La Cattolica di Stilo: the little Byzantine jewel at the foot of Monte Consolino

Clinging to the slopes of Monte Consolino, La Cattolica di Stilo is one of the best-preserved Byzantine churches in southern Italy. It dates roughly to the 10th century, a time when this corner of Calabria was deeply tied to the Greek-Eastern world. It is a surprisingly small building, square in plan, crowned by five little brick domes that from a distance look like red mushrooms sprouting from the rock. Inside, among salvaged columns and traces of frescoes, you breathe an intimate, hushed atmosphere that the great cathedrals have long since lost.

What strikes you is the setting. Stilo is a village perched high, made of narrow alleys, staircases and stone houses that scramble up the hillside. Walking toward the Cattolica you pass through a real, lived-in town, where the elderly sit on their doorsteps and the dominant sound is that of your own footsteps. There are no queues, no tour buses parked in droves: just a few curious visitors and plenty of room to stop and look.

From up here, beside the church, your gaze runs all the way to the Ionian Sea. It is a panorama that repays the short climb, and it explains better than any caption why the monks chose this place: tucked away, defended, secluded. Stilo, incidentally, was the birthplace of the philosopher Tommaso Campanella, and the village still keeps that air of thought and silence.

To visit it at leisure, it is best to avoid the height of summer, when even here the heat and passing crowds make themselves felt. Spring and autumn offer soft light and ideal temperatures for getting lost in the alleys. Bring comfortable shoes, respect the village's quiet, and stop to eat in a local trattoria: it is the best way to leave something behind for the people who keep this place alive all year round.

Related guides: Where to go to the seaside in September without the crowds: the South once the tourists leave.

Getting there

La Cattolica stands in Stilo's historic centre, on the Ionian side of the province of Reggio Calabria: by car you arrive via the Strada Statale 106 Jonica, taking the inland exit at Monasterace and then climbing up to Stilo. The nearest railway station is Monasterace-Stilo, on the Ionian line, a handful of kilometres from the town. The reference airports are those of Reggio Calabria and Lamezia Terme, both a couple of hours' drive away, so the most convenient way to reach the village remains the car.

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