 Introduction
Arrival Plane
The closest airports are Lamezia Terme Airport (CZ) Km 130; and Napoli Capodichino Airport (NA) Km 210.
Train
Roma - Napoli - Paola-Cosenza is the general connection schedule. From the train station which is a little outside town you will need to take a bus (every 20mins) buy your tickets from the bar inside the station.
Bus
The bus station is below Piazza Fera, from there it's a twenty-minute walk down the length of Corso Mazzini to the hotels and centro storico. From Camigliatello buses leave hourly and take an hour, Naples is a 5hour journey with one dailiy, from Rome there are 3 daily taking 6 hours.
Car
Take the SS 18 and Exit at Paola in the direction of Cosenza. Follow the mountain highway for one hour and a quarter until you reach the city.
History and Culture
The Visigothic leader Alaric died in Cosentia in A.D. 410 on his way back to Sicily after the sack of Rome and Legend holds that he was was buried with his treasure in the bed of the River Busento, the waters having been diverted for the occasion and then restored to their natural channel. This legendary event, which was also sung by the German poet August von Platen, originated the myth of a fabulous treasure, booty of Alaric's raids and buried along with him.
Bitterly fought for by the Saracens and the Lombards, the town was destroyed and then rebuilt around 988; it was then ravaged once again at the beginning of the 11th century. During the first half of the same century Calabria became a feudal dukedom of the Normans, with Cosenza as its capital. The town was conquered by Robert Guiscard, but it rebelled against the rule of his half-brother Roger, who managed to restore his authority only after a siege (1087). In the 13C, 14C and 15C the city shifted its loyalties several times in the struggle between the Aragonese and the Angevins, and Louis III of Anjou died here in 1434 while campaigning against the Aragonese.
During the XVI century Cosenza experienced a period of great richness and expansion and it became seat of the Viceroy of Calabria. At the same time its cultural importance grew thanks to the foundation of the Accademia Cosentina; among its most renowned members there were Bernardino Telesio, Aulo Gianni Parrasio, the Martirano brothers, Antonio Serra and others who gave great contribution to the intellectual activity of the town. In 1707 the Austrian succeeded to the Spanish, and in 1799, after the proclamation of the Republic - which was however short-lived - and a vain resistance, the town was finally occupied by Cardinal Ruffo's Lazzari; Cardinal Ruffo was native of the province of Cosenza.
From 1806 to 1815 the name of the town was often mentioned in the chronicles of the South of Italy thanks to the fierce and unequal struggle against the French domination. The riots of 1821 and 1837 ware amongst the first heralds of Italian Risorgimento. They were followed by the uprising of March 15, 1844, which reached its climax with the “noble folly” of the Bandiera Brothers, who were executed together with some of their followers in the Vallone di Rovito in Cosenza. Some months after the rapid and overwhelming Garibaldi's conquest of Calabria, in 1860 a popular plebiscite proclaimed the annexation of Calabria to the new Kingdom of Italy.
It was damaged by earthquakes in 1783, 1854, 1870 and 1905, and frequently bombed in 1943. Today Cosenza is a town of more than 76,000 inhabitants with a remarkable importance from a cultural viewpoint. In the latest years - thanks to the renovationand better exploitation of the historical heritage - cultural activities have been considerably enhanced. Consequently, Cosenza is now a reference point non onlyfor Calabria, but also for other regions.
Churches and Museums
In the winding main street, Corso Telesio, you will find this early Gothic cathedral (consecrated 1222), in which the unhappy Hohenstaufen king Henry VII was buried in 1242; in the north transept is the tomb of Isabella, wife of Philip III of France, who died in Cosenza in 1271.
San Francesco di Paola
San Francesco di Paola, is the patron saint of Calabria. The facade dates to the 16th Century.
Santa Maria degli Angeli
Here is where the saint's relics lie, the church is Gothic in style.
Historical buildings and monuments
From the municipal gardens on the south side of the old town the road climbs northwest to the Castello on the top of Pancrazio Hill (385m/1,271ft; view), with walls 3m/10ft thick which nevertheless were not strong enough to withstand the frequent earthquakes (particularly severe in 1783 and 1905). Constructed by Ruggero il Normanno in the 1600's. The castle is one of the largest footprints the Norman's have left on the Cedri Riviera. The gates around the circumference of the castle are of particular interest and are indicative of the detail that went into all aspects of the construction.
Events
S.Giuseppe Rock Festival - March
Festival delle Invasioni - July
Festa del Vino - October
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Cosenza Travel Guide
Single room - From 55€
Twin room - From 150€
Single room - From 30€