Calabria

Calabria, the toe of the boot, has almost 800 kilometres of coast. Tropea, perched on a cliff above white beaches, and the Coast of the Gods are its most famous corner, while Scilla looks across the Strait to Sicily.

Inland are the Sila and Aspromonte mountains, with forests and lakes, and the Pollino, Italy's largest national park. In Reggio Calabria the museum keeps the Riace Bronzes, two of the finest Greek statues ever found. The cuisine is spicy, with 'nduja and red onions of Tropea.

The toe of the boot

Calabria is the toe of the Italian boot, a long, narrow peninsula washed by two seas, the Tyrrhenian to the west and the Ionian to the east, with almost eight hundred kilometres of coastline. The interior is almost entirely mountainous: the Pollino in the north, the Sila in the centre and the Aspromonte in the south are three great massifs protected by national parks and covered with beech, pine and chestnut forests. Magna Graecia flourished here, with powerful cities such as Sybaris, Croton and Locri, and some communities still speak Calabrian Greek and Arbëresh, the language of the Albanians who arrived in the fifteenth century. Calabria is a land of crystal-clear sea, wild mountains, villages clinging to the rocks and a spicy, generous cuisine.

The Coast of the Gods

The stretch of Tyrrhenian coast between Pizzo and Nicotera is called the Coast of the Gods for the beauty of its sea. Tropea, perched on a tuff cliff above the beach, is the pearl of Calabria: the sanctuary of Santa Maria dell'Isola, on a rock facing the town, is one of the most famous images of southern Italy, and the old town is full of noble palaces and lanes with sea views. Nearby, Capo Vaticano, part of Ricadi, has coves of white sand and turquoise water, and on clear days you can see the Aeolian Islands and Stromboli. Pizzo is famous for its tartufo ice cream, for the little church of Piedigrotta carved into the rock on the beach and for the castle where Joachim Murat was executed.

Reggio Calabria and the Strait

Reggio Calabria overlooks the Strait of Messina, with Sicily and Etna a few kilometres away. Its Lungomare Falcomatà seafront is considered one of the most beautiful in Italy, and the National Archaeological Museum of Magna Graecia holds the Riace Bronzes, two Greek statues of the fifth century BC found in the sea in 1972 and among the masterpieces of ancient sculpture. Nearby, Scilla is a fishing village with the Chianalea quarter, houses built on the water and the Ruffo castle, linked to the myth of the sea monster in the Odyssey. Bagnara Calabra is the swordfish fishing town, and Palmi has a lovely beach and an ethnographic museum.

The Ionian coast and Magna Graecia

The Ionian coast is longer and less crowded, with sand and pebble beaches, hill villages and archaeological sites. Crotone, where Pythagoras taught, has an archaeological museum and, at Capo Colonna, the last column of the temple of Hera Lacinia. A little to the south, Le Castella has an Aragonese castle on an islet linked to the mainland, inside the Capo Rizzuto Marine Protected Area. Further south are the excavations of Locri Epizephyrii and the Scolacium archaeological park near Catanzaro, and villages such as Stilo, with the Cattolica, a small tenth-century Byzantine church, and Gerace, with its Norman cathedral, the largest in Calabria. To the north, the plain of Sibari preserves the remains of the richest Greek city of antiquity.

The Sila and its lakes

The Sila, the plateau at the centre of the region, is called the great forest of Italy. The Sila National Park, a UNESCO biosphere reserve, protects forests of Calabrian pine, beech and fir, with monumental trees such as the Giants of the Sila, pines more than forty metres tall at Croce di Magara. The artificial lakes of Arvo, Ampollino and Cecita are ideal for walks, canoeing and fishing, and in winter Camigliatello Silano, in the municipality of Spezzano della Sila, and Lorica are small ski resorts. San Giovanni in Fiore is the town of the abbot Joachim of Fiore and of traditional textile crafts.

The Pollino and the Aspromonte

The Pollino National Park, the largest in Italy, shared with Basilicata, has as its symbol the Bosnian pine, an ancient tree that grows on high-altitude rocks. The Raganello gorges at Civita, one of the most beautiful Arbëresh villages, are ideal for trekking, and the Lao river for rafting. In the south, the Aspromonte, the rugged mountain towering over Reggio, offers trails through woods, waterfalls such as those of Maesano and views over two seas. Gambarie is the southernmost ski resort on the peninsula. In the heart of the Aspromonte are abandoned villages such as Pentedattilo, built beneath a rock shaped like a hand, and the Valley of the Greeks, where Calabrian Greek is still spoken.

Cosenza and the inland villages

Cosenza, the ancient capital of the Bruttii, has a historic centre perched on the Pancrazio hill, with its cathedral, recognised by UNESCO as a Messenger of a Culture of Peace, the Norman-Swabian castle and the Teatro Rendano, while Corso Mazzini, in the new town, hosts an open-air museum of statues by contemporary artists. Around it are villages such as Altomonte, with the Gothic church of Santa Maria della Consolazione, and Rossano, now part of Corigliano-Rossano, which holds the Codex Purpureus, an illuminated sixth-century Gospel book listed in UNESCO's Memory of the World. On the Tyrrhenian coast near Cosenza, Diamante is famous for its murals and its chilli peppers.

Food and wine

Calabrian cooking is spicy, flavourful and generous. Chilli pepper is everywhere, the star of 'nduja from Spilinga, a soft and fiery spreadable salami, and celebrated every year in Diamante with a festival. Red onions from Tropea, sweet and crunchy, bergamot from Reggio, used in perfumery and pastry, liquorice from Rossano, caciocavallo cheese from the Sila, soppressata and capocollo are typical products. Among the dishes are fileja pasta with goat sauce, baked pasta china, swordfish alla ghiotta, marinated anchovies and morzeddhu, a tripe stew from Catanzaro. Desserts such as mostaccioli biscuits, stuffed dried figs and tartufo from Pizzo complete the table. Among the wines are Cirò, one of the oldest in Italy, Greco di Bianco and Savuto.

When to go and how to get around

Summer is the season for the sea, from June to September, with June and September ideal for avoiding the August crowds. Spring and autumn are perfect for hiking in the parks, archaeological sites and villages, and in autumn mushrooms and chestnuts are gathered in the Sila. Winter is mild on the coast and snowy in the mountains. The Mediterranean motorway crosses the region from north to south and railways run along both coasts, but for the interior and the villages a car is essential. The airports are Lamezia Terme, the main one, Reggio Calabria and Crotone; ferries for Sicily leave from Villa San Giovanni.