[Note: This section has been examined in greater detail in our book, In This Way We Came to Rome: With Paul on the Appian Way (Lexham Press, 2024), pp. 7–17]
Acts 28:1-10 describes in brief the three-plus months during which Paul and his party spent the winter on Malta. Another Alexandrian grain ship, similar to the one that was wrecked, had wintered on the island, and it prepared to sail for Italy as soon as the sailing season began, probably early March. With Julius and his prisoners aboard (28:11), the ship headed northeast across the open sea to the Sicilian port of Syracuse, a trip of about 100 miles. After this stretch, the rest of the journey would never take the ship out of sight of land. Luke says the ship docked in Syracuse, the most important city of Roman Sicily, for three days allowing the passengers to go ashore (28:12).
When the ship set sail again, it followed a course northwards along the eastern coast of Sicily and by late in the day the “toe” of Italy was also clearly visible on the right side of the ship. As the passage between Sicily and the Italian mainland continued to narrow, the ship passed over to the Italian side and docked at the port of Rhegium (modern Reggio Calabria). The 80-mile trip from Syracuse took but a single day (28:13a).
The next morning a very favorable southern wind arose, and the ship pulled up anchor and continued north, and after just a dozen miles of sailing, it was passing through the Straights of Messina. The dangerously narrow two mile-wide passage is commonly thought to have been the inspiration for the ancient legends of Scylla and Charybdis. There they would have seen to their right the tall landmark known as the Column of Reggina, topped by a large statue of Neptune; it marked the narrowest part of the channel. It was probably located near the current Punta Pezzo lighthouse.
From here on it was smooth sailing northward along the western coast of Italy, and Luke tells us the 240 mi. trip was accomplished in just two days (28:13b). As the ship crossed the large Bay of Naples, known in antiquity as the Bay of Cumae, the cone of Mt. Vesuvius would have towered to the northeast. As the large ship slowly and carefully came to anchor in the port of Puteoli, the largest city on the bay, Paul’s nearly half-year journey to Rome was ready to begin its final leg.
Created by GLT
Last Modified 9/9/2026 by JSW