Traditions in Calabria pass through the folklore of three different ethnic minorities: the Italo-Albanians (Arbëreshë) between the provinces of Cosenza, Catanzaro and Crotone; the Waldesian-Occitans of Guardia Piemontese (CS); and the ancient Greek community of Bovesìa, along the Ionian coast of Reggio Calabria.
The rituals of Calabria's religious traditions are unmissable. First and foremost is the procession of the Varia di Palmi, held every August in the town of the same name in the province of Reggio Calabria. The Varia di Palmi, borrowed from the rite of Messina, is one of the world's most astonishing processions of "large shouldered machines" and is listed as a UNESCO Intangible Heritage.
One of the best times of the year to discover the traditions in Calabria is from February to April: starting with the great historical carnivals, from the Carnival of Castrovillari to the Carnival of Alessandria del Carretto, both in the Cosenza area, and ending with the rites of the Calabrian Holy Week, one more evocative than the other. The unmissable ones? Those of the arbëreshë communities (valljet), the Vattiènti of Nocera Terinese (CZ) and Verbicaro (CS) and the Persephoni of Bova (RC), on Palm Sunday.
The region's great historical festivals invite you to Calabria all year round: from the Chilli Pepper Festival in Diamante (CS) to the Magna Graecia Film Festival in Catanzaro, to name but a few.
If you love Calabrian traditions linked to good food and ancient crafts, don't miss the festivals that make every season a delight and the craft fairs.