New Touristic Bus linking Lamezia Terme Airport and all the major towns on the west coast of Calabria has just been started. To find out more double click HERE
31/01/2011< /p>Today the Giro d'Italia cycling tour starts in southern Italy today.
Friday 28: Melito Porto Salvo - Catanzaro km. 164,1 Saturday 29: Soverato (CZ) - Vibo Valentia km. 195,1 Sunday 30: Pizzo Calabro (VV) - Reggio Calabria km. 171,9
08/10/2010
Flights from Reggio di Calabria to London City Airport via Bresia.
Regional News. It has been reported in a southern Italian news paper, "Gazetta del Sud" about new flights to London and Frankfurt from Reggio Calabria, starting 25th of August, 3 times a week but with an interim landing in Brescia (northern Italy).
Calabria, which is generally thought of as a maritime region, is actually a long peninsula with some 800 km of rugged coastline. Capo Vaticano is situated on the Southern Italian Coast of Calabria, not far from Tropea.
Tropea, the best known town in the area, is only a hop away from Capo Vaticano and is known for its rich history, modern harbour and rustic houses built upon the cliff.
Explore the Sila mountains, which host beautiful forests and a romantic cloister with splendid frescos.
Vibo Valentia has a Norman castle which was restored by Frederick II as well as the remainders of the Greek settlement of Hipporion.
< p>Calabrian Beaches
Resting on the crystal clear waters of the Mediterranean, Capo Vaticano is famous for its beautiful beaches, scenery and history.
< p>Tropea
Tropea is located 40m above the Tyrrhenian Sea and is famous for its white sand beaches, and its crystal blue water.
Calabria Activities
The Capo is synonymous with paradise of surf and water sports. Have not tried any of them? We assure you that this is the ideal place to begin practicing. Among others you can practice:
· Diving Courses (for beginners and professionals)
· Water Skiing
· Surf
· Wind Surfing
· Katamarán
· Navigation with sailboat
Tropea
Tropea is situated at a height of 40 m above the sea "Tyrrhénienne." This charming city offers visitors vast sandy beaches and crystal clear water: a paradise to discover. Besides beaches and architecture, Tropea also gives an opportunity for shopping lovers. Numerous small shops and businesses of all kinds are spread throughout the city.
Calabria Food
Want to enjoy a real Italian food? Without any doubt, come to Calabria. Here, you will have the chance to taste different kinds of fish typical of the region, such as "Swordfish" (baked or fried, with a typical sauce and tomatoes).
Other gastronomic possibilities that you can also taste are: baked vegetables, lamb, fish soups as well as the famous "Nduja" (a very spicy paste salami).
29/04/2010< span style="font-weight: bold;">
Swiss Air - London Heathrow - Zurich - Lamezia Terme
Volo di andata: Londra (London Heathrow) - Lamezia Terme via Zurigo dom. 09.05.2010 08:50 LHR - 11:35 ZRHLX 317T-EconomyEconomy do m. 09.05.2010 16:55 ZRH - 18:55 SUFLX 8384T-Economy Volo di ritorno: Lamezia Terme - Londra (London City Airport) via Zurigo dom. 16.05.2010 15:35 SUF - 17:40 ZRHLX 8385T-EconomyEconomy d om. 16.05.2010 18:35 ZRH - 19:15 LCY
The origin of olive oil remains a mystery, but evidence of cultivated olives dates back over 6,000 years. The ancient Greeks and Romans both told tales of olives and their creation by the gods (and subsequent cultivation by humans); Roman mythology ascribes the birth of olives to Hercules, who struck the ground and caused an olive tree to sprout.
In Greece, olives were said to have been created by the goddess Athena, and were considered so esteemed that only "virgins and chaste men" could tend the groves. Olives were a rare and precious commodity to lovers of fine foods.
Olive oil is the result of grinding and pressing the fresh flesh of the olives. Olives are generally harvested from November until March. Olives are picked just as the olive changes color. The color changing indicates that most of the oil has formed and is at peak flavor. For pure olive oil, the olives need to be pressed quickly from when they are picked since they begin to oxidize the moment they are removed from the tree.
07/04/2010 Vi no Locale
This region is the southernmost region of the Italian mainland, forming the "toe" of the Italian boot, almost touching the island of Sicily. In the past, Calabria has been influenced by an incredible number of different cultures, ranging from Arabs and Gypsies to Spaniards and Jews. Calabria was called Enotria, the land of wine, by the ancient Greeks, who are credited for introducing viticulture to the region. Greeks brought vines to the area and set some techniques that are still used to grow grapes today.The region, with its 12 DOC, produces mainly red wines, the most important grape varietals are Gaglioppo and Greco Nero. For whites, Greco Bianco is the most widely planted.
Greek remainings in Capo Colonna, near Ciro' The Ciro’, produced with Gaglioppo grape, is the most well known wine from Calabria and its history goes back almost 3,000 years. Local legends have it that Cirò descended directly from Krimisa, the wine Calabrian athletes drank to celebrate the Olympic Games. It's quite possible that Ciro’ is the world's oldest wine still being produced as of today. One of the most important wineries that produces Ciro’ is called “Fattoria San Francesco”, known since the XVth Century. San Francesco monastery was founded in 1578, all around vineyards and olive groves were planted. The convent was suppressed in 1770 and since then became property of the Siciliani Family, who still produces some of the best wines of Calabria.
The excellent Ciro' of Fattoria San Francesco Chara cterized by intense aromas of dog-rose with touches of tar, this grape variety has made its home here since it was brought by the earliest Greek colonizers. Deep garnet and ruby colored, Gaglioppo falls full-flavored upon the palate. The bouquet is very intense and persistent, fine, wide, spiced, ethereal. At the taste is dry, warm, tannic, well-balanced.It's ideal with white meat dishes, even for the elaborate ones, mutton and pork; cheese with a mean maturing; first courses with hot sauces and/or meat sauces.
Fata Morgana Greco 2008, Ciro’ DOC (100% Greco bianco) This ancient variety came to Italia with Greek colonizers, some seven centuries B.C. Here it turns up in nearly all white blends. Additionally, it yields a famous dessert wine, made from grapes that are dried on racks before being fermented to a minimum of 17° alcohol.The bouquet shows characteristic aromas of acacia flowers and tropical fruits. At the taste is dry, full body and velvety.Great with seafood, first courses and salads.
Ronco dei 4 Venti 2006, Ciro’ Rosso Riserva (100% gaglioppo) This Ciro’ is aged 1 year in french oak barriques – Fattoria S Francesco was the first one in Calabria to experiment french wood on the Gaglioppo and was then followed by many others. The name indicates that the wine is made from the best slopes of the vineyard, looking over the 4 different cardinal points: north, south, east, west. The bouquet is very intense and persistent, fine, wide, spiced, ethereal, of strong personality. At the taste dry, very fine, intense and lasting, quite distinguishable. Pair with beef, pork and mutton, well-matured and hot "Pecorino" cheese (sheep's milk cheese), especially that from Crotone.
02/04/2010
There are three Easter gastronomic specialities produced in Calabria for the period of Holy Week. They are 'pie' or 'pittapie', 'taralla d'a'zzitta' and 'curuji cu l'ova'. The first is an oval or round shaped sweet filled with a mixture of nuts, mulled wine, grapes, chocolate and even mandarin, lemon zest, cinnamon and carnation. A pie indeed.The t aralli are again oval or heart shaped sweets but decorated with colored confetti (sugared almonds), chocolate and then glazed with sugar and whipped egg white.The unpronounceable 'curuji cu l'ova' are another type of taralli this time garnished with boiled eggs and glazed with sugar.
02/04/2010 Calabria Elections – The poll in Calabria was very clear-cut. Giuseppe Scopelliti for the Centre-right took more than 58% with the Centre-left’s outgoing president, Agazio Loiero, way behind on 32%. Filippo Callipo collected 10% for IDV-Pannella List.
Mr Scopelliti said: “I dedicate this victory to the many honest Calabrian's who longed for change and gave me the strength to conduct this wonderful election campaign. I could feel people’s desire for deliverance as I travelled the roads of Calabria to all those rallies. And the best thing is that we are ahead everywhere”. Mr Loiero said he could not understand why he had lost. Perhaps the changes in Government will help those people who lost money purchasing property in Calabria and may be highlight some of the questionable planning permissions and builds...it's possibly a good thing!
Calabria, Italy - The Emerging Market on the Med. Should you wish to participate in the future?
Without doubt Italy's best kept secret to date; with each passing year emerging further onto the international market, attracting the annual holiday makers to her shores over the more established Mediterranean retreats and in turn highlighting the regions attributes to the International Investor.
The Product on offer here for investment is high quality and at a fraction of that available to the North of the Country and is incomparably cheap with relation to the rest of the established Med, ranging from entirely Off Plan to Mid Construction all the way through to the Turn Key Developments.
Why - the costs are low, the demand is relatively low and the supply is high. It follows that the Property Prices are very favourable.
The Region has its own distinct character, the disparate landscape of mountain ranges reduced to miles of coastline with unspoiled sandy beaches, secluded coves, dramatic cliff faces, charming traditional villages and established resorts. Need I say anymore. Should you have any interesting facts about this beautiful area please send us your thoughts.
We made our way to an International Property Exhibition a few years ago in ?. After a good look around, we found a detached Villa just perfect for us near the beach in Tropea, Calabria. It was exactly what we had been looking for all those years, we decided there and then to reserve the Villa, being careful to ensure our dream home wouldn't be sold before we had a chance to inspect it more closely. After a successful viewing trip we were certain we had indeed found our dream property and the area was simply breathtakingly beautiful, needless to say, before we left we put down the first installment on the Villa. Even though we could not fault the Sales team and the lovely guys who really looked after us while visiting, once we had signed the preliminary contracts and returned home, we found that communications more or less stopped. We left message after message with the Sales Staff who really weren't able to help us, even with basic requests like build progress reports on our Property and the like, they were just to busy with Sales. We were amazed, thinking that such basic requests after sale would have been a standard service. It transpired that this is not the case, the norm is quiet the opposite.
I can't express then how relieved we were after speaking with Apple Consulting in Calabria on our very next visit. They immediately reassured us, as their whole business is actually geared towards after sales services alone. They answered all our many questions, really made life a lot less stressful for us. I would highly recommend anyone who has bought in the region to Apple Consulting for your after sales needs, they will look after every last detail for you and the cost is really very reasonable. I would even recommend them as someone to get some sound advice from prior to purchasing in Calabria, they have a lot of local knowledge, are based locally and the Manager is a lovely local lady who has perfect English and a very pleasant manner. Nice people, efficient service, no hassle.
Mark & Caroline - Glenties, Donegal
I made a phone call to Apple Consulting October last after viewing their site on-line. My lovely wife and I had purchased a couple of beachfront Apartments in Pizzo that summer and badly needed someone to handle the property management side of things for us.
We both live and work in Ireland and really we would only get the opportunity to spend a few well-deserved weeks in Calabria each year. We had got 70 pc finance arranged initially in Calabria, through the Bank that the Real Estate company recommended; which allowed us to make the purchase in the first place. As a result we really needed to see some rental income from our Apartments in Pizzo, but we didn't know where or how to begin with the Rental process in Southern Italy and the Company we initially bought through couldn't help us either.
Anyway, after getting Apple Consulting on board, our Property is now managed year round and kept well maintained for us. They have a range of Agents around the world, they then can market our Property for rent with great success, qualify the Tenants, handle the whole process, do the cleaning.everything, and what's important is they make sure that there Is a smooth transition process from one Tenant to the next, meaning I get the most rent I can from my property and its idle as little as is possible, off course there are certain rental periods which are low season, as anywhere else, but again Apple Consulting ensure the property is kept fresh and clean, ready for their imminent arrival. They also arrange it that the deposit and rents are paid directly to my Bank Account less their fee or instruct the Tenant to put a direct debit in place and bill us accordingly. Either way, Apple Consulting take a very reasonable fee off me for it, and to be honest, I would of quiet happily paid much more for such good service and reassurance. If I were to take on the whole thing myself I would have spend countless of hours and euro's in the effort and most probably would not have got a tenth of the Rental yields I currently enjoy under the Apple Consulting banner. What can I say, but I would highly recommend this Company to anyone looking to have Property Managed or rented out there in Southern Italy. I think they offer a whole range of other services too but I didn't really require them myself, I would look into it though.
Many thanks and good luck to you all. Mark O'Donnell.
Sergey - Moscow
I have Villa property in Zambrone, Calabria region. Big site and lots of room for garden near to beach. No garden in place when I buy. I need landscape and maintenance for property but I have not good Italian or English. Difficult for arrange in Calabria with persons by myself. Find Apple Consulting online, see are in Calabria, ring from Moscow. Have Russian speaker, English Speaker & Italian Speaker. They deal with me easy and say no problem, can arrange for me. I was surprised it so easy. Visit my property last month and it is like new. Soil and water system and fencing now on site. Look very nice. Meet with Garden man quickly when on visit, who company arrange at my request. He bring plants and everything for me to see. I pick and say yes, this is good, that is good. He will put in the ground and return every couple of week to maintain. Service very good. Good company. Good persons. High recommendation.
Thank you. Sergey D
Paul &Simon - California
We had dreamed of buying in Southern Italy for a long time and were viewing properties for the last few years while on holidays, we kept returning to Calabria after our first visit because it is so natural and untouched. The area was then generally not a tourist destination which also really appealed to us, just wanting to get away from it all. We found a beautiful three story Villa overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea one day in a beautiful spot called Capo Vaticano in Calabria. Turn Key ready and with the most beautiful Romanesque features. Very, very cheap too in comparison to the rest of the Properties we had viewed in the past across the Mediterranean, for the similar quality and location. This time we had made up our minds to buy.
Just before we did make payment the economy crashed. We had to put the purchase on hold for a while because we weren't certain we would have the free funds. As it happened we were right to hold off. If anything the cheap house prices are still as cheap now if not cheaper, the area has gained much more international interest in the meantime though so we decided we would have to buy asap or risk loosing the Property, which we had been paying a reservation fee on.
This time though we required a mortgage, which is basically impossible to obtain in the States at the moment. So we found a solution, we hired this great local company Apple Consulting. They explained the buying process to us in detail over the phone, in English, then they arranged to fly us over on a competitive corporate package that they offer to their clients; as we wanted to speak with them in person over the finer details. So they got us our fiscal codes, which you need before you do things like open a bank account or even get a sim card. They got finance approved for us through a bank that they are affiliated with, got us 70 pc, we were delighted. They have a Legal &Financial Team who help you out with all these things, and can give all the information you need for peace of mind. They took us to the Notary, which is like their Government Land Registry Offices, and did all the checks on Title and the rest. They handled everything really and Simon and I are really grateful to these guys for helping us realize our dream in moving to Calabria, which we will be doing in the next month or so.
Again, thank you very much to the Apple Consulting Team, wouldn't have done it with out you guys. See you soon on the Costa degli Dei.
Simon Roberts.
Should you like to avail of our services please do not hestiate to contact us further info@appleconsulting.it
