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Who we are

Enjoy your holiday experience at our apartments in Otranto.

Book directly on this website, prices are more convenient compared to the ones of the booking portals.

Ciao!
I am Annalisa

MariMar Apartments was born on a part of land made mystical by the hypogean complex built in the early Christian era and by the nearby church of the Madonna dell’Altomare. The name MariMar is the Spanish version of Maria Altomare in honor of the patron saint of fishermen and also to remember my paternal grandmother Maria Altomare.

The history of Marimar

My father, a young agricultural engineer,  arrived in Otranto in the late 1950s to direct and manage a reclamation project for the surrounding areas. He fell madly in love with the sea and with the local countryside. He dreamed of having a piece of land that could unify the sea, the land and history. He found is in via San Giovanni and bought it with his savings.

It was necessary to safeguard the hypogeum that was collapsing. The project had a long procedural process due to the numerous approvals of the institutions responsible for protection.More than ten years. With my tenacity and experience as an administrative lawyer I made my father’s dream and vision come true.

The recovery of the Hypogeum

The Hypogeum has been recovered and these apartments with touristic purposes have been built. The Hypogeal system “Grotte San Giovanni” is actually the first example of “Negative art” which means to build by removing and not by adding.

The future of Marimar

I would like to realize in our pine forest a botanical garden, which  includes medical herbs, spices and perfumes, which would be physically connected to the Hypogeum, so that it  will create a single path through a spectacular system of the site. That’s because the Basilian Monks  used to cultivate medical herbs next to the Idro river.

I take care of all the apartments as if they were my home… and the dream continues!

Thank you for choosing my hotel and I wish you a peaceful and happy stay.

The Hypogeum

[…]There is only light. The light that dominates Otranto like an alchemist dominates its elements. […]

This is how Roberto Cotroneo describes Otranto in the book dedicated to the city. Otranto is truly an alchemy, the place where opposites coincide, where East and West take up the race with history.

To the city on the surface, dazzling with sun and teeming with colors, happens at night when the winds creep into the cracks.

Coming to Otranto means experiencing emotions in layers, from the deepest one that has its roots in history, to the lighter, superficial and colorful aspect.

The Marimar Apartments residence is the synthesis of these souls. Comfortable and a stone’s throw from the sea, it offers a unique opportunity to its guests: the opportunity to visit the underground system “Grotte San Giovanni” which is the exclusive property of Marimar Apartments, which guarantees its protection.

The structure of the Hypogeum

The hypogeum, dating back to the early Christian age, occupies the limestone base that houses the pine forest, a green oasis of the residential complex.

Recently restored and placed in safety, the hypogeum was excavated in the early centuries of Christianity and used by a Jewish community.

The central room leads to a circular dependence, which ends in a quadrangular hall, and to a long dròmos, dotted with numerous small rectangular and semicircular rooms, equipped with cells and closed by stone parapets up to a height of about one meter.

Inside the hypogeum it is possible to admire graffiti of Christian iconography dating back to different eras, such as the chrismon, Greek and Latin starry crosses and numerous names of people written in Greek, most of which are now illegible, from which they can be distinguished in a only a few letters sharper.

How the Hypogeum was used

The original destination of the entire complex was supposed to be, presumably, that of warehouse of the late Roman period for goods arriving in the nearby port, waiting to set out on the final stretch of the Via Traiana-Calabra.

Probably reused by the Byzantines in the Golden Otranto period, it was later transformed into an oil mill around the 1600s before being definitively abandoned.

Inside there are still traces of three Calabrian presses while there are no signs of the millstone, although it is assumed that the grinding took place in vain and that the dròmos was the connection with the area of the presses, given that the dròmos tanks were used for host the freshly ground material to be conveyed after squeezing.

The collapse of the Hypogeum

At a stratigraphic level, the loop area is more on the surface than the upper plateau, and it is believed that this caused the collapse of the hypogeum, due to the weight of the carts loaded with olives that arrived on the plateau.

Visit the Hypogeum

The complex underground system extends on the opposite side of the road with other cells and corridors and can always be visited by our guests.

Our apartments

The reviews of our guests

Get to know Marimar better through the words of those who have already lived a comfortable holiday experience at our apartments in Otranto.

Tommy K.
Tommy K.
Excellent staff and comfortable clean apartment
flavio C.
flavio C.
We spent a very enjoyable 2 weeks at Marimar Apartments. Accommodation was clean and spacious, with well equipped kitchen. The staff were very welcoming, friendly and very responsive with any requests. Location is convenient, 5 minutes from lovely beach, and close to good restaurants and supermarkets. Overall, highly recommended and would happily return.
Sara F.
Sara F.
SUPER APPROVATO!Per prima cosa la proprietaria è stata gentilissima e ci ha consigliato tante chicche da vedere, la struttura è molto bella e il nostro appartamento super curato e moderno.Posizione tattica praticamente a pochissimi minuti a piedi dal centro di Otranto.Ci siamo trovati davvero molto bene e torneremo sicuramente 😍
gerardo P.
gerardo P.
Per me la soluzione ideale per una vacanza a Otranto, spero di tornarci presto. Appartamento molto bello e comodissimo in posizione ottimale. Bellissima accoglienza
Eugenio M.
Eugenio M.
Struttura moderna con tanti servizi (anche la lavanderia e parcheggio) ed a pochi passi dal centro. Appartamento ampio, ben arredato e molto pulito. Squisita l'ospitalità della titolare, Sig.ra Annalisa, sempre disponibile e prodiga di consigli per godersi al meglio Otranto.
chiara S.
chiara S.
Tre giornate splendide, ottima accoglienza e consigli per visite e tour, location spettacolare in ottima posizione di Otranto. Gestione fantastica! Da provare! Milena e Antonio da Novara
Giovanna M.
Giovanna M.
Io e mio marito abbiamo soggiornato nel monolocale della Marinar sentendoci subito a casa. In primo luogo perché abbiamo trovato un appartamento pulito, luminoso e confortevole, secondo perché, appena arrivati, siamo stati accolti dalla proprietaria che con passione ci ha suggerito i luoghi da visitare. Quindi abbiamo visto dei posti bellissimi e soggiornato in un piccolo e accogliente appartamento a due passi dal centro.
Guya R.
Guya R.
Abbiamo trascorso quattro notti nel mese di aprile, occupando l'appartamento con due camere da letto (due adulti+ due bambini). È stato tutto perfetto! La posizione è strategica per visitare Otranto come pure per raggiungere in auto le varie località del Salento. L'appartamento è modernissimo e pulitissimo. Anche i bambini lo hanno adorato. Annalisa è un'host molto presente e disponibile, che ci ha anche fornito molte dritte per ristoranti e attrazioni da visitare. Grazie di tutto e, sicuramente, a presto!
Silvia R.
Silvia R.
Absolut empfehlenswert! Sehr schöne Wohnung. Sauber, gut gepflegt und gut ausgestattet. Die Lage ist perfekt. Ruhig und trotzdem zentral. Einige Strände und den historischen Stadtkern sind bequem zu Fuß zu erreichen. Ebenso in direkter Nähe findet man Lebensmittelgeschäfte und Supermärkte, so wie Restaurants und Cafés. Einen besonderen Dank an die Gastgeberin, Annalisa, die immer gute "insider" Tipps und hilfreiche Informationen für jeden Gast hat.
Agnes
Agnes
Otranto ist so, wie man sich einen wunderschönen Badeort vorstellt. Die traumhaft schön gelegene Bucht mit dem feinen Sandstrand und den Kalksteinfelsen. Die Altstadt thront an der Seite mit seinen verwinkelten Gässchen und dem Dom. Gleichzeitig gibt es jede Menge Restaurants und kleine Läden mit sehr hübschen Dingen zum Einkaufen. Der Bäcker und Supermarkt in unmittelbarer Nähe. Das Appartement lässt keine Wünsche offen. 5 Minuten Gehzeit zum Strand. Kaffeemaschine mit den Tabs. Gut ausgestattete Küche. Klimaanlage und alles ist sehr sauber. Man verliebt sich in den Salento und dieses Haus.
ROBERTO DE R.
ROBERTO DE R.
Siamo stati al Miramar e non possiamo fare a meno di fare i complimenti ad Annalisa per aver realizzato una serie di appartamenti prestigiosi in una splendida OtrantoConsigliatissimo
Gino S.
Gino S.
Un ipegeo vi aspetta per una visita a sorpresa. La pineta adiacente agli appartamenti è un tripudio di colori che non ti aspetti.... Fichi d'india, fioroni ed erbe aromatiche sono pronti per essere goduti, nell'assoluta tranquillità. Annalisa coccola in tutto e per tutto i propri ospitiami L'ottima "padrona di casa", riesce a far vivere una vacanza da sogno ai suoi clienti, che inevitabilmente diventano amici.... Gli appartamenti sono posizionati strategicamente per poter vivere una città fantastica come Otranto dal mare unico e dal centro storico originale
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