Tocco – Day 3

Monday 1st June 2026

Today we explored Tocco in the morning. We drove up to the Convent, Convento di Santa Maria del Paradiso is a Franciscan monastery and dates back to the 15th century.

Back to town to explore around the Church of Saint Eustace and the castle.  The church is no longer in use as it was damaged in the 2009 earthquake, however there is another church from where the bells toll every 15 minutes during the daylight hours.

The castle is uninhabitable although that is not due to the recent earthquake.  It was abandoned many years ago but now there are some restoration works currently under way.

Leaving Tocco behind we drove north to Santo Stefano di Sessanio, the 14th century medieval village on a hilltop. Originally a thriving town for the local agricultural and sheep farming families it developed into a prosperous trade route for the wool trade. In the mid 1800’s, following the unification of Italy the village slipped into economic decline. In more recent times an Italian Swedish entrepreneur has bought up a considerable portion of the village and has commenced extensive restoration works, as was evident with the many tower cranes scattered across the skyline. Former ancient peasant dwellings have been transformed into boutique accommodation venues, cafes, bars and gift shops, whilst retaining the ancient look and feel from the outside. It is normal for the cafe or bar to have only enough room inside for a kitchen and a counter whilst all of the sit-down dining is external. In our case we walked across the roadway and down to another level and enjoyed the views across the valley on a narrow lookout area. We were served some wonderful local cheeses and meats accompanied by wine. What a trek for the wait staff having to bring the food at least 100 metres from the kitchen, negotiating their way around the other visitors, across the rough cobblestones and then down the steep steps to us!  Fortunately, we had our guide Lucio to take us through the winding narrow streets, under stone arches and up stairways and passageways as we explored the village that cannot accommodate cars. It would be so easy to be lost forever, or so it felt.

We made our way back to Tocco and took some time out before all meeting up at the Lost Pub. It’s on the edge of town, which means the edge of a cliff and that provided a great viewpoint whilst enjoying local wine, beer, pizzas and loud music.