Praia Art Resort | Cool Coastal Boutique in Calabria, Italy

A warm welcome on Calabria’s Ionian coast

Located on the spectacular Ionian coast of Calabria, Praia Art Resort is an unexpected haven. It boasts a privileged position close to the beach, just a few kilometres from the mountains and on the edge of the Marine Reserve of Capo Rizzuto, the largest protected marine area in Italy, a place where nature and history embrace each other.

Praia Art Resort – member of Small Luxury Hotels of The World – is part of a beautiful Calabrian canvas. Backed by hills, dotted with myrtle and citrus trees, and facing a beautiful ocean scene, it makes a striking first impression. With their combination of authentic Mediterranean design and modern luxury touches, its villas sit perfectly in their natural surroundings. And because it’s poised between mountains and the sea, Praia Art is the ideal gateway to the Ionian Coast.

An “art maison surrounded by nature”: the entire resort was created by local Crotone artisans through the use of natural raw materials of the territory such as wood, rock, clay and iron where guests can observe various forms of art such as amphorae, Greek vases and jars, ferrous sculptures signed by the great Crotone artists, hand-painted terracotta tiles, handcrafted “carved” wooden furniture, goiters used by the “Castellanesi” fishermen of the 1930s, ceramic works of art “Il caterpillar “and” The Snail ” 

The artists collect clay, the raw material for the manufacture of ceramics in the area of the ancient city of Kroton, the clay is then mixed with water, baked in the oven, allowed to cool, glazed with natural pigments and ricotta in the oven to impress the color well. 

ACCOMMODATION

At Praia Art Resort each room has its own personality: you’ll find bare wood and terracotta, worked by the fine craftsmen of the Crotonese Marquisate, exposed brick and mosaic tiles.

Bathe in the natural light on your terrace or patio. Stroll to a sun-lounger by the outdoor pool. Then let the gentle call of cicadas welcome in the evening as you wander through the gardens, the sun setting over the ocean.

DINING

Inside the Resort there is his restaurant, Pietramare Natural Food, a Michelin star led by Raffaele Vitale, restaurant manager, Nicola chef Annunziata, head of the Pietramare kitchen, assisted by Prof. Carmine Lupia, a well-known Calabrian botanist . 

An approximate cuisine: Nicola collects, works, transforms with commitment and passion both the fish, strictly local, and the meat from the farms, combining them with harvested herbs or vegetables from our garden. 

Breads, pastas, pastries, self-produced with ancient grains, rice from the rice fields of Sibari: the absolute essence of a Calabria rich in culture, history and traditions, interpreted towards a contemporary and healthy innovation. 

By the pool, Pietramare Food Cafe is an elegant lounge where to indulge while sipping a cocktail. Everything here is made to relax and pamper, from the coffee scent to the colourful aperitifs, barbecues and fruitful bouquet of wines.

ACTIVITIES

Classicists will be inspired by the myths and legends of Calabria, a part of Italy immersed in ancient Greek and Byzantine history. Explore the town of Crotone, with its cobblestone streets, 16th-century castle and fascinating archaeological museum. Gaze into sapphire depths from a glass-bottomed boat at the Le Castella Marine Reserve. Or for a scenic fix of a different kind, head to the town of Santa Severina and look out over the Neto valley.

Not only that, in the surroundings of the resort it is possible to admire naturalistic landscapes of particular interest: 

• The Marine Nature Reserve of Isola Capo Rizzuto extends over an area of 42 km of coastline in the coastal stretch south of Crotone and for a depth of 100 meters towards the open sea. 

• A 40 min drive from the resort is one of the naturalistic sites of the Presila Catanzarese, the Valli Cupe Nature Reserve: enchanting waterfalls, canyons characterized by unexpected biodiversity, gorges and cliffs that descend overhanging for hundreds of meters, numerous monumental trees and a floristic and faunal heritage of high value. 

• Sila National Park: established in 2002, it is now one of the most evocative and wild areas of the Region with vast forests spread over 12 plateaus, extensive landscapes on the Pollino, Aspromonte, the Ionian seas and the Tyrrhenian Sea.