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Tropea is a municipality located within the province of Vibo Valentia, in Calabria (southern Italy).
The town is a famous bathing place, situated on a reef, in the gulf of St. Euphemia connected with the mainland by a narrow strip in the Tyrrhenian Sea, toward the south with respect to Vibo Valentia and northward with respect to Ricadi and Capo Vaticano. The history of Tropea begins in Roman times, when along its coast, Sextus Pompey defeated Octavius. In the south of Tropea, the Romans had built a commercial port, in the locality of Formicoli (from the name Forum of Hercules), mentioned by Pliny and Strabo. The legend says that it was Hercules who, returning from Spain (Pillars of Hercules) stood on the Coast of Gods and made Tropea one of his ports. Due to its peculiar position as terrace on the sea, Tropea played an important role during Roman, Norman and Aragonese times. In the surrounding areas have been found tombs dating back to the Magna Graecia period. Capo Vaticano is a large swimming and sunbathing destination in the municipality of Ricadi, part of Italy's Calabria region. The cape is made from grey white granite which has intrigued many geologists from around the world. For decades, the granite has been examined for its peculiar geological characteristics. The altitude of the Cape is around 124 meters above sea level and starts from Tano Bay and stretches up to Virgin Mary Bay.The most famous bay is Groticelle which has some of the best beaches. It has been said that Capo Vaticano is a Roman hill, as suggested by the famous writer Giuseppe Berto of Venice. The Cape was an important sacred place in ancient times and many fortune tellers and priests travelled to the Cape to predict futures based on the flights of birds. The Mantineo rock located over the Cape has long been considered especially holy. |
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