Ancestry Tours in Calabria
Ancestry Tours in Calabria
Reconnect with your Calabrian heritage
What our guests say
To say this was a trip that I’ve always wanted to take would be an understatement. Knowing the deep emotions that would be uncovered and importance of such a pilgrimage could only be entrusted to someone who has a genuine understanding of such a unique service. Tania, herself an Italian of calabrese inheritance, fully understands the depth of the process of reconnecting with our ancestors and heritage.
For six months Tania and I exchanged many emails detailing the expectations of our journey into the past. Each correspondence was met with promptness, and patience, but most importantly an attention to detail. Upon visiting my grandparents villages she advocated firmly for us to gather the information about my family that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life. The meals, the contact with town locals was the intangible in the journey that firmly cemented the experience as we tied together the generational connections that I so greatly sought. Tania and her driver Luca were beyond attentive and accommodating to our entire experience. This experience will now become a part of our family’s story of my grandparent’s migration to America in search of a better life for themselves, and we, the generations that followed. I could not recommend anyone better than Tania in ensuring that this experience of a lifetime would be handled in such a genuine and serious way. We can’t thank her enough and consider a family friend now.
—Julie G, Ancestral Pilgrimage, September 2024
Reconnect with your Calabrian heritage through a personalised ancestry journey. With deep family roots in Calabria and years of experience guiding travelers through this region, I help you explore ancestral towns, local archives and heartfelt discoveries that bring your Italian story to life.
Calabria is more than a destination. For many families, it is the beginning of a story. For over 15 years I have helped travelers from around the world trace their Calabrian roots, uncover family stories, and reconnect with the places where their ancestors once lived. Having Calabrian heritage myself, I understand the emotion that comes with returning to the land of your forebears. Our Ancestry Tours are created with care, empathy and insight to help you rediscover your own family’s story in the most authentic way.
Your journey begins in the villages and towns where your family once lived. Together we visit local archives, churches and town halls to trace original records and documents. Each visit offers an opportunity to uncover details of your family history and to experience the places that shaped their lives.
Beyond research, these tours are about connection. You may meet relatives, speak with locals who remember your family name, or stand before the home where generations once lived. Often there are surprises, small discoveries and moments that cannot be planned, making every tour deeply personal and unique.
Having Calabrian roots myself, I understand the emotions that come with rediscovering your family’s origins. My own family were immigrants too, so I share the empathy and sensitivity that come with this journey. Because I speak fluent Italian and understand the Calabrian way of life, I can bridge both worlds with ease, connecting you with locals, navigating the culture, and opening conversations that often reveal extraordinary stories.
Through many years of hosting ancestry tours and cultural experiences across Calabria, I have learned that no two stories are ever the same. Each family’s journey unfolds in its own way, sometimes with laughter, sometimes with tears, but always with meaning. These moments are what make every ancestry tour so special.
The experience is designed with care and flexibility. Whether you already have some documents or are starting from the beginning, we can assist in preparing the groundwork and arranging visits in your ancestral town. Our local knowledge and long-standing relationships help open doors that are often closed to the general public.
An Ancestry Tour in Calabria offers more than information. It is a journey into your own history, guided by people who understand the language, the culture and the emotion that comes with returning to your roots. Each day is tailored to your story and to the people and places that are part of it.
We look forward to helping you discover your roots in Calabria and to sharing a meaningful journey through the land of your ancestors.
Reviews
Roam800021
July 2025
We had the pleasure of doing both the cooking class and the family history tour, and we couldn’t be happier with our decision. Each experience was incredibly meaningful in its own way—one delightfully delicious, the other deeply moving. We’re so grateful for the care and thought put into both. Thank you for everything!
Goshen Guy
June 2025
I recently returned from a wonderful & memorable trip to visit my father’s birthplace in a small town located in Calabria. I was lucky enough to find Tania & her company In Italy Tours & couldn’t have been more pleased. Communication upfront during the planning of our trip was excellent as Tania was extremely responsive. The itinerary for the day of our tour was well planned and we were able to visit the town hall and obtain a number of official documents. We enjoyed a tour of the town with the deputy mayor and concluded with a delicious lunch comprised of local dishes that was arranged for us by Tania and that we all loved.
Robyn S
April 2024
Our Tropea trip, a dream we had nurtured for four years, was made even more special by Tania and In Italy Tours. With her wealth of knowledge and genuine care, Tania made every step of our journey memorable. The highlight was, of course, the visit to my grandparents’ ancestral town in Stefanaconi. It is a day that I will never forget and cherish forever. When we stopped at a local restaurant, Tania, through her communication with the proprietor, discovered we were distant relatives. Subsequently, we contacted another cousin who invited us to spend a day with them. Tania rearranged her schedule so that she could join us as our interpreter. She was wonderful! There were over 12 people at one point, and she masterfully bridged all the communication. We could not have done it without her.
Although our trip to Tropea included ancestral tours, Tania also arranged other excursions for us. We spent a wonderful evening with Daniele and Laura at their farmhouse and learned how to cook traditional Calabrian food. It was a fantastic experience, and the food was incredibly delicious. We also visited other local towns and beaches and had a special lunch in Pizzo. Not only was Tania our tour guide and interpreter, but she truly cared and made us feel like we were her family. We are so fortunate to find Tania and In Italy Tours, and we highly recommend her services. We thank her for making our visit to Calabria a trip of a lifetime.t cousin who is 87 and lives in Acquaro Calabria. We started with a stay in Tropea and an amazing cooking class hosted by Daniela and Laura. Tania arranged transportation for a day trip to Acquaro. We were traveling from California as a family of seven, including my two grandsons who are 11 and 13. Tania goes above and beyond the call of duty. I would highly recommend her and look forward to our next visit.
October 2023
I don’t know where to even begin. Tania was absolutely fabulous from the moment we contacted her months before our trip. She helped to facilitate and act as interpreter for a first time meeting with my mother who is 82 and her first cousin who is 87 and lives in Acquaro Calabria. We started with a stay in Tropea and an amazing cooking class hosted by Daniela and Laura. Tania arranged transportation for a day trip to Acquaro. We were traveling from California as a family of seven, including my two grandsons who are 11 and 13. Tania goes above and beyond the call of duty. I would highly recommend her and look forward to our next visit.
Chris D
October 2023
We came across Tania while searching for genealogy tours in Calabria. She went above and beyond to make this trip perfect for the three of us. She took care of our lodging, all our transportation, took us to lunch at a farmhouse, set up a cooking class, and kept an eye on the weather so she could move our outdoor class to a sunny day and avoid the rain. She did research on the town my ancestors came from, and set up the tour to visit. She was as excited to see the town with us as we were to be there. You can tell that she truly loves her job!
malto
Danville, CA
This Tour Company is Fabulous and Has So Much to Offer!
May 2023
Tania was incredible and so were her drivers! We did 2 tours with Tania 2 days in a row. First a farm to table cooking course that included us eating everything they cooked and we helped prepare. The family that hosted, Laura and Daniele were so warm and welcoming and the food was wonderful. The next day we did Tania’s ancestry tour for my husband’s family that are from Rogliano, Calabria. Months in advance, I sent Tania the Italian birth certificate of my husbands grandfather born in Rogliano, the commune did their research and it turned into a day I can’t even fully explain. We went on such a beautiful journey through this historic and artful village and found such amazing people and connections along the way. The day ended with a delicious lunch at a wonderful restaurant where the Chef/Mama came out to greet us. The entire two days felt like we were family and I cannot thank Tania enough for this beautiful and heartfelt experience!!!
KarenW
Amazing ancestry and cooking tour
June 2022
Our family of 4 (myself, my husband and our 2 sons who are in their early 20’s) had an experience of a lifetime with Tania as our guide and translator and Luca as our driver. My husband’s grandparents are from Maida, a small town in Calabria. We sent Tania information about his family and she went to Maida a few weeks before we arrived to find birth certificates and make contact with locals to show us around. She even contacted some of my husband’s Italian cousins who met up with us. With Tania’s help we were able to find the house my husband’s grandfather grew up in and also his great grandfather’s tomb in the mausoleum. Everyone in Maida was so friendly and we had a great experience there with Tania as our translator. She then took us to a restaurant nearby where in addition to a delicious lunch we got a tour of how they produced olive oil. We had another wonderful experience with Tania the next day when our family had a private outdoor cooking class using many fresh ingredients from Laura and Daniele’s farm. Laura is an amazing cook and we’ve already made some of the new recipes. We also really enjoyed learning about the different fruit trees- olives, lemons, cherries, etc, etc. They are a super nice couple and Tania did a great job helping us communicate with them. Tania’s tours are based in Tropea a very beautiful old walkable seaside town with lots of Italian but no American tourists (except us!) We loved the hotel she set up for us. We could walk everywhere and it served a delicious breakfast with a great view on their terrace every morning. I highly recommend touring with Tania! She will make sure you have a wonderful experience!
Thank you so much for the wonderful trip in the beautiful region of Calabria! We appreciate all the help in finding family in Sersale. It was very emotional to meet family. The people there were amazing, the scenery was beautiful and the food was simply fantastic! Everyone was so kind and helpful to us on our mission to find family. It was a trip of a lifetime. You helped make a dream come true for Dad! We all had such a great time. We have other relatives that are interested in traveling to Sersale to do the same. We have told them about your services and highly recommend they contact you!! Thanks again for such a wonderful time. It was such a pleasure meeting you, Vito, Maria, Enzo and Edo. We will forever treasure the friendships that we have developed. Look forward to making another trip and seeing more of such a beautiful country and your company as well. You really went above and beyond any expectations we had!
Thanks again,
Terri Lepera Ziepfel and family
