Lamezia Terme Airport: what to see in the surrounding area

The main international airport in Calabria is Lamezia Terme Airport, located a short distance from the city centre and Lamezia Terme Centrale Railway Station, to which it is connected by shuttle buses.

Lamezia Airport and the nearby train station are located in Sant'Eufemia, one of three ancient municipalities (together with Sambiase and Nicastro) that have been merged and have effectively become city districts.

Here are some tips if you are waiting for a flight, arriving or departing from Lamezia Airport, and wondering what to see and do in the surrounding area.

Lamezia Airport is located in the centre of the vast Sant'Eufemia plain, which opens onto the gulf of the same name. A panoramic viewpoint over the Tyrrhenian Sea, with the Reventino mountains behind it, Lamezia Airport is an excellent vantage point over the Riviera dei Tramonti. That's why, if your flight arrives or departs at sunset, you can enjoy a sky ablaze with colours like few others! What is there in the immediate vicinity of Lamezia Airport? Let's start with a visit to the Sant'Eufemia district, which, near the Central Station, preserves the old housing complex of former railway workers: a unique urban example, developed around the old locomotive in the square, to be discovered and appreciated for its romanticism.

The neighbourhood has restaurants to suit all tastes, from gourmet establishments to those serving street food to eat on the go, as well as accommodation and transport services to help you get around the region. In the vicinity of Lamezia Airport, there is also an interesting abandoned area that appeals to lovers of industrial archaeology and bears witness to the city's industrious past through the imposing warehouses of the former sugar factory: in the 1930s, the CISSEL factory was capable of processing over a million quintals of sugar beet, the ancient "cannamèle" typical of the area.

If you venture a little further away from Lamezia Airport, still in the Sant'Eufemia area and still on the theme of "unfinished projects", it is easy to reach the point on the beach where another piece of industrial archaeology stands, now iconic in the city: the former Sir Pier, a giant iron structure in the middle of the waves that has become one of the most 'Instagrammed' places on the coast, as well as an open-air film set. Continuing towards the centre, you reach the Seafront, the promenade where locals go jogging and practise other outdoor sports for which it is equipped.

Lamezia Airport is not far from the spa district of Sambiase, where, if you have enough time, you can enjoy the health and beauty treatments offered by the renowned Caronte Thermal Baths. Let's not forget that, as the name of the city suggests, Lamezia Terme is considered the wellness capital of Calabria. Caronte, the legendary ferryman of souls, lends his name to the Aque Angae: four pools of water at 39°C, which collect in a series of natural and artificial pools along the course of the Bagni stream. The modern spa facility, offering a range of curative and rehabilitative treatments (inhalations, ventilations, washes, massages, mud therapy, etc.), is complemented by a free-to-use outdoor area consisting of a small swimming pool surrounded by greenery.

Those who have just landed at Lamezia Airport or choose to stay overnight in the city have plenty of time to immerse themselves in the beauty of the historic centre, in the Nicastro district, where they can visit the city's main artistic and cultural buildings. Strolling along Corso Numistrano, you will come across the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul; the Monumental Complex of San Domenico, a multifunctional venue that also houses the Lametino Archaeological Museum; the Diocesan Museum, in the Bishop's Seminary Palace; and the Municipal Library with its unmissable House of Ancient Book, which houses over 2,500 books printed since the 16th century. The walk ends in front of the statue of Emperor Frederick II of Swabia, in the historic district of Giudecca, at the foot of the hill on which the ruins of the Norman-Swabian Castle stand.