For an introspective journey, in touch with nature, art and spirituality, Serra San Bruno is the ideal place.
Situated on the uplands of the Serre in the Vibo Valentia province, between centuries-old beech trees and white spruces, this tiny Calabrian town hosts the Carthusian Monastery of Serra San Bruno.
The abbey has a history dating over a thousand years and was the first Carthusian convent in Italy. The monastery is of significant religious and historical interest and operates as a closed order, just as it has done for centuries. The only link to the “modern world” is the museum created in 1994.
In the large square the Miracle Pool can be seen, with a statue of San Bruno immersed at its centre. The whole village, including its Churches, Monasteries and Charterhouses, has a profound feeling of mysticism and deep spirituality.
Legends and truth intermingle here: for years people maintained that the famous physicist Ettore Majorana had sought refuge here (after mysteriously disappearing) along with the pilot who bombed Hiroshima.
The main advice we would give you in visiting Serra San Bruno is to make sure you go for a walk along the paths of the Archiforo forest. It is here, amongst the most famous of its paths, that you can get to the Lord’s Stone, an enormous granite monolith which looks as if it is floating. In addition to its rich biodiversity, the wood is home to the biggest fir tree in Europe.
