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| Pizzo, old village center in Calabria (photo by Susan C) |
Lamezia airport brings thousands of passengers every year to Calabria in Southern Italy from around the world. There are business men among tourist on the daily Alitalia flights from Rome or Milan, but most tourists come with budget airlines which fly directly into Lamezia Terme (SUF) once or twice weekly from allover Europe and even overseas.
I was impressed to find out from how many cities you can fly directly to Calabria, and of course vice versa, to where you can fly directly from Calabria. I am happy to share my list. Check with your airline during which months and which days direct flights are available. (Let me know, if I missed any city or airline).
Direct Flights to Lamezia Terme (SUF) :
Country
|
City
|
Airline
|
|---|---|---|
| Belgium | Brussels (CRL) | Ryanair |
| Czech Republic | Brno (BRQ) Prague (PRG) Ostrava (OSR) | SmartWing |
| France | Paris Orly (ORY) | Easyjet |
| Germany | Berlin Tegel (TXL) Koeln Bonn (CGN) Düsseldorf (DUS) Frankfurt Hahn (HHN) Hanover (HAJ) München (MUC) Stuttgart (STR) Weeze (NRN) | Airberlin Germanwings Airberlin/Germanwings Ryanair Germanwings Airberlin Germanwings Ryanair |
| Italy | Bologna (BLQ) Milano Bergamo (BGY) Milano Malpensa (MXP) Milano Linate (LIN) Torino (TRN) Pisa (PSA) Roma (FCO) Venice Treviso (TSF) | Ryanair Ryanair Easyjet Alitalia Alitalia Ryanair Blu-Express/Ryanair/Vueling/Alitalia Ryanair |
| Netherlands | Amsterdam (AMS) | Transavia |
| Spain | Barcelona (BCN) | Vueling |
| Switzerland | Zürich (ZRH) | Airberlin |
| United Kingdom | London Stansted (STN) | Ryanair |
| Canada | Toronto (YYZ) | Airtransat |
Pizzo is located just 25 km from Lamezia Terme airport, and can be reached by rented car or taxi in less than 30 minutes drive.
Tropea is located further down the coast, 60 km from the airport and about 1h 15min drive.
The central train station in Lamezia Terme is about 1 km from the International Airport. There is a shuttle bus to the station. Some people with light luggage even walk along the road, but you could also hire a taxi. However, if your destination is Pizzo, we would recommend to take a taxi directly to Pizzo or pre-book a pick-up service (both around 40 Euro one-way to Pizzo). Pizzo is a great place to start to explore la bella Calabria.
At the airport you will find different car rental services. You can pre-book a car online or book one at the airport. If you plan to drive into historic old towns, we recommend to rent a SMALL car as the alleys are very narrow.
Please note, if you plan to just spend a relaxing holiday in centro storico di Pizzo, the old town center, no car is required for your holiday as restaurants, bars, shops, tourist sights and the beach are in walking distance.
Other airports in Southern Italy: Reggio di Calabria, Catania (Sicily) and Naples.
photo source: Palazzo Pizzo copyright 2014
Sigh, still wishing Dallas was on that list! I think we're coming in the fall and we're looking at flying to Houston or Charlotte, then to Rome, then to Lamezia. Then I think we'll fly on to Marakkesh, then fly within the country, then possibly a ferry to southern Spain, then we can get a direct flight home from Madrid.
ReplyDeleteBased on our vacation last year, I also kind of wish Dubai was on the list -- I think we'd be willing to fly all the way to Dubai and then double back to Rome, since we liked flying on Emirates so much.
Hi Carina,
Deletethat sound like a wonderful plan! Combine Calabria with Morocco! I want to see a travel report on your blog about that after you are back home.
The thing is, that budget airlines adjust their travel routes a bit from season to season according demand. I think Sweden used to have direct flights too. And Monarch airline stopped flying to Lamezia from the UK. But good to see Toronto. And with Delta I think it's only one stopover in Rome when coming from the US.
Ugh, Delta. I think it's worth an extra connection not to have to fly Delta, we've never had a great experience with them. I shall definitely report on our travels.
DeleteThanks for compiling this list, Susan. It's helpful to have a list of options to start with in front of you when you're making plans. This past fall I was looking to go from Berlin to Reggio Calabria, one-way. I don't know if it was some kind of a fluke in the reservation systems or what, but Alitalia had a price of 1200 Euros and I was booking at least a month out. It was also quite expensive to Lamezia on my travel dates. After checking every day for a week, I started looking at all kinds of crazy routes - flying through different countries, overnights, etc. Finally, I found a route through Rome on Vueling - seemed to be a seasonal flight and there were only a few sporadic flights over a couple month period. In the end, it worked out very well - 135 Euros with smooth flights and connection.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, there isn't anything direct to Calabria from the U.S. I flew to Toronto once to catch a really good deal on Airtransat to Lamezia once and that worked out well, but the price has to be low enough to make the rigamarole worth it...
Ciao Karen,
DeleteThank you for stopping by and your comment. Actually, you are pointing out a dilemma. The airlines know when to charge higher! For example flying from Stuttgart, Southern Germany where a large Italian community from Calabria lives, and returns home in August, Germanwings charges around 400 Euro per adult (2h flight, two ways) during this month.
Sometimes, it's cheaper to fly into Naples and rent a car. Or - as you said - change in Rome as airfares are reasonable from the capital to Lamezia (1h flight). Of course popular routes can be offered at better prices ... but still. And 1.200 euro from Berlin?! Wow!
However, I haven't checked other countries' airlines prices. It might be cheaper from UK than from Germany.
Calabria is still on the rise as tourist destination. More demand will create more offer and lower the price.
Yes, Susan, unfortunately for the customer, the airlines will take every opportunity to maximize their profits. Areas with less competition often find themselves squeezed. If you don’t have travel flexibility, there’s a greater chance of getting caught in their web.
DeleteI wanted to mention a “special” to Calabria that I just heard about, specifically to Reggio to see the Riace Bronzes from April 30 to June 30, 2015. EXPO really wanted the bronzes and pushed hard to get them, but in the end it was decided that they were too delicate to cart around, not to mention the fact, that if they sent them to Milan, Calabria would lose many tourists. So Alitalia has round trip weekend “deals” from Roma (99 Euros – Sat. – Sun.), Milano/Linate (119 Euros – Fri. – Sun.) and Torino (129 Euros – Thurs. – Sun./Mon.) to Reggio Calabria. It would seem that it’s just for these short weekends in this 2-month span. The process is that first, you have to buy a 5 Euro entrance to Reggio’s Archeological Museum (bank transfer with IBAN number, which may not be convenient outside Europe), then you get a code that you use with Alitalia’s call center (also not convenient, as you pay per minute for the call) that issues a ticket for these prices on the weekend of your museum entrance. You apparently have to show your museum ticket at airport check-in. It would seem a lot of hoops to jump through, but if you find yourself in parts further north and want to have a nice weekend in Calabria, it may be worth it, so I thought I’d share the information.
Here's the website: http://biglietteriaonlinemuseorc.it
DeleteFunny campaign, but nice. Thanks for sharing, Karen!
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