San Floro between silk culture and the Corace Valley

San Floro reveals its distinctive character in two prominent places. Piazza Guglielmo Marconi is the town’s main square and, at the same time, a viewing terrace overlooking the Corace Valley. Castello Caracciolo rises in a strategic location, dominates the Corace Valley and offers a privileged view of the Gulf of Squillace. The two views complement each other: the piazza opens out over the Corace Valley, while the Castello’s view extends as far as the gulf.

Squares, architectural heritage and views

The Chiesa di San Nicola Vescovo is also one of the defining sights. It was first built in 1560, has a neoclassical façade and a redesigned Renaissance floor plan. The church is accessible to people with disabilities. This enables people with disabilities to include the church in their visit to the town.

Silk in the museum and among the mulberry trees

The Museo della Seta is located in Castello Caracciolo. The museum presents practical demonstrations of silk reeling and weaving on old handlooms. During reeling, the thread is extracted from the cocoon. Weaving on old handlooms complements this process by providing the textile processing of the extracted thread.

The Nido-di-Seta experience leads through rows of mulberry trees and makes silkworm rearing its immediate focus. Visitors can try pulling the silk thread out of a cocoon themselves. San Floro’s microclimate favors the cultivation of mulberry trees; this forms the basis for producing Catanzaro silk. San Floro also lies along Calabria’s “Via della Seta”. The rows of mulberry trees are therefore directly connected with silkworm rearing and the production of Catanzaro silk. Pulling out the thread oneself takes place as part of this experience and ties in with silkworm rearing.

Figs, whole grains and regional cuisine

Another local specialty is the white figs for which San Floro is known and which are processed using the traditional method of natural sun-drying. Traditional sun-drying is therefore a separate processing step for the white figs.

Mulinum also combines agriculture and cuisine. At Pizzeria Mulinum, agricultural pizzas are prepared with pure wholemeal flour and high-quality produce from its own garden. Mulinum in Calabria grows exclusively local seed varieties organically and processes them into stone-ground wholemeal flour. Mulinum’s agricultural side does not end with cultivation: the seed varieties are grown organically and then processed into flour.

Stage 39 of the Cammino Basiliano

Stage 39 of the Cammino Basiliano runs from Tiriolo to San Floro, is classified as an E-hiking trail and can also be ridden by mountain bike. Those planning the route can therefore plan it as a hike or a mountain-bike ride. The starting point, Tiriolo, and the destination, San Floro, determine the direction of travel, while the choice of means of transport remains open.

More destinations for planning your trip to Italy: Squillace, Santa Eufemia Lamezia, Sorbo San Basilio, Motta Santa Lucia, Curinga, Falerna Marina, San Sostene, Chiaravalle Centrale.

For the higher-level travel overview: Catanzaro.