Il Passetto

Il Passetto is an intermediate shore dive site in Ancona, the capital of Italy's Marche region, where dramatic white limestone cliffs descend into the clear Adriatic waters. The site is accessed via the famous Passetto staircase carved into the cliffs, leading to a rocky shoreline from which divers enter waters featuring boulder fields, rocky walls, and small caves. The rocky substrate supports a rich Mediterranean community with groupers, moray eels, octopuses, and colourful nudibranchs among the sponge and algae-covered rocks. Posidonia seagrass meadows fringe the deeper sections, providing habitat for seahorses and pipefish. The dramatic cliff setting and the unusual access via the historic staircase make Il Passetto one of the most atmospheric dive entries in the Adriatic. The intermediate rating reflects the potential for waves and surge at the exposed entry point. Il Passetto offers urban diving at its Italian best—world-class marine life minutes from the city center.