Carlopoli: Historic Town Center, Trails and Abbey

Carlopoli combines a distinctive historic town center with forest landscapes, rivers, hiking trails and a unique culinary tradition. For your travel planning, this is a place where culture, landscape and regional history can be explored along different routes.

Forest Landscapes and Trails Around Carlopoli

The landscape around Carlopoli includes the Corace and Sant’Elia rivers as well as extensive forests, where chestnut, oak and alder trees grow predominantly. Typical fauna of the Sila area can be found here, including wild boar (Sus scrofa) and the wolf (Canis lupus italicum). Along the Corace, traces of the Macchina della Lana, an old fulling mill that operated until the 1950s, can also still be seen.

Trail S.1 begins in the old villages of Carlopoli and Panettieri and leads through the surrounding hills to the ruins of Santa Maria di Corazzo Abbey in the valley of the Corace River. Trail S.2 starts at Piazza Brutto, passes through the old town center to the Sant’Elia River and continues via San Nicola, Celle and Colle la Croce toward Pietra della Difesa. The ninth stage of the Cammino di San Giacomo Maggiore in Calabria also runs from Bianchi via Castagna, Panettieri and Carlopoli to Cicala. Santa Maria di Corazzo Abbey can be reached on foot or by vehicle.

Churches, Palaces and Historic Alleyways

The ruins of Santa Maria di Corazzo Abbey are located in Castagna near the Corace River; the abbey was founded by Benedictines in the 11th century. Palazzo Carlo Cicala was built at the end of the 17th century. Its monumental entrance portal and balconies decorated with acanthus leaves define its architectural character. Palazzo Talarico is a historic palace from the 18th century, overlooking Piazza Brutto and located near the Church of Madonna del Carmelo. Palazzo De Sensi-Cianflone was built around the 17th century.

The Church of the Holy Spirit in Castagna was built in the second half of the 16th century and became a parish church in 1612. Its interior contains an altar, an 18th-century organ and a marble medallion depicting the Madonna and Child from Corazzo Abbey. The Chiesa del Carmine in Carlopoli is an example of Baroque architecture with Rococo stucco work; the choir contains an altarpiece by Francesco Colelli, commissioned in Nicastro in 1779. The historic town center is connected by alleyways, narrow paths, passageways and arcades. Historic, partly medieval buildings feature old portals and wrought-iron balconies. The old section also contains a small municipal amphitheater, which was recently renovated and is available for smaller events and functions.

Religious Traditions and Local Specialties

The tradition of Madonna del Carmelo in Carlopoli includes a procession through the town, during which the statue is accompanied by the marching band and residents after Mass. The procession of Madonna di Corazzo leads from Castagna to the ruins of Corazzo Abbey and then back to the Church of the Holy Spirit. The tradition of San Giuseppe in Castagna includes the blessing and distribution of bread, a procession and the communal preparation of pasta e ceci.

The chestnut tradition includes roasted, boiled and dried chestnuts, as well as chestnuts threaded onto traditional strings called cullure. Traditional pork products include Sopressata, Salsiccia and Capocollo; they are seasoned with salt and pepper and dried in a cool, dry place. Traditional liqueurs include licorice liqueur, limoncello, fennel liqueur and nocino, made according to old Cistercian recipes of the monks of Corazzo Abbey. Cow’s, sheep’s and goat’s milk are used for dairy production, including for Provole, Fiordilatte, Burrini, fresh and smoked ricotta, as well as other sheep’s and goat’s cheeses.

More Destinations for Your Travel Planning

If you would like to compare more destinations for your trip: Badolato Marina, Martirano Lombardo, San Floro, Roccelletta, Marcellinara, Curinga, Taverna, Satriano.

To the higher-level travel overview: Catanzaro.