September 28, 2026, 5:22 am | Read time: 3 minutes
At the TRAVELBOOK Award 2026 on September 22 in Berlin, the most beautiful wine region in Europe was among the categories awarded. Five picturesque wine regions were in the running, each more beautiful than the last. Competing for the title were Germany’s Ahr Valley, Georgia’s Kakheti, Dealu Mare in Romania, Valais in Switzerland, and Italy’s Calabria. We introduce them to you in this text.
Calabria in Italy
Italy is a popular vacation destination that attracts masses of tourists every year. One region that is not yet overly crowded is southern Italy’s Calabria, the toe of the country’s boot. It entices with typically Italian villages, picturesque landscapes with olive and orange groves, proximity to the sea–thanks to a coastline of more than 700 kilometers–and scenic wine-growing areas. These cover about 9,000 hectares of the Italian region and are often located near the coast and at elevations between the Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas.
Calabria’s Wine Culture
Calabria is one of the country’s oldest wine-growing regions. Wine has been produced here for more than 3,000 years. According to the website Winetourism.com, the origins of Calabrian wines trace back to the Oenotrians, who lived in the region during the Bronze and Iron Ages. They were followed by the ancient Greeks, who called the region “Enotria,” the “land of wine.” The popular Cirò wine today dates back to their ancient viticulture. It is made from locally grown Gaglioppo grapes. According to the wine magazine “Vinum,” Cirò Rosso and Cirò Bianco are Calabria’s most important export products.
The local wine landscape consists of various wineries offering vineyard tours, wine tastings, and cellar tours. Visitors can immerse themselves in Calabria’s millennia-old winemaking tradition. Additionally, wine festivals are regularly held in the region.
Germany’s Ahr Valley Is Europe’s Most Beautiful Wine Region
Kakheti in Georgia Is One of the Most Beautiful Wine Regions in Europe
What to Experience in Calabria, Italy
Calabria is much more than just a beautiful wine-growing area where you can drink wine and stroll through vine-covered hills. Calabria combines an authentically beautiful Italian vacation with a wine-focused journey. The region delights visitors with its authentically Italian lifestyle, small villages, historic churches and monasteries, and not least its seaside location and various picturesque beaches. Wine enthusiasts can easily combine their wine-tasting tours with a beach vacation.
There are numerous attractions to discover in Calabria. These include the Cathedral of Santa Maria dell’Isola in the cliffside town of Tropea and the Sila National Park, itself part of the UNESCO World Heritage, of which Calabria has several sites. The picturesque village of Chianalea di Scilla, the cave church of Piedigrotta, and many other buildings, beaches, villages, and towns are also popular.
For all the information on the other contenders for the title of Europe’s most beautiful wine region, visit TRAVELBOOK.
Methodology for the TRAVELBOOK Award
Once again this year, we say: All nominated regions, countries, and others in the TRAVELBOOK Awards are already winners. Even if they didn’t achieve overall victory. This also applies to the wine region of Calabria in Italy. Because: Every travel destination had already made it to the shortlist in advance, meaning it was selected from a large number of contenders in a category.
The TRAVELBOOK editorial team asked the community on Facebook and Instagram for help and consulted experts from the travel industry to create the shortlist. For the first time this year, not only TRAVELBOOK readers but also BILD readers voted. In total, more than 150,000 votes were cast to determine the trending travel destinations for 2027.