In 1968 the young brothers Gianni and Roberto Oliva came to the Marchesi di Francia estate in Santa Caterina dello Ionio, Calabria on board their red Alfa Romeo Spider. Attracted by the natural surroundings, among the peach and orange orchards of the Di Francia estate they discovered a strip of land on the coast of what was once Magna Grecia.

This oasis of rare beauty shouldn’t be just a summer home for a lucky elite, they thought; Italy and the rest of the world should be able to visit the area and experience the immensity of this beautiful uncontaminated natural setting on the Ionian Sea, home to the magnificent treasure of the Riace Bronzes, near the site where the Allies landed in 1943 at Punta Stilo.

Calalandrusa was established in 1975 with the creation of the first international campsite, followed in 1982-1992 by construction of the first bungalows for rental. Everything became more difficult when Gianni died in 1998, but the original 64 bungalows were renovated and modernised, the deluxe rooms were completed in 2009 and construction of the Dune area began in 2010, with Prestige rooms right on the waterfront. The two brothers’ vision lives on, as Roberto works in Verona and Calabria, and Gianni watches over him from above...