Sanctuary of the Madonna dell’Angelo

The Madonna dell'Angelo stands on the rocks at the very tip of Caorle's promontory, where the two beaches meet and the town runs out into the Adriatic.

It is a small church in an extraordinary position -- on the seawall itself, with water on three sides -- and it has been rebuilt more than once for exactly that reason.

The devotion behind it is a fishermen's one, and it is still expressed that way: every five years the town holds a procession of boats to the church, which is the oldest thing in Caorle's calendar.

This is an active place of devotion as well as a photograph, and it is used by local people. Keep quiet inside and do not photograph people at prayer.

Do not climb on the sea defences or the sculpted boulders. They are structural, they are slippery, and people are injured on them.

The sanctuary is maintained by the parish and the town rather than by admission income; an offering is the direct contribution.

Coming outside July and August is easier on Caorle, whose old centre absorbs the whole resort's foot traffic at the peak.

The sanctuary is free to enter and generally open through the day in season, with reduced and less predictable hours in winter.

It is reached on foot along the seafront from Caorle's old centre -- about ten minutes, level, along the Scogliera Viva. No car is needed or useful.

Allow half an hour, most of it outside. The interior is small and takes a few minutes.

The approach along the seafront is level and accessible, though there are steps at the church itself.

In rough weather the point takes spray and waves over the defences; the walk is closed or genuinely unpleasant at those times.