Praia a Mare, Calabria

Kingdom of the Sun, Praia a Mare Calabria

Explore the Cities and Towns of Praia a Mare

Our Local Expertise

Over 20 years of crafting exceptional journeys across Praia a Mare

Licensed & Certified

We work exclusively with accredited guides and professional chauffeurs across Italy.

Local Knowledge

Our team lives and works here, offering insight beyond the landmarks.

Tailored for You

Every itinerary is thoughtfully crafted around your pace, from private dawn tours to intimate vineyard tastings.

Overview

Southern Italy has so many wonderful towns to experience, though we think Praia a Mare is one of the best and we can offer you a variety of services in this area including private drivers, wine tours, scuba diving and snorkeling around Dino island, cooking courses and even hang-gliding.  

Praia a Mare is a magical town on Italy’s Cedri Riviera - the Citrus Coast - filled with natural wonder, legend and history.  The town is home to Dino Island, whose sandstone circumference includes mystifying cave grottos, in which an indescribable colour of blue, created by light which comes up through the water, has caused Dino Island to be given World-Heritage site status.  
 
Praia a Mare is a naturally inspiring destination that has gone un-noticed by most travelers who unfortunately have passed up the town’s treasures which include: pedestrian only tree-lined streets and a stunning church, known as “La Madonna Della Grotta” built inside an enormous cave behind the town (look for sign near the Arcate hotel that indicates the Archaeological Zone).
 
 
Photo of  Beaches at Praia a Mare, Calabria - Photo by Jesse Andrews
 
Travelers have been by-passing Praia a Mare on route to Sicily, but from May to October, when the weather is good Praia should be considered a "must see"  destination for anyone traveling in Southern Italy. 
 
The town is impeccably clean, well served by trains and buses, and because empires throughout the centuries have laid claim here, it is home to numerous historical ruins including a prominent Byzantine guarding tower that lies in front of Dino Island and a Spanish Castle.
 
Praia a Mare is small, and easy to get around with a car or without.  There are numerous hotels, bed and breakfasts and restaurants which are relatively low-cost for what you receive in comparison to other parts of Italy.  Praia is an optimal place from which to explore numerous other villages on the Cedri Riviera. 
 
Dino Island, the main attraction which draws visitors from around Europe each year, is approximately one mile in circumference and is home to six magnificent grottos, easily accessible by paddleboat or canoe that can be rented by any number of beach lidos in operation from May until September.  In the off-season, boats can be rented at hotels.
 
The Madonna Della Grotta sanctuary is easily accessible throughout the town and admittance is free of charge. There are in fact, two churches within the cave, the smaller one, built inside a smaller cave, in which limestone deposits have formed an alter of sorts, used by local priests for Catholic ceremonies carried out here.  
 

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Praia a Mare

Stories That Stay With You

Here's what our guests share about their unforgettable journeys

“Jesse & Giuseppe, Sandy and I have been looking through my slides of our trip to Southern Italy. We had such a good time with you and Giuseppe that we wanted to let you know again. You were the best guides ever.”
[Read More] Bob & Sandy
“The trip was great; we appreciate all the hard work you and your team invested to make our experience a once in a lifetime trip. We appreciate all the attention to the details, in particular Giuseppe spending the time and the focus with us on the road and as we were exploring your great country.”
[Read More] Leon and Michele
“In September of 2018 I brought a group of 12 from Venice to Sicily and organized all of my services with the Italy Vacation Specialists. Being a travel agent and in the business, I know how complicated organizing travel arrangements can be in Italy and the IVS team took a huge burden off of me! I would like to start of by saying "THANK YOU" both for the amazing job you did on our trip. There was n”
[Read More] Ann Brownell, KHM Travel Group
“I am a travel agent with All About Honeymoons and I would highly recommend Italy Vacation Specialists. Jessica was wonderful in helping us plan in a last minute anniversary vacation during high season without any issues. She even checked on our clients while on vacation to make sure things were going well. I plan on using them again soon for all my future bookings!”
[Read More] Tammy Joyce, All About Honeymoons
“In August 2018, my family of four and myself travelled from Vancouver, BC to Rome Italy and spent 3 weeks touring Italy with IVS. This company had come highly recommended by many friends and associates of ours who had used them before and indeed to say they do an outstanding job is an understatement. You can tell while being in Italy that it is one complicated place to run tours in, just by the sh”
[Read More] Vijaya Sunil CPA, CGA
“I have traveled to Italy 2x with the IVS for my own pleasure trips and 2x for business with IVS. These guys really pay attention and make your trip go like clockwork. Italy is nuts, just saying! There are so many rules and restrictions now, so we did not want to drive ourselves. Having traveled with them many times and done business on several occasions, most definitely USE this company. They know”
[Read More] JoAnne Beaudoin, Retired Nurse
“Dear Guiseppe and Jesse, We just returned from our most wonderful vacation to Italy and wanted to first thank you for putting together such a wonderful trip, and second to provide some feedback for the future. Hotels 1. Hotel Sovestro in San Gimignano was wonderful. The staff were very friendly and helpful and made the first portion of our journey very stress free. They made us feel like we were p”
[Read More] Ron and Deb Crosby
“I went to high school with the owner of the company who organized my honeymoon for myself and my now wife from Tokyo. We spent three short weeks seeing Piedmont and experiencing wine paradise there, then heading to Nice in France with our private driver and flying to Rome where honestly 4 days is NOT enough. They keep saying to spend more time and we could not agree more! You need to spend more ti”
[Read More] Robin and Kumi Bruun, Tokyo Japan
“This company really knows their stuff and recommended our family to stay longer in each location. We didn't listen to them, but wished we had in every single place we went. They recommended Sestri Levante over the Cinque Terre which was our favourite destination on our entire trip. We visited Rome where we stayed in the outstanding Hotel Locorno where they know the owner there, like in every place”
[Read More] Sean & Veet Chapman, CGA
“I am a travel agent from Lebanon and have organized several group tours as well as individual tours of Italy with Italy Vacation Specialists. I highly recommend them as one of the very best tour operators in Italy to work with, given their professionalism and work ethic which I feel is second-to-none in the travel industry. All of the staff, the guides, the coaches and even the meals we enjoyed we”
[Read More] Nicole Haddad, Lebanese Travel Agent

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