Beach Scalea

[buttermint]

Hi All
I know this may sound a funny question to ask but, I was wondering if anyone can direct me left or right on the coast line to the sandy parts of scalea beach or beyond? As Scalea town beach is very stoney, and we have a 15th mth baby!
We haven't had chance to check out the coast line much, as each time we have visited we have not had use a car, but this visit we will have hired one, so don't mind a little drive out!
Regards Jackie

[Mrs Teapot]

Hi Buttermint,

I'd also like some directions to sandy beaches, the nearer the better to the town centre.

Mrs T

[patmc]

There are sandy beaches in Scalea.

There is a free one 300 meters from my place. It's beside Lido Alba, almost in front of Hotel Felix. It's grey, like almost all the beaches in the area, but soft and sandy. There is a yellow sandy beach on the South side of Diamante.

I will attempt to attach a photograph of the one near me, but am not too good at this sort of thing.

PatMc

[Helena&Jerry]

Great photo .... thanks for the reminder of what's up ahead.

[Mrs Teapot]

Wow, thanks Pat.

Great photo.

Mrs T x

[maisy]

There are also some nice beaches on the way back to Lamezia I think it is called Cirella
its where you see a lot of people camping and they have running water and toilets and
normally it is not very crowded
Maisy

[buttermint]

Thanks folks for your very helpful info and great picture Pat! A sight for sore eyes for sure!
regards Jackie

[forzascalea]

Hi,

We have a dark sandy beach at the bottom of our road on the SS18 between Scalea and Santa Maria del Cedro (at the turnoff for Marcellina) just before entering SMDC from Scalea.

In the summer there is a good lido there, if you want a free beach there is one next door.

regards, David

[Margaret]

Hi - got a horrible feeling that I may be sounding like that policeman who recently refused to get on a bicycle to have his photo taken because it hadn't been passed by Health and Safety or something but after seeing all the comments about swimming pools not being open and such I thought I'd get a thought down here in a sort of better safe than sorry vein. Where I've been swimming at Scalea there's always been quite a steep shelf so that only a yard or so into the sea you're out of your depth. I don't know what it's like at other beaches around but it could be quite dangerous with a child or non-swimmer - whereas most swimming pools have a very shallow area. Maybe it would be an idea if people wrote here where the sea seems fairly safe. The only other place I've been in the sea in Calabria was at Capo Vaticano and I could compare that with the sea here at home - we're near the N Cornwall coast, nuff said - so a lot of the beaches here are not for toddlers - although there are some that are. I learnt to swim at a beach in Devon where you had to walk out half a mile to reach toddler shoulder level - are there any like that around Scalea? If not I would have said a swimming pool was a better bet. I wouldn't use a swimming pool with the sea so near but I'm an adult. Just a thought.

[claire tudge]

We took our daughter last october for her 21st birthday and she purchased loads of diving equipment, but when we spoke to Tony Hacket about safe swimming he forewarned us that it can be quite dangerous in Scalea, any more advice would be useful, hasten to say we now have unused diving equipment at our apartment as it scared us a bit

[buttermint]

Thanks for your advice!
I must admit the few times we have been down to the beach the sea was exciting to see, but rough! And there was a heavy undertow.
All your comments are so helpful, i'll pay a bit more attention to where we go, obviously not letting little man go near the water on his own!
Regards Jackie

[Di]

Hi Claire,

I noted your comment on the Beach in Scalea. It seems extreme not to go in at all...so I was curious just what dangers was Tony warning of? Forewarned is fore-armed and knowledge is power, and how many cliches can I use at once?

[claire tudge]

Not sure, will try and find out more

[Doug]

Originally Posted by claire tudge

We took our daughter last october for her 21st birthday and she purchased loads of diving equipment, but when we spoke to Tony Hacket about safe swimming he forewarned us that it can be quite dangerous in Scalea, any more advice would be useful, hasten to say we now have unused diving equipment at our apartment as it scared us a bit

Hi Claire,

If your daughter does not want that equipment, we may be interested if it is high quality stuff. We are both into snorkling. Di is a certified diver (scuba), but we are not interested in pursuing that expensive sport. Maybe when we are both in the area at the same time we could check it out and possibly buy it from you if you're sure you don't want it. We could use it for guests.

We had a lovely experience at the San Nicola beach for snorkling and general swimming. Yeah, the bottom drops-off fast. One of the reasons we jumped at the idea of moving to the Scalea area is that lovely sea. It is as clear and warm as Hawaii and a bajillion times cheaper!! We hear there are sea turtles, black corral reefs and other cool things to see and eventually we'll get to them. Our dog loves swimming, but has not tried salt water yet. He'll love it.

John, I have to say that if you don't like the sea, you need to take a new avatar photo for the forum. Perhaps one of you at poolside with a Pina Colada with little umbrella, maybe a martini James Bond style?? You DO have a tux for social events in Calabria right??!!

Oh, we too skipped spring and went from having fresh snow on the mountain last Monday to 83F/30C here for two days. Can't wait to get there.

Ciao, Doug

[Mrs Teapot]

Thanks to all those who highlighted the dangers of the beach. Whilst it might for some it won't be fine for those with young children or non-confident swimmers.

So, whereabouts on the Scalea coast does it not drop to out of your depth quite quickly?

I have only swum in the Tropea/Parghelia region and that is great, but haven't swum around Scalea (yet).

Mrs T

[forzascalea]

I dive as well, you must try snorkeling at Baia del Carpino, as its all rocky there are loads of little nooks and crannys in rocks for fish to hide. Also outside of July and August this private little spot is deserted.

[pompeyron]

For my two pence worth, I liked the beaches in Scalea. Its stony as stated and a bit tough on the feet but the water is worth the effort

[Margaret]

I too like the beach at Scalea as I'd rather have a pebbly beach and am glad it goes deep fairly quickly but I am an adult and can swim. A beach that shelves quickly is not a good idea for children or non-swimmers. Maybe over the summer people could post experiences of different beaches. Here at home our nearest beach is good for experienced surfers, down the coast a bit is a large sandy beach good for kids. The Cornish beaches can be very dangerous but there's a lot of info on the web - plus tide timetable available everywhere and most of them overflowing with lifeguards. Although I guess the Mediterranean is not as bad as the Atlantic coast it's still looked pretty rough at times. Better safe etc. Sorry again if I sound like a PITA H&S bod!

[Doug]

As everyone probably knows, summer is coming to Calabria to catch up with Ireland. Today was 85F/30C on the beach and the water was 74F/24C. Not as warm as last June, but pretty nice after the initial shock!

We did the far north end of the Scalea beach yesterday as it is a tad bit more private, but only a tad! The pebbles are ok if you have cheap sandles to wear to water's edge -- very hot gravel.

Today we tried the south of Diamante. If you have a car, these are very nice SAND beaches. A little bit of sea swell made for fun wave bashing that the kids were liking, but still not anywhere near as rough as the Atlantic/Pacific beaches we have done. About 24 K from Scalea. Pull off at the very sudden-appearing Diamante Sud exit, bear right under railroad to the beach area. Nice restaurant with public and commercial beach area where you first arrive. We tried the north end of this complex where there are 3 commercial folks and plenty of free areas. The umbrellas cost about E10 per day, but if going the budget route, you can buy snacks and drinks that will buy you access to the toilets which were nice and clean. This area probably gets more busy in August, but was much nicer and quieter than Scalea at today's date. Each of the lidi had about a dozen umbrellas compared to the big operations in Scalea.

We're pulling out Wed after some chores, so no more beach opportunities this time. Next year we'll spend a lot of time working our way up the coast looking for all the deals.