What is Laino Borgo known for?

Sixteen pilgrimage chapels begun 1557 by Domenico Longo after a Holy Land journey, the only Sacro Monte in southern Italy. Southern Italy's main rafting centre, descents through a 200-meter canyon on the river Lao from spring through autumn. Aglio di Laino Borgo, a strongly flavoured Calabrian garlic, paired with Città della Nocciola hazelnut groves on the surrounding slopes.

Where is Laino Borgo?

Laino Borgo is a comune in the province of Cosenza, Calabria region of Italy, about 151 kilometers from Salerno.

Calabria · Cosenza

Laino Borgo

Southern Italy's only Sacro Monte, sixteen pilgrimage chapels begun in 1557, on the Lao river canyon that made it Calabria's rafting capital.

582m

Elevation

151 km / 94 mi

Nearest hub (Salerno)

1,705

Population

Apr–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Why come

Laino Borgo sits at 582 meters on the border between Calabria and Basilicata, at the entrance of the Pollino National Park, Italy's largest protected area and a UNESCO Geopark since 2015. The name traces to the river Lao, after the ancient Greek city of Laüs founded on the Tyrrhenian coast below. The signature site is the Santuario delle Cappelle, the only Sacro Monte in southern Italy: sixteen small chapels begun in 1557 by Domenico Longo on his property after a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, depicting scenes from the Bethlehem grotto to the Crucifixion. The Lao runs through a 200-meter canyon below the village and made Laino Borgo the main rafting and canoeing centre of southern Italy; outfitters launch from a wooden bridge near Piazza Navarro from spring through autumn. Garlic, hazelnuts and the Norman Castle ruins on the upper edge of the centro storico fill the rest of the picture. The commune is a Borgo Autentico d'Italia.

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Known for

Santuario delle Cappelle (Sacro Monte)
Only Sacro Monte in southern Italy, sixteen pilgrimage chapels begun in 1557 by Domenico Longo after a journey to the Holy Land.
Rafting on the Lao river
Main rafting and canoeing centre of southern Italy, with descents through a 200-meter canyon, launches from a wooden bridge near Piazza Navarro.
Castello Normanno
Norman castle ruins on the upper edge of the centro storico, a vantage point over the Lao valley and the Pollino slopes opposite.
Chiesa Madre dello Santo Spirito
Mother church of the village in the historic centre, with a fourteenth-century San Nicola chapel preserving early-medieval traces.
Pollino National Park entrance
Western entrance to Italy's largest national park and UNESCO Geopark since 2015, with trails into the Lao river valley and the Orsomarso ridges.

When to visit

Best months · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

April through June and September into October are the months the Lao runs at workable rafting levels and the Pollino trails open. July and August reach the mid-thirties in the canyon, though the river itself stays cold and the rafting outfitters run their busiest weeks. The Sacro Monte pilgrimage path, walked between the sixteen chapels, fills around 8 September for the feast of the Madonna dello Spasimo. November through March is quiet: many outfitters close, the Pollino road network can ice over above 800 meters and the Castello ruins are best from a distance through winter fog.