Gambarie

Gambarie is a mountain settlement in the Aspromonte National Park, set below Monte Scirocco. Established as a ski resort in the 1950s, it is also associated with the park’s woodland landscape and routes toward Montalto.

Why it matters

Gambarie is a mountain frazione of Santo Stefano in Aspromonte and lies within the national park. The regional tourism authority describes it as the first ski station in southern Italy, founded in 1956. Its position on the massif links the settlement with both the Aspromonte landscape and the Strait of Messina, visible from the surrounding heights.

What to notice

Monte Scirocco and Monte Nardello define the area of the ski resort. The park’s woods also support winter and summer outdoor recreation, while the regional authority notes the presence of the black squirrel with its distinctive pale underside. In warmer months the emphasis shifts to the mountain paths and routes toward Montalto, the massif’s highest summit.

Context and history

Gambarie’s resort history began in the mid-1950s. The surrounding Aspromonte also preserves older religious and working landscapes, including the Romitorio di San Silvestro and the remains of the Abbazia di San Giovanni in Castagneto. Santo Stefano in Aspromonte commemorates the 1847 raising of the tricolour with its Festa della Bandiera. These layers of mountain, religious and civic history frame Gambarie’s more recent development as a resort settlement.