Regional Marine Park “Fondali di Capocozzo”

Pizzo, Capo Vaticano, Tropea. Places that, just naming them, evoke the beauty of the Calabrian coastline, the most iconic images of sunsets, tourist villages, crowded beaches. Perhaps not everyone imagines, however, that - in mirror fashion - there are underwater panoramas that are just as fascinating and evocative, with expanses of plants swaying on the seabed, fish of every colour and size, wrecks lying in the depths and now inhabited by polyps and sponges.

The Regional Marine Park “Fondali di Capocozzo - S. Irene, Vibo Marina - Pizzo, Capo Vaticano - Tropea” includes one of the best-known stretches of the Calabrian Tyrrhenian coastline, which, in its submerged version, harbours an incredibly rich fauna and flora. Along the coast and on the seabed, granite rocks of various sizes and predominantly sandy beaches emerge.

There is a whole life pulsating underwater, from Briatico to Capo Vaticano, among the rocky masses lying on the seabed and in the caves: a true paradise to explore for snorkelling and diving enthusiasts. The most experienced will descend into the depths with the help of scuba tanks, but even those who love to observe the seabed equipped only with mask and snorkel will be able to spend hours here admiring the treasures preserved in the sea. There are numerous diving and snorkelling associations in the protected area, offering everyone the opportunity to observe these wonderful seabeds up close. It is a unique spectacle, starting with the green prairies of posidonia oceanica, where small molluscs, uniquely coloured fish and invertebrates, moray eels, pike and groupers move about. The lucky ones will be able to watch, much further offshore, the passage of large cetaceans such as sperm whales, minke whales and dolphins. But also tuna and swordfish, which are at home here.

Flora, fauna and more. During the observations, you can admire ancient archaeological finds protected by the Superintendence of Cultural and Environmental Heritage of Calabria. In the waters of Sant'Irene di Briatico, for example, there are the remains of a Roman vivarium, an ancient fishpond consisting of a series of tanks that were used to hold the tuna caught. Descending beyond a depth of twenty metres, then, what can be admired is incredible: the Secca di Sant'Irene, a natural arch lying on the seabed, its vault covered with multicoloured sponges. The rocks under the arch are inhabited by groupers, and as you ascend to the surface you come across shoals of bream, salpa and feathered starfish. The view is enhanced by the expanses of posidonia oceanica covering the seabed.

For those who enjoy diving, continuing along the coast, there is the Secca di Vacazzo, at a depth of about 40 metres. Octopuses and moray eels move between the rocks separated by channels of white sand. The shoal is located near the Paradiso del Sub beach.

Another site to discover in the abysses is off Tropea, at a depth of 38 metres. It is a container, an enormous concrete parallelepiped. It was placed on the sandy seabed years ago with the aim of creating an ideal environment for coral reproduction. Now that it no longer has any function, it has turned into a den for groupers, dentexes, conger eels and is covered with sponges. Around the Scogli dell'Isola and San Leonardo, snorkelling is an exciting experience. Near the beach of Petri i Mulinu is the Skeleton Cave, so called because as you enter it, it takes on a “ghostly” colour due to special light effects. In the cave you can admire starfish, peacock damsels and octopuses.elsomini', a place of unspoilt nature, rich in flora, fauna and ideal for excursions.

Santa Domenica di Ricadi is home to Baia di Riaci, which National Geographic in the summer of 2022 named “Italy's best beach for snorkelling and diving”. The iconic Scoglio Grande is connected to the beach by a footbridge of boulders. The scenery is incredible, with natural pools, caves on the surface of the water and a crystal-clear sea in which damselfish, sea urchins and sea breams swim. Equally impressive, for diving enthusiasts, is the underwater world. At a depth of about 30 metres lies a wreck, which the locals call U' Vapuri, among whose plates groupers and moray eels also wander.

Arriving at Capo Vaticano, not far from the most crowded lidos, there are enchanting beaches that can only be reached by sea, such as Praia i Focu. The beauty of places like Grotticelle or Baia di Santa Maria, where sciarrani, mullet and spiny dogfish swim, contrasts with an underwater paradise near the three enormous rocky outcrops: Vadaro, Mantineo and Scoglio della Galea. Here, surrounded by colourful sponges and green posidonia meadows, tuna and amberjack, groupers, gobies and croakers swim. Nature has kissed these places, thanks also to the special environmental conditions created by the meeting of the Gulf and Strait currents.elsomini' is a place of unspoilt nature, rich in flora and fauna and ideal for excursions.