ITINERARY
                                                                     

Day 1: Arrival

Arrival at the airport and transfer to the hotel

  
Day 2: Francavilla Angitola - the great emigration

This trip allows you insights into the special features of this most southerly point of Italy. The Calabrian traditions, culinary pleasures, the breathtaking countryside and the local traditions are the basis for this programme. With a well-informed guide you will find our about romantic Calabria and experience culinary, traditional, and agricultural highlights or the region. You will discover traces of ancient forefathers, visit lush little villages and discover a breathtaking countryside.Culinary experiences await you at onion growers and during a visit to a huge olive plantation. A plus point on this trip: you do not have to pack your suitcase every day as you stay in one hotel for the whole trip and this means you can enjoy the holiday and relax without the typical stress of being on a tour.

Day 3: Past eras

In Gerace we get to see one of the most important and richest Norman towns. Here it seems as though time has stood still. We will visit the biggest church in the whole of Calabria and take a walk through the small alleys and past houses from the Middle Ages which are still inhabited. 

Day 4: Capo Vaticano – red onions and blue sea

Capo Vaticano is a notable promontory on the Tyrrhenian coast. On a clear day you can see Sicily and its craggy cliff faces with wonderful, little picture-postcard rocky bays from ‘Belvedere’, the viewing point near the lighthouse. Then we will visit an onion farmer to learn everything we can about the typical red onion and Calabrian ways of preparing it

Day 5: Pentedattilo, Scilla – pure romance
Pentedattilo is a very paintable, verdant place and a deserted ghost town at the same time. Behind the labyrinth of little alleyways, roofs and partly crumbling houses there is a dominating rock face with five teeth on it. The Pentedaktylos (Greek for five fingers) gave the Byzantine place its name. After this we will visit the very romantic fishing village of Scilla. This small, romantic village is the most famous place on the Costa Viola with its historic Castello di Ruffo, its heavenly beach promenades and the small, romantic fishermen’s houses which hug the seafront.

Day 6: Olive Oil and other delicacies

With an experienced local chef we will prepare a whole lunch menu consisting of delicious Calabrian specialities and we will learn how to make the wonderful Limoncello. This way when you are back at home you can relive your holiday experience. In the afternoon olive oil is the centre of attention. We will find out a lot about the ecological production of olive oil while visiting a huge olive tree plantation and we will be able to try the oil at an “oil-tasting”.

Day 7: Free Time
Free day. Depending on the weather and the time of year you can choose from the following activities (at extra cost): a half day outing on a catamaran, a trip along the coast in a fishing boat or on a glass-bottomed boat to discover the underwater world. A trip into the world of deep sea fishing with a "grigliata di pesce" (grilling of the caught fish on a barbeque) afterwards is also possible.

Day 8: Departure
After a last Italian breakfast, transfer to airport and return journey.