Greek Area of Ionian Coast

Il Blog di Corallo Blu - Area Grecanica della Calabria

The villages of the Greek area of Ionian Coast

In this blog, we will explore some of the villages of the Greek Area in the province of Reggio Calabria, located in Aspromonte and overlooking the Ionian coast. They are characterized by the presence of communities that still speak the Greek of Calabria, a dialect derived from ancient Greek. The landscapes are characterized by the mountains of Aspromonte and the Ionian coast, the population maintains ancient traditions related to the processing of ceramics, weaving and popular music. From the suggestive Rocca di Pentedattilo to Locri, we will present destinations that are worth visiting during your stay at Corallo Blu in Riaci Capo (RC).

1. Rocca di Pentedattilo

Distance: 12km

Fraction of the Municipality of Melito Porto Salvo (RC): 250 meters above sea level, a charming village abandoned in the 70s because it was declared uninhabitable. The ancient village is perched on the cliff of Monte Calvario. To visit during the day and in the evening: the ruins of the castle, the ancient Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. The village of Pentedattilo is one of the gateways to the Aspromonte National Park via the "Sentiero dell'Inglese".

2. Amendolea Vecchia

Distance: 27km

A hamlet of the municipality of Condofuri, an ancient village abandoned due to the floods of 1953 and 1971, located on the Amendolea river and born under the ruins of the Norman Castle.

Due to economic reasons and practical livability, in recent decades it has seen the number of its inhabitants reduce (to just over a dozen families), emigrated to Reggio Calabria and Condofuri.

In the surrounding area there are several trekking routes, including one that runs along the river and leads to the Maesano waterfalls.

3. Gallicianò

Distance: 35km

A hamlet of the municipality of Condofuri, an ancient semi-abandoned village, inhabited by less than a hundred people that overlooks the Amendolea valley. To visit: the Ethnographic Museum, the Orthodox Church, the House of Music and the Fountain of Love.

Popular music, such as the tarantella, plays a very important role in the tradition of this small hamlet.

4. Bova

Distance: 31km

Considered one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy. To visit: steam locomotive 740 Ansaldo Breda from 1911, Palazzo dei Nesci Sant’Agata, the cathedral of Santa Maria dell’Isodia, the sanctuary of San Leo, the Norman Castle, the Path of Rural Civilization (where the main work tools of rural culture are installed). It is one of the Gates of the Aspromonte National Park.

5. Palizzi Superiore

Distance: 39km

To visit: the Palizzi Castle, Borgo, the hamlet of Pietrapennata a few km north of Palizzi Superiore, with its Borgo and the church of the Madonna dell’Alica.

6. Brancaleone Superiore

Distance: 44km

It is a small and picturesque medieval village, where you can visit the houses abandoned at the end of the 50s and admire the panorama that surrounds it.

7. Roghudi Vecchio

Distance: 49km

A village 500 meters above sea level on a rock in the heart of the Amendolea river, in the area with a Greek ethnic minority.

8. Locri

Distance: 76km

A symbolic city of Magna Graecia and the cradle of Calabrian Greekness. To visit: Greco-Roman theater in Portigliola, Archaeological Park of Locri Epizefiri, National Archaeological Museum of Locri Epizefiri, the Archaeological Museum of Palazzo Nieddu del Rio, the center with Palazzo Città and its Romanesque churches.

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