Pizzo, in Calabria, has been crowned the European capital of ice cream, surpassing famous destinations such as Copenhagen and Cornwall. This recognition comes from a study that analyzed various parameters such as the density of ice cream parlors compared to the population (in Pizzo there are 19 locations for around 8,700 inhabitants), the number of five-star reviews, the average of the votes that customers have assigned on Tripadvisor and the volume of searches on Google. This ranking was published ahead of National Ice Cream Day, which for 2026 will be Sunday, July 19.
Pizzo’s success comes from its famous Tartufo, which is a hazelnut and chocolate ice cream, dusted with cocoa, with a heart of melted chocolate inside. There are numerous renowned ice cream parlors in the center of Pizzo: from the most recent to the one opened in 1901, to those who have “invented” a new recipe such as the “stuffed hazelnut” or to those who make creative presentations, such as ice cream spaghetti.
The research also drew up a European ranking that sees Copenhagen in second place, famous for its “guf”, followed by Cornwall, renowned for the use of the dense local “clotted cream”. The top ten continues with Malaga, Munich, Valletta, Krakow, San Gimignano, Reykjavík and Nice. With a score of 41.5, Pizzo occupies third place nationally, behind Rome and Naples. Pizzo also surpasses cities such as Florence (37.6) and Milan (33.2). While Rome and Naples remain symbols of classical art, Pizzo remains the true excellence of the ice cream art.