Villa San Giovanni: the port for Sicily, the Strait and the beaches of Cannitello

Villa San Giovanni is where mainland Italy ends and the water that leads to Sicily begins. Between Punta Pezzo and the Sicilian shore at Capo Peloro the Strait of Messina narrows to just over three kilometres, and all the traffic between the island and the rest of the country has always crossed this stretch of sea: ferries loaded with cars and lorries, fast passenger-only craft, even the carriages of night trains, which are pushed into a ship’s hold and carried across to Messina.

Around the port, though, there is a town of twelve thousand people, with a long seafront, a seaside hamlet called Cannitello and a view that on clear days reaches Mount Etna and the Aeolian Islands. Villa marks the southern end of the Costa Viola: Scilla is a few minutes away by road, Reggio Calabria a quarter of an hour by train.

This guide gathers what you need to use Villa San Giovanni as a starting point, and to stop here rather than simply pass through.

The port and the ferries to Messina

Villa San Giovanni is the port where the Strait is crossed at its shortest point: between Punta Pezzo and Capo Peloro the water measures just over three kilometres. The Messina route is worked by Caronte & Tourist, a private company, and by Bluferries, part of the Ferrovie dello Stato group; both load cars, campervans and heavy goods vehicles alongside foot passengers, with sailings spread across all twenty-four hours. The crossing to Messina takes about twenty minutes, long enough to go up on deck, watch Calabria recede and see the Sicilian shore grow closer. Travellers without a vehicle can also use the fast craft of Blu Jet, reserved for passengers only, which cover the same distance in a similar time and berth near the centre of Messina. The practical difference lies there: with a car you enter the port, queue in the marked lanes and drive aboard; on foot you go through the passenger terminal and board as you would a bus.

The station and the trains that board the ferry

Villa San Giovanni station has been in service since 1884, and since 1905 it has been linked to the loading berth by a spur built specifically to run carriages onto ships. It is one of the few Italian stations where the train does not end its journey: Intercity and Intercity Notte services bound for Palermo, Catania, Taormina and Siracusa are split into sections, pushed into the ferry’s hold and carried across to Messina, a manoeuvre that takes around half an hour and during which passengers can go up on deck for air. The scene has repeated itself daily for more than a century and has no equivalent elsewhere in Western Europe. On the Tyrrhenian line the station is also served by Frecce and regional trains, and it remains the reference stop for anyone arriving from the north: Reggio Calabria is barely a quarter of an hour away by train, heading south.

The seafront, Cannitello and the beaches

Behind the port, Villa San Giovanni has a seafront that looks straight across at Sicily and fills with strollers in the evening, while lit-up ferries slide across the water a few hundred metres away. The town’s seaside face, though, lies further north at Cannitello: a hamlet facing the Strait where the houses come almost down to the shoreline and the pebble beach drops steeply into deep, clear water, with the beach clubs concentrated along the front. The same shore continues through Acciarello, Punta Pezzo and Porticello, the last a cove among the rocks where the territory of Scilla begins and where swordfish hunting from long-bowed boats is still a trade. These are shingle beaches, not fine sand: the water is clean and cool because the currents keep stirring it, and the shipping traffic stays part of the view.

The pylons of the Strait and the view of Sicily

Above Cannitello, on the hill of Santa Trada, a steel lattice tower rises that looks out of scale with the landscape. It is the Calabrian pylon of the power line that from 1955 carried electricity to Sicily, leaping the Strait with an aerial span of 3,646 metres, at the time the longest in the world. Its Sicilian twin at Torre Faro was inaugurated in May 1956 and stands 224 metres tall plus eleven of base; the Villa San Giovanni one is identical, but sits on a 165-metre promontory, so its tip reaches some four hundred metres above the sea. The overhead cables were replaced by an undersea link in 1985 and dismantled in 1992: the two towers were left standing as protected monuments and are the visual landmark of the Strait. From this height the geography of the channel becomes clear: Sicily within eyeshot, Etna on the horizon on clear days, the Aeolian Islands to the north-west and currents that ruffle the water against the breeze.

What you eat in Villa San Giovanni

The cooking here belongs to the Strait, and revolves around swordfish, which in the warm months moves up the channel and is caught from boats with long overhanging gangways. You will find it grilled, rolled with breadcrumbs and onion, or alla ghiotta, stewed with capers, olives and tomato. Beside it comes the everyday oily fish: anchovies marinated or floured and fried, sardines, mackerel, often served with red onion and aubergine. Cannitello has a recognised restaurant tradition, with long-established seafood kitchens along the road that runs beside the sea. On the sweet and citrus side comes bergamot, grown almost exclusively along this coastal strip between Villa San Giovanni and the Ionian side of the Reggio area, which ends up in creams, ice creams and liqueurs. To drink, the whites and reds of the Reggio province, often from vines planted above the sea.

How to get to Villa San Giovanni

By car you arrive on the A2 Autostrada del Mediterraneo, the former Salerno–Reggio Calabria: the exit is Villa San Giovanni, and from there a dedicated link road leads straight to the port’s loading ramps without crossing the town centre. Reggio Calabria lies about fifteen kilometres to the south, Scilla about ten to the north, Bagnara Calabra under twenty. By train the station sits on the Tyrrhenian line and is served by Frecce, Intercity and regional services, with Reggio Calabria barely a quarter of an hour away. The nearest airport is Reggio Calabria’s, around twenty kilometres by motorway; Lamezia Terme, which has the most national and international connections, is about a hundred and twenty kilometres away, a little over an hour by car, and can also be reached by direct train since the airport has its own station on the Tyrrhenian line. In town the centre, the port and the station are close together and easily walked; Cannitello and the other hamlets need a car or the local bus.

What to see nearby

Villa San Giovanni sits at the southern end of the Costa Viola and at the mouth of the Strait area, which makes it a convenient base in two directions. Northwards, ten kilometres of coast road are enough to reach Scilla, with the Ruffo castle on its spur and the fishing quarter of Chianalea; a little further on lie the coves of Favazzina beneath the high cliffs, then Bagnara Calabra and Palmi. Southwards there is Reggio Calabria, with the Falcomatà seafront and the museum that holds the Riace Bronzes, two Greek bronze statues of the fifth century BC recovered from the sea off the Locride coast in 1972. Inland, the road climbs quickly towards the Aspromonte: from Villa you can reach Gambarie in under an hour, moving from the sea to beech woods. And twenty minutes of ferry away there is Messina, with its cathedral square and astronomical clock.

Where to stay: holiday homes in Villa San Giovanni and on the Costa Viola

Staying in Villa San Giovanni or in the nearby villages of the Costa Viola means having the port, the station and the motorway a few minutes away, and being free of timetables: breakfast with a view of the Strait, a day in Sicily and back in the evening, or the sea at Cannitello and dinner in the village. Our places on the Costa Viola range from one-bedroom flats for two to spacious apartments for families and groups, many with a balcony, a sea view or a short walk from the seafront, all with their own kitchen so you can organise the day as you like. From here Scilla, Bagnara, Palmi and the Aspromonte are all within easy reach. Check availability and send us a direct enquiry: we will help you pick the right home for your trip.

Frequently asked questions about Villa San Giovanni

How long does the ferry from Villa San Giovanni to Messina take?
The crossing takes about twenty minutes. Sailings are spread across all twenty-four hours and are run by Caronte & Tourist and Bluferries.

Can you cross the Strait without a car?
Yes. Besides the ferries, which also take foot passengers, there are the fast Blu Jet craft reserved for passengers only; the terminal is a few minutes’ walk from the station.

How do you get to Sicily by train from Villa San Giovanni?
The Intercity and Intercity Notte services to Palermo, Catania, Taormina and Siracusa are loaded onto the ferry: the crossing takes about half an hour and travellers can stay on board or go up on deck.

What are the beaches of Villa San Giovanni like?
They are shingle and pebble beaches with seabeds that drop away quickly, concentrated at Cannitello, Acciarello and Punta Pezzo. The water is clear and cool because the currents of the Strait keep stirring it.

What are the two giant towers you see across the Strait?
They are the pylons of the power line that from 1955 carried electricity to Sicily: the Calabrian one stands on the hill of Santa Trada above Cannitello, its twin is at Torre Faro. They have been out of service since 1985 and are now protected monuments.

How far is Villa San Giovanni from Scilla and Reggio Calabria?
Scilla is about ten kilometres north, Reggio Calabria about fifteen south; both are around twenty minutes away by car, and are also linked by train.

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