タベルナの天然記念物・トップ12

Lorica, in the heart of the Sila National Park, on Lake Arvo

If you’re looking for Calabria off the beaten track, Lorica offers a completely different experience – mountainous, cool and relaxing.

Temperatures here are up to 10°C lower than on the coast, making Lorica a natural air conditioner. The region offers dozens of kilometres of trails, from family walks to technical single-track mountain biking. It lies within the Parco Nazionale della Sila, a UNESCO biosphere reserve with endemic plants and animals. There are a surprising number of modernist hotels and villas from the 1960s (a legacy of the ambitious plan to make Lorica Calabria’s Alpine resort) and a modern gondola that takes tourists up the Botte Donato ridge (for skiers in winter, for the views in summer). The lack of mass tourism means that even in August you can find peace and quiet.

Lorica is one of those places that effectively destroys the stereotype of Calabria as a region of beaches and lemons only. Situated at an altitude of around 1,300 m above sea level in the Sila massif, it offers a landscape more reminiscent of the Alps than southern Italy – with dense larch forests, a cooler climate and a peace that is hard to find by the sea.

Starting point for many adventures, not only by bike

Tourist resort with its beautiful lake in the Sila national park. Not to be missed

Lorica comes alive especially in summer thanks to the many activities on the lake

Very pretty town, too bad everything was closed... mid-April!