Top Five Attractions in Catanzaro, Italy

Guest Post by Cherrye Moore

Catanzaro, Italy. Few non-Calabrese people have heard of it, even fewer have traveled here and still, even fewer native English speakers actually live here. But I do. If you are one of the lucky ones who venture into Calabria and southern Italy, then listen up.  Here is my pick of the top five things to do in my adopted hometown, Catanzaro, Italy.

1. Giovino Beach. – There are more than 500 miles of coastline in Calabria and dozens of beaches in and around Catanzaro that are worth visiting. Still, I have my favorites. Giovino is a relatively new beach development that is just north of Catanzaro Lido. The sand is wide and clean, the sea, bright and blue and the mountains create a rugged blue skyline in the distance. The best part of this beach is that it is so new, few people go there. I’m sharing this secret with you because Cecil asked me to, but promise you won’t tell anyone else. Deal?
2. Pietregrande Beach. – Once summer hits, school is out and the sun and sea are at their best, Pietregrande, located eight miles from Catanzaro, is the place to be. During the summer months the beach is filled with locals who have relocated to their summer homes, as well as day-trippers who drive from nearby towns and villages. Daring divers swim out to the Big Rock and plunge into the Ionian’s warm waters from a height I’m not quite certain of … I said daring divers. I’m not one of them.
   
3. Parco Archeologico di Scolacium. The Parco Archeologico di Scolacium-or Roccelletta, as we say here-is located between these two beaches and  sits just off of the SS 106 near the village of Roccelletta. See how creative we are? The park’s brick-red Norman-Byzantine basilica beckons visitors from the road and towers over Greek and Roman ruins in an olive plantation of more than 3,000 trees.
   
4. Parco della Biodiversità. – Sprawling 150 acres near downtown Catanzaro, the Parco della Biodiversità is a peaceful hideaway that was plopped into the middle of the city. The park and botanical gardens feature more than 20,000 plants, two lakes, ponds, an evergreen labyrinth, a rare animal zoo, a children’s playground and miles and miles of hiking and jogging trails. It is the perfect place for a picnic or a romantic stroll through the “Tunnel of Love.”
5. La Chiesa di San Giovanni. – Sitting on the top of Catanzaro’s three hills, the Chiesa di San Giovanni dominates the downtown area and offers premium views of the valleys below. The Norman church was built in 1070 as a convent, then later became the barracks for the Army Corp of Engineers and then a prison, before being turned once again into a church.

Cherrye Moore is a Calabria travel consultant and freelance writer living in southern Italy. She writes about travel for MNUI.com and about living and traveling in Calabria on her own site, My Bella Vita.