Rather than pay over the odds by staying in pricey Tropea, I got a place in Parghelia, the next station down the line. From here it’s about thirty minutes on foot if you’re going to the main beach, or fifty if you’re walking up to the old town in Tropea.
I stayed for two nights in May in a flat I rented from a friendly family via AirBnB. It was about £35 a night, which is very reasonable.
You could of course pay an extra tenner for an AirBnB in the old town and save yourself some walking. Hotels are £100 plus a night in Tropea, although I did find somewhere a bit out of town for £50. No idea what it’s like though.
What sealed it for me though is that Parghelia has two stunning little beaches right next to each other, just a few metres from where I was staying.
Not sure what the southernmost one is called but the slightly larger of the two is Spiaggia Michelino. Video here.
The water here is super clear so you can see shoals of small fish really well.
There were only about ten people on the beach when I went, a far cry from the much larger beaches which get busier and busier as you get nearer to Tropea.
Every morning I walked the short distance to the main street in Parghelia…
Bar Pepe (Intermediate B+), 51 Corso Vittorio Emanuele
This was my spot for my breakfast cappuchino and cornetto. The coffee is decent (B) and there’s lots of space with two seating areas outside, front and back. A friendly lady who speaks good English works here too.
I ate out a couple of times as well…
Pizzeria da Antonio (Intermediate B+), 10 Via Principe di Piemonte
Had a perfectly decent Pizza Margarita here. Enjoyed the atmosphere as well because you could sit outside and the young servers were friendly and helpful.
It was with heavy heart I had to move on to Cosenza on Sunday but I had a fair bit of time to kill after check out but before my train, so I went to this place on the main street in Parghelia and coincidentally ended up having one of the best meals of the entire trip.
Il Portale (Intermediate A), Piazza Ruffa but effectively on Corso Vittorio Emanuele, www.ristorantepescefresco.parghelia.vv.it
The Antipasto di Mare is really good here (A/B+) and beautifully presented.
The pacchieri with langoustine was also very good (A).
I was less impressed by the bottle of Madre Goccia but it was still okay (B).
Friendly service was provided by a nice girl from Transylvania who had lived in London for seven years, so her English was very good.
With a draught beer and a limoncello the bill was around 50€, a bit pricey but good value given the quality.
Weekend over! Back to work in gritty Cosenza next!