Must-see attractions in Palermo

  • Cappella Palatina in the Palazzo dei Normanni.

    Cappella Palatina

    Palermo

    Designed by Roger II in 1130, this extraordinary chapel is Palermo's top tourist attraction. Located on the middle level of Palazzo dei Normanni's three…

  • Mosaics in the Sala di Ruggero (Hall of King Roger) in the Palazzo dei Normanni (Palazzo Reale).

    Palazzo dei Normanni

    Palermo

    Home to Sicily's regional parliament, this venerable palace dates back to the 9th century. However, it owes its current look (and name) to a major Norman…

  • Cattedrale di Vergine Assunta.

    Cattedrale di Palermo

    Palermo

    A feast of geometric patterns, ziggurat crenellations, maiolica cupolas and blind arches, Palermo's cathedral has suffered aesthetically from multiple…

  • Palermo, Sicily, Italy

    Galleria Regionale della Sicilia

    Palermo

    Housed in the stately 15th-century Palazzo Abatellis, this art museum – widely regarded as Palermo's best – showcases works by Sicilian artists dating…

  • Teatro Massimo at night.

    Teatro Massimo

    Palermo

    Taking over 20 years to complete, Palermo's neoclassical opera house is the largest in Italy and the second-largest in Europe. The closing scene of The…

  • Small snail-like creatures for sale at Ballaro market.

    Mercato di Ballarò

    Palermo

    Snaking for several city blocks southeast of Palazzo dei Normanni is Palermo's busiest street market, which throbs with activity well into the early…

  • Palazzina Cinese & Parco della Favorita

    Palermo

    Once a retreat for King Ferdinand IV and his wife Maria Carolina, this pagoda-inspired pavilion exemplifies the popularity of 'Oriental exotica' in 18th…

  • Pinacoteca Villa Zito

    Palermo

    Elegant 18th-century Villa Zito houses a sharply curated collection of mainly Sicilian-themed art spanning the 17th to 20th centuries. You'll find a…

  • Martorana Church , Palermo, Italy

    La Martorana

    Palermo

    On the southern side of Piazza Bellini, this luminously beautiful 12th-century church was endowed by King Roger's Syrian emir, George of Antioch, and was…

  • Museo dell'Inquisizione

    Palermo

    Housed in the lower floors and basements of 14th-century Palazzo Chiaromonte Steri, this fascinating museum explores the legacy of the Inquisition in…

  • Oratorio di Santa Cita

    Palermo

    This 17th-century chapel showcases the breathtaking stuccowork of Giacomo Serpotta, who famously introduced rococo to Sicilian churches. Note the…

  • Oratorio di San Lorenzo

    Palermo

    The late-16th-century Oratory of St Lawrence features glorious stuccowork by master rococo sculptor Giacomo Serpotta. Capturing scenes from the lives of…

  • Chiesa di San Giuseppe dei Teatini

    Palermo

    In the southwestern corner of the Quattro Canti is this 17th-century church, topped by an elegant cupola designed by Giuseppe Mariani and flanked by the…

  • Pretoria Fountain in Piazza Pretoria with the dome of Church of San Giuseppe dei Teatini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy, Europe

    Fontana Pretoria

    Palermo

    Fringed by imposing churches and buildings, Piazza Pretoria is dominated by the over-the-top Fontana Pretoria, one of Palermo's major landmarks. The…

  • Sculpture outside a greenhouse in an Italian park

    Orto Botanico

    Palermo

    Laid out by Léon Dufourny and Venanzio Marvuglia, this raffish, subtropical paradise shelters massive fig trees, tall palms and dazzling hibiscus bushes,…

  • [UNVERIFIED CONTENT] If you go to Sicily you can't miss the capuchin catacombs of Palermo, something that confirms the ghoulish side of this city. A cemetery that contains 8000 mummies, lined upon walls, lying or standing, skeletons, and perfectly preserved bodies. It was active until 1920, when the last body was interred.

    Catacombe dei Cappuccini

    Palermo

    These catacombs house the mummified bodies and skeletons of some 8000 Palermitans who died between the 17th and 19th centuries. Earthly power, gender,…

  • Quattro Canti

    Palermo

    Officially titled Piazza Vigliena, the elegant intersection of Corso Vittorio Emanuele and Via Maqueda is better known as the Quattro Canti. Marking the…

  • Galleria d'Arte Moderna

    Palermo

    This lovely, wheelchair-accessible museum is housed in a 15th-century palazzo, which metamorphosed into a convent in the 17th century. Divided over three…

  • Chiesa di San Domenico

    Palermo

    The current Chiesa di San Domenico was built in 1640 following the design of architect Andrea Cirrincione; the facade was added in 1726 after the…

  • Museo Diocesano di Palermo

    Palermo

    Palermo's Diocesan Museum is home to an important collection of artworks. The basement hosts a medley of sculptures from the 15th to 18th centuries,…

  • Palazzo Mirto

    Palermo

    Just off Piazza Marina, this palazzo is one of the few in Palermo open to the public. Dating back to the 17th century, the building served as the Palermo…

  • Museo Internazionale delle Marionette

    Palermo

    This whimsical museum houses around 4000 marionettes, puppets, glove puppets and shadow figures from Sicily and Naples, as well as from further-flung…

  • Palazzo Branciforte

    Palermo

    One of Palermo's grandest aristocratic palaces is now an impressive, multi-faceted cultural centre. One-hour guided tours (email ahead for English…

  • Villa Malfitano

    Palermo

    A showcase of Liberty architecture, set in a 9-hectare (22-acre) formal garden planted with rare and exotic species, this villa is most notable for its…

  • Chiesa del Gesù

    Palermo

    Also known as Casa Professa, this is one of Palermo's most breathtaking churches. The Jesuits first built a church on this site between 1564 and 1578…

  • Piazza Bellini

    Palermo

    The disparate architectural styles and eras of the buildings adorning this magnificent piazza should by rights be visually discordant, but in fact…

  • Oratorio dei Bianchi

    Palermo

    The 16th-century 'Oratory of the Whites' obtained its nickname from the white ceremonial gowns worn by its religious guild, whose members comforted…

  • Chiesa Capitolare di San Cataldo

    Palermo

    This 12th-century church in Arab-Norman style is one of Palermo's most striking buildings. With its dusky-pink bijou domes, solid square shape, blind…

  • Pangrel Murals

    Palermo

    What was once a row of dull apartment blocks is now a veritable open-air gallery, its trio of outstanding murals part of the Pangrel urban-renewal…

  • Chiesa di Sant'Agostino

    Palermo

    The centrepiece of the Capo quarter is the Chiesa di Sant'Agostino and its adjoining Augustinian monastery, which ran the region in medieval times. A…

  • Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi

    Palermo

    On a picture-perfect piazza, the much-amended Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi dates back to the 13th century. Remnants from its early history include the…

  • Oratorio di San Domenico

    Palermo

    Dominating this small chapel is Anthony Van Dyck's fantastic blue-and-red altarpiece, The Virgin of the Rosary with St Dominic and the Patronesses of…

  • Museo delle Maioliche

    Palermo

    Lovers of hand-painted Italian maiolica should make a beeline for this unique museum, which contains a superlative private collection of almost 6000 tiles…

  • Chiesa di San Giovanni degli Eremiti

    Palermo

    One of Palermo's finest examples of Arab-Norman architecture, this five-domed, 12th-century church is named for Sicilian hermit-monk and miraculous wolf…

  • Chiesa di Santa Maria di Valverde

    Palermo

    In 1633 this 14th-century Carmelite church underwent a lavish transformation designed by architect Mariano Smiriglio and driven by wealthy Genovese…

  • Falcone & Borsellino Mural

    Palermo

    Sicilian street artists Rosk e Loste (Maurizio Giulio ‘Rosk’ Gebbia and Mirko ‘Loste’ Cavalletto) executed this striking mural of Sicilian anti-mafia…

  • Mercato del Capo

    Palermo

    Running the length of Via Sant'Agostino, Capo's street market is a seething mass of colourful activity during the day, with vendors peddling fruit,…

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