The patrons of Gerace are celebrated on 23 August. The town, today awarded the Touring Club Italiano's Orange Flag, managed to withstand Arab attacks for a long time and maintain a degree of autonomy even against the Normans, who around 1050 rebuilt and fortified its castle: today a large tower and some walls remain, partly carved out of the rock and partly perched over the surrounding ravines, once fitted with rainwater channels, a large well and a drawbridge.
At the heart of the town stands the co-cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, enriched by imperial commissions, such as the Chapel of San Giuseppe from the Hohenstaufen period, and royal ones, with Norman works that also involved the castle and other town churches, including that of San Francesco, commissioned by Charles II of Anjou in 1294. Of the twelve gates that once opened onto the walls of the old town, only four survive, including Porta dei Vescovi, or della Meridiana, next to the co-cathedral. Piazza del Tocco, overlooked by noble palaces such as Palazzo Calcheopulo and Palazzo Migliaccio, and an old fountain from 1606 in the Borgo quarter complete the picture of one of Calabria's best-preserved historic centres.
