along the coast and arrive at the headland of Punta Campanella or to choose the road that goes to the higher hamlets, where you can enjoy an incomparable panorama over both the gulfs of Naples and Salerno, as testified also by the name of the most importante village in the territory of Massa Lubrense: Sant'Agata sui Due Golfi (St. Agatha on Two Gulfs). It was a traditional summer resort for Neapolitan middle-class of the 19th century, for the fresh and healthy air that was enjoyable here thanks to the position exposed to all the winds.
 Arrival
Plane
From Naples "Capodichino" airport take the "Currieri" bus to Sorrento. From there, you can reach Massa by taxi or by Sita departing from Sorrento Train Station.
Car
From the tollway, exit at Castellammare and proceed in the direction of the Sorrentina Peninsula. From Sorrento, follow the signs for Massa Lubrense, pass through the center and continue for another 3 km
Train
From the Central Station of Naples Garibaldi Square, you can take the local train Circumvesuviana with direction Sorrento (departures: approx every 45 minutes and runs till 11.00 p.m.) and stop in Sorrento. From Sorrento tran Station get the Sita Bus or a taxi
By Sea
From Naples harbor, Beverello wharf, take the hydrofoil to Sorrento, in 35 minutes you will reach the harbor of Sorrento, take the local bus services which stops you to the train station and then follow the direction above.
 Transport
In town you can find a good public transportation organized by the city hall with a orange bus.
 History and Culture
Since the Angio domination started the battles of Massa Lubrense, we are in the time of Angioini e Durazzeschi. For longer than ten years Massa Lubrense used to belong to the Amalfi Ducato. When Giovanna I died, the war immediately starter between the Durazzeschi vs Angioini, for the control of the reign of Naples. In the 1382, the first enemies were Carlo III from Durazzo Albania and Ludovico Ducal d'Angio. When Carlo died the command was taken by his son Ladislao, under the control of his mother Margherita. In the year 1389 the castle of Massa was completed and ratified the constitution of city.
In 1420 the Sorrento Peninsula passed once more under the domination of the Angioini (Ludovico III sovereign of Sicily), until 1422 when Castellammare di Stabia returned to Giovanna II of Durazzo. The queen Giovanna assigned the control of the territory of Sorrento, Massa and Amalfi under the general Artaldo de Luna, who was named general of Sorrento, Massa, Vico, Amalfi, Capri, Atrani, Ravello, Scala, Tramonti, Agerola, Positano e Conca for 5 years(18 July 1422).
When the queen Giovanna died in the 1435, Renato d'Angio was nominated king, but three year's after gave to his wife the territory of Amalfi along with Sorrento, Massa e Castellammare. Conquest by the Aragonesi in the 1441 Massa, was included in the new Kingdom of Naples and Sicily.
Another fundamental dates of the history of Massa Lubrense and the Penisola was the revolution of Masaniello (1647) the 1503, that received many supporter from the Sorrentine Peninsula against Ferdinando vice-king of Spain.
In the 1707 the kingdom passed in the hands of the Bourbons until the 1806 when Ferdinando IV escaped in Palermo, while Napoli was already occupied by the Capitan Massena. Giuseppe Bonaparte (Napoleone brother) was named king of Naples. The English troupe they conquest Capri from where they always tried the invasion of Massa, but without success.
In 1808 Giuseppe had to move to Spain and he left the command to Gioacchino Murat, who immediately decided a task to conquest Capri. Murat remained in the command of the Reign even after the Napoleone empire end.
Until the 1859/60 the reign remained in the hands of the Spanish, finally when the 1000 guided by Garibaldi, entered in Napoli.
From the eight hundred until the second world war there was a massive emigration in direction of the Unisted states and New Zeland.
 Churches and Museums
Church of Madonna della Lobra
The early testimonies about Massa belong to the 10th century, when it was property of the Sorrento Duchy. It succeeded to gain its freedom from Sorrento only in 1470. Its name is derived from the Langobard word "mansa", which defined a territorial unit, with the adjective "lubrense" related to the Church of Madonna della Lobra. Built in 1528 to replace the former paleochristian church. Inside the church there is a beautiful pavement in majolica of the 18th century and a lacunar ceiling.
Torre Minerva (Minerva Tower)
The Sorrento Peninsula ends on south with the headland of Punta Campanella, on which there are the remains of Torre Minerva (Minerva Tower) built in the 14th c. by Robert of Anjou and used up to the 17th century to sight the ships of the Saracen pirates and alert for the danger by the sound of a small bell ("campanella" in Italian, from which the name). But in the antiquity this place was sacred, initially dedicated to the Syrens and after to Athena (Minerva for the Roman mythology).
 Historical buildings and monuments
Franciscan convent
From the centre of Massa Lubrense starts the road leading to Marina della Lobra, a seafaring suburb with the houses built in front of the seashore and of the harbour. At the entrance of the village there is the Church of Santa Maria della Lobra (Our Lady of the Lobra). Near the church there is a franciscan convent: inside its cloister are kept some archaeological remains of the Greek and Roman age.
 Events
Fishing tourism
A new way to do tourism while discovering the sea and its traditions along the coasts of the Land of Mermaids. One can have the full experience of professional fishing while on true fishing boats, dropping and pulling the nets, bolentino fishing on the rocky formations, pole-and-line fishing for amberjack, at night for squids and with other traditional techniques. Departure either at dawn or at dusk for a guided visit to the captivating coast rich with history, myth and tradition to participate in the fishing and in the sampling of the fish, prepared on board according to traditional recipes from the Sorrento Peninsula.
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