Situated at the toe of Italy’s boot, Calabria is an up and coming tourist attraction in Italy, and it’s not hard to see why! Whilst others may flock to Campania, this quieter destination offers you a chance to get an authentic taste of the Italian “dolce vita”.

Renowned for its spicy and tantalising chilli peppers, and tasty seafood (particularly swordfish), the region is flanked by the azure Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas, and the coastline that surrounds it is poetically known as “The Coast of the Gods.”

It is full to bursting with picturesque beaches, panoramic sea views, not to mention the stunning, rocky and mountainous Pollino National Park, which straddles Calabria and the neighbouring region of Basilicata, and is filled with a diverse range of fragrant flora and fauna.

A border point between East and West, between North and South, over the centuries Calabria has been crossed by numerous people from all over the Mediterranean. From the Greeks to the Romans, from the Jews to the Arabs, from the Byzantines to the Spanish, everyone left their mark.

One such town is Tropea, an ancient cobblestone village which boasts many attractions including the Santa Maria dell’Isola, a medieval monastic church which is home to a renowned 12th Century Byzantine portrait of the Virgin Mary.

It’s also an ideal spot to base yourself if you want to set off to explore the magical Aeolian Islands (named after the wind god Aeolus), for whilst the famous archipelago is usually associated with a trip to Sicily, boat trips from Tropea mean you can build them into a visit to Calabria.

If classical mythology is your thing, you should also be sure to visit the small town of Scilla, which is named after the fearsome sea monster that attacked the ship of Ulysses on his way back from the Trojan War, boasts an incomparable panorama, and is also known as the Venice of the south due to the waters that run through the village’s streets and resemble the canals of the city of love.