logo
Enjoy The Amalfi Coast Without The Crowds In Cilento

Enjoy The Amalfi Coast Without The Crowds In Cilento

Forbes6 days ago
Ancient Greek Temples at Paestum Archaeological UNESCO World Heritage Site getty
Roughly 90 minutes south of Naples and the Amalfi coast, is the less visited but equally beautiful Cilento region, a UNESCO World heritage site with sea, sand and ancient Greek temples. Between the Archaeological Park of Paestum and the pine forest-lined beaches of the Mediterranean Sea, The Savoy Hotel & Spa is one of the few hotels in the area, thanks to its location in a protected national park where no other hotels can be built.
Pool at The Savoy Hotel & Spa, Cilento, Italy Savoy hotel
Just 30 minutes from Salerno airport, the family-owned hotel is a member of Preferred Hotels, the world's largest independent hotel brand, which guarantees a luxury hospitality experience. And because the area is not as well known, it's much less expensive than the Amalfi coast. The hotel was founded in the 1980s by Giuseppe Pagano and the business is now run by the second generation. Next door to the Savoy is the four-star Esplanade Boutique Hotel, also owned by the Pagano family.
A suite at Savoy Hotel & Spa, Cilento, Italy www.aquilamattia.it
Inspired by the area's close ties to ancient Greece, the Savoy hotel's design features a white-washed exterior accented by contemporary columns and a series of lush gardens. The Savoy has such a grand, expansive lobby that you'll feel like you're entering a much larger hotel. Instead, it is actually boutique hotel size, with only 44 rooms, suites and villas. The design palette in the guest rooms has a cool, retro Italian seaside feel with red, green to blue, with wooden furniture and marble. Accommodation ranges in size from Classic Rooms with Italian marble baths and forest views to Terrace Rooms with outdoor space and seating areas and Suites, which offer large baths and covered verandas.
Savoy hotel, white terrace for breakfast Gabriele Rivoli
The Cilento area is the birthplace of the original Mediterranean Diet, with an emphasis on plant-based foods, healthy fats and seafood. Prominent cardiologist Ancel Keys studied the population's eating habits here in the 1950s and 1960s to understand the secrets of their longevity. The results of these studies generated a global revolution, leading the doctor to describe this way of eating as the "Mediterranean Diet." And this is the focus of everything served at the hotel which has an impressive kitchen garden and beehives. The Pagano family's award-winning San Salvatore 1988 farm and winery nearby also supplies the hotel with products including Buffalo mozzarella, yogurt, olive oil and wine.
Tre Olivi Restaurant at the Savoy Hotel, Cilento Savoy Hotel & Spa
The hotel's dining options include Bistrot Olivella with a farm-table menu of traditional Cilento dishes. For lunch or dinner, Beach Club 93 Restaurant is bliss. Located a short stroll from the hotel on the beach, the hotel's Mediterranean restaurant serves fresh and raw seafood as well as pizza prepared by the in-house pizza chef. For a really special meal, Michelin- starred Ristorante Tre Olivi is the hotel's gastronomic Mediterranean restaurant. A tribute to the Mediterranean diet and the olive tree, Tre Olivi has been under the helm of German-born Chef Oliver Glowig since 2024. Chef Glowig has lived in Italy for a while with stints at the Grand Hotel Quisisana in Capri with Gualtiero Marchesi and both Capri Palace Hotel & Spa and Hotel Aldrovandi Villa Borghese in Rome. The restaurant offers a fully immersive farm to table experience from the furniture made from olive trees to the scents and tastes of the menu. There is an a la carte menu plus two tasting menus (starting at €160) to choose from served with wines from their own vineyard. Chef Glowig's creations have intriguing, tasty food combinations. Highlights from a recent menu included anchovies with buffalo ricotta; pasta and potatoes with blue lobster and chicken scented with fig leaves and smoked eel.
Beach Club 93 at Savoy Hotel & Spa, Cilento, Italy Savoy
If you're keen to stay right at the beach, the hotel's Beach Club 93 offers three private beachfront villas, each with a spacious terrace with private pool. And for hotel guests, the beach club is a short stroll from the main hotel or you can take the complimentary shuttle service. The private beach club features a saltwater pool with hydromassage, shaded sun loungers, private gazebos and a beachside bar serving cocktails and meals. The beach itself is wide, sandy and uncrowded. Wellness
The spa at the Savoy Hotel, Cilento, Italy www.aquilamattia.it
Hotel Savoy's beautifully designed spa, a haven below the hotel, has three pools of varying temperatures, a salt cave, an ice room, a Turkish hammam and a sauna. Treatments focus on holistic renewal: massages are enhanced by a signature blend of olive oil and the aroma of white mulberry, so distinctive to Cilento. The Ancient site of Paestum
Second Temple of Hera in Paestum, Italy. getty
Following an expedition to Paestum in 1787, the German philosopher Johann Wolfgang Goethe said 'those well-preserved ruins can only be understood after seeing them with your own eyes.' And later, Friedrich Nietzsche said 'it's as if a god here had built his house with enormous blocks of stone.'
Everyone has heard of Pompeii, the world's best example of a preserved Roman city. Pompeii is about an hour away from Cilento and certainly should be visited but if you're staying in Cilento, an incredible Unesco World Heritage archaeological site is right on the doorstep. Although lesser known than Pompeii, the site of Paestum is even older. Paestum was founded by Greek colonists around the 6th century BCE and known as Poseidonia, later coming under Roman rule.
The ruins of Roman amphitheater at Paestum, Italy getty
There are Roman remains from a later city at Paestum but the main reason to visit is to see three fully intact Greek temples, among the best preserved in the world, the oldest of which dates to 550 BC. There's a lot to take in so it makes sense to go with a guide like Silvia Braggio who's been giving tours of the entire area since the 1990s. The three Greek temples in the Doric order, one dedicated to Athena, and two to Hera (wife of Zeus), were built 50 years apart dating from 550 to 450 BCE. It's possible to walk inside both of the Hera temples without any restrictions.
Detail, the Diver's Tomb. in the museum at Paestum, Italy getty
Surrounded by lovely countryside and located near the coast, Paestum also features the National Archaeological Museum, which houses funerary items, pots, etc found in the town, in the nearby necropolises and at the sanctuary dedicated to Hera. Do not miss the museum's thrilling highlight, the Greek 'Tomb of the Diver,' a colorful, painted tomb from 480 BC. Unlike most Greek tombs of the period, which were quite plain, the Tomb of the Diver is decorated with colorful frescoes on the interior walls and lid. There are several scenes of Greek life and an image at one end of an unknown man diving into water is thought to suggest the soul's passage from life into the afterlife. This tomb is the only known example of Greek painting from a tomb of this era. Getting there
British Airways has just introduced a seasonal route of three direct flights per week from London Gatwick to Salerno from May (Mon, Thu and Sat) until October. There are also daily flights from London to Naples International Airport (about 90 minutes from Cilento) all year round.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Canadian Badlands
Canadian Badlands

National Geographic

time12 hours ago

  • National Geographic

Canadian Badlands

Canadian Badlands In the Tom Cochrane video for "Life Is a Highway," the backdrop is a mix of towering, misshapen, ochre-colored rock (hoodoos) and endless grassy fields. The setting is the 35,000-square-mile region often referred to as the Canadian Badlands. The discovery of both coal and dinosaur bones in the late 1800s proved transformational. Nowhere on Earth is as rich in quantity and quality of the prehistoric creatures' remains as the Badlands' arid Dinosaur Provincial Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site where digs are still under way. Visitors come for the dino attractions anchored by the town of Drumheller in Alberta, but locals hope travelers look up as well. "People should come for the skies," says Linda Miller, whose family has been in the area since 1909. "The sunsets are just gorgeous. The stars and the sky at night are so full and vast." When to Go: In early June there's a high risk of rain but it's a must for those interested in the annual Dinofest celebration in Drumheller. Late June to early September promise sunny days and good access to all area attractions but reservations for children's programming and Dinosaur Provincial Park tours should be made much earlier. Professional bullfighting and homemade corn dogs reign at the Oyen Bull-a-Rama on the third Wednesday of every July. Where to Stay: Families who want to maximize their prehistoric exposure should consider camping out in Dinosaur Provincial Park, where paleontological digs continue. If you're after more of a Wild West vacation, you can find ranch vacation options from deluxe to rustic and from city slicker to hard core across the region. Elkwater Lake Lodge has pet-friendly suites. How to Get Around: Plan to drive but fill up your tank every chance you get since gas stations are few and far between. Popular routes include one that will take you on the trail of dinosaurs, including the must-see Royal Tyrrell Museum. Where to Eat or Drink: Patricia Water Hole's cook-your-own-steak tradition is popular. Beer is sold in quart sealers (think of a large mason jar) and the walls still have bullet holes at Rosedeer Hotel's Last Chance Saloon. When you're ready to come back to the present, consider upscale Sublime Food & Wine, which serves up old favorites like baked brie and prime rib with tasty sides like cheddar mashed potatoes, plus seasonal desserts that change so frequently they're not listed on the menu. What to Buy: Contemporary ceramic pieces from Medalta Potteries in Medicine Hat's Historic Clay District or artwork that pays tribute to the area's rich Blackfoot First Nations culture are worth the care needed to transport them home. What to Read Before You Go: Dinosaur Provincial Park: A Spectacular Ancient Ecosystem Revealed by Phillip J. Currie and Eva B. Kopelhus (Indiana University Press, 2005). This scientific overview of the park's major fossil excavations, flora and fauna, and history includes illustrations of the park's animals by some of the world's finest paleoartists. Helpful Links: Canadian Badlands, Travel Drumheller Fun Fact: The world's largest dinosaur stands 86 feet tall and "lives" in the middle of Drumheller. Take the stairs up its middle and peer out at the city from between dino teeth. Heather Greenwood Davis is an award-winning travel writer for the Toronto Star, Canadian Family, Parents Canada , and O, The Oprah Magazine. Toronto Star, Canadian Family, Parents CanadaO, The Oprah Magazine.

Top travel destination wages weird war against so-called ‘indecent' swimwear — but it's not bikinis they're mad about
Top travel destination wages weird war against so-called ‘indecent' swimwear — but it's not bikinis they're mad about

New York Post

time14 hours ago

  • New York Post

Top travel destination wages weird war against so-called ‘indecent' swimwear — but it's not bikinis they're mad about

Everybody out! A top Mediterranean beach destination is blowing the whistle on an 'indecent' form of swimwear — claiming that the allegedly revealing style favored by tourists 'disturbs the population.' But in the North African resort of Chetaïbi, Algeria, known for turquoise waters, rocky coves and forested hills, it's not women in skimpy bikinis that have local officials crying out for a cover-up. Advertisement 3 Chetaïbi is known for its turquoise waters, rocky coves and forested hills. Billal Bensalem/NurPhoto via Getty Images This time, it's the men who have been found guilty of inflaming the passions of the purportedly prudish populace — with their apparent affinity for Bermuda shorts. The town's mayor issued an order banning male beachgoers from wearing the tempting trunks — mandating a return to the longer, looser style said to be preferred by conservative beachgoers in this part of the world. Advertisement The municipality of 8,000 residents welcomes hordes of visitors every summer — tourism being an important part of the local economy. 'The mood is warm, welcoming, colorful, bustling — no hostility toward bathers, not in words, not in looks. People here have a tradition of hospitality,' Salah Edine Bey, a longtime resident, told the Associated Press. There was never much controversy — until earlier this month, when Mayor Layachi Allaoua had apparently, very literally, seen enough. 3 The town's mayor issued an order that bans beachgoers from wearing Bermuda shorts. AP Advertisement 'These summer outfits disturb the population, they go against our society's moral values and sense of decency,' the hot-and-bothered Hizzoner announced, per AP. 'The population can no longer tolerate seeing foreigners wandering the streets in indecent clothing,' he said. The proclamation immediately sparked considerable local backlash — including in the regional capital Annaba, where lawmakers urged a reversal of the decision. 3 Chetaïbi is on Algeria's Mediterranean coastline. Eric Lafforgue/Art in All of Us/Corbis via Getty Images Advertisement Within just two days, the mayor backtracked — taking to Facebook to insist that the decree was not driven by conservative pressure, but rather a hope to preserve 'peace and tranquility.' Algeria has struggled with Islamism for decades. The country endured a civil war that killed an estimated 200,000 people. In 1991, the army canceled elections that were going to be won by an Islamist party. 'Even though Islamists lost the war in the 1990s, they never gave up on their invasive and intrusive ideological project, which has gained ground in society,' sociologist Redouane Boudjemaâ told the AP. For some people, this order on men's swimwear reminded them of the times when Islamist-run municipalities tried to alter the public life in Algeria with its religious doctrine. While Islamist parties don't do well in elections, they still play a role in Algerian daily life. Said Boukhlifa, a former senior official at the Ministry of Tourism, warned against conservative creep — saying it could ultimately hurt the country's hopes to attract more vacationers to its shores.

Rome gears up for Holy Year's monumental Catholic youth rally in scorching temperatures
Rome gears up for Holy Year's monumental Catholic youth rally in scorching temperatures

Associated Press

time14 hours ago

  • Associated Press

Rome gears up for Holy Year's monumental Catholic youth rally in scorching temperatures

ROME (AP) — Half a million young people are expected to pour into Rome next week for the biggest event of the 2025 Holy Year: a weeklong Jubilee celebration for young Catholics that will sorely test their tolerance for heat and the Eternal City's ability to provide public services, security and logistical support during its peak tourist season. Officials said Wednesday the highlight of the celebration is the Aug. 2-3 vigil service, outdoor overnight slumber party and Mass presided over by Pope Leo XIV, the first mass gathering for history's first American pope. It's being held on the same dusty field on the outskirts of Rome where St. John Paul II led the 2000 World Youth Day, an even larger gathering of some 2 million young Catholics in that millennial Jubilee year. With temperatures next weekend expected between 32C to 34C (90F to 93F), organizers have lined up five million bottles of water, 2,660 drinking water stations and 70 giant water cannons that are normally used for dust control during building demolitions to spritz the young pilgrims to try to keep them cool. After attending a week of events in Rome's center, they will begin arriving at the Tor Vergata field on Saturday afternoon and spend the night there before the morning Mass Sunday, with access in and out requiring a 5 kilometer hike at minimum from the nearest public transport hub. A massive security and logistical setup Italian and Vatican organizers on Wednesday outlined plans for the gathering, which Rome authorities said represented the biggest technological setup ever in Italy. Four thousand police and firefighters have been called up to provide security, with Spanish, French and Polish law enforcement agencies sending teams to help out, given the large number of pilgrims expected from those countries. Officials are closing the airspace over the Tor Vergata field to civilian aircraft and drones, and 122 surveillance cameras have been set up to keep watch on the proceedings. 'This is an event that because of its importance requires exceptional security measures,' Rome Prefect Lamberto Giannini told a Vatican press conference. 'We don't have any signs of negative attention to the event, but the international situation, the various tensions and the magnitude, significance and beauty of the event require us to be very careful.' Some 68% of the young people who registered to attend hail from European countries, though pilgrims from 146 countries are expected, said the Vatican's Jubilee chief, Archbishop Rino Fisichella. A Jubilee that resembles a World Youth Day The youth Jubilee comes at the halfway point in the Vatican's 2025 Holy Year, a once-every-quarter-century celebration of Catholicism that brings millions of pilgrims to Rome. Fisichella said 17 million pilgrims had attended Jubilee events so far in 2025, representing more than half the 32 million expected. The event has assumed many characteristics of a World Youth Day, the Catholic youth rally taking place every three years that was launched by John Paul and maintained by every pope since. Heat waves and the invariable health issues that accompany them have become an integral part of youth days, since they are always scheduled during summer when young people are typically on vacation. But such Catholic Woodstocks have also produced some of the most memorable papal moments. Many faithful still remember John Paul telling the youngsters at Tor Vergata in 2000 that they were 'sentinels of the morning' at the dawn of the third millennium, Pope Benedict XVI braving a violent storm in Madrid in 2011 to continue praying, and Pope Francis telling young people in Lisbon in 2023 that everyone -- 'todos, todos, todos' – is welcome in the Catholic Church. Volunteers, portable toilets and ambulances at the ready The yearlong Jubilee, which was preceded by two years of intense construction projects around Rome, has added even more strain on Rome's public services beyond the normal tourist high season. To spare the congested city center, some 20,000 people will be housed on the grounds of Rome's old convention center on the city's outskirts, while another 40,000 will be housed in some of the 429-plus schools and 360 parishes around Rome that have offered to take them in. In addition to law enforcement, 3,000 civil protection volunteers, 500 Vatican volunteers and 4,300 Jubilee 'stewards' will be on hand to shepherd the young people around. A medevac helicopter, 43 ambulances, and 10 mobile health positions will be at the Tor Vergata field in case pilgrims fall ill. Rome's notoriously insufficient public transport system is being reinforced to provide nearly around-the-clock service and sanitation workers are clocking overtime to the tune of 4,600 shifts. There will be 2,760 portable toilets, plus 158 for disabled people, spread over the event space of 52 hectares (128 acres), officials said. 'This collective effort is a big institutional test,' acknowledged the vice president of the Lazio region, Roberta Angelilli. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store