Must-see attractions in Sicily
Tyrrhenian Coast
Founded in 648 BC by Greeks from Zankle (now Messina), the ruined city of Himera is rather disappointing compared with other Greek sites around Sicily…
Palermo Region
Corleone's small anti-Mafia museum recounts the terrifying history of Sicily's Cosa Nostra crime syndicate, focusing on the brave efforts of the anti…
Palermo Region
About 20km east of Palermo are the partially excavated remains of the Hellenistic Roman town of Solunto, founded in the 4th century BC on the site of an…
Ragusa
One of the best reasons for heading up to Ragusa's modern and less-attractive half is to walk down again. It takes about half an hour to descend the…
Complesso Monumentale San Pietro
Marsala
Housed in a beautifully restored 15th-century convent, this arts centre is home to an intriguing complex of small museums. Most noteworthy is the upstairs…
Santuario della Madonna del Tindari
Tyrrhenian Coast
This enormous church can be seen from miles around: it sits right on Capo Tindari, its dome glistening in the sun. A sanctuary was built here in the 16th…
Catania
One of Italy's great opera composers, Vincenzo Bellini was born in Catania in 1801. The house he grew up in has since been converted into this museum,…
Western Sicily
Walk west about 20 minutes from the acropolis across the now-dry river Modione (formerly the Selinon), then up a dirt path, and you'll reach the ravaged…
Chiesa di San Giorgio dei Genovesi
Palermo
Sporting an elegant Renaissance-style facade, this church was built between 1575 and 1591 to a design by Piedmontese architect Giorgio di Faccio. A simple…
Catania
Le Ciminiere is a modern museum complex housed in a converted sulphur refinery. The most interesting of its museums is the Museo Storico dello Sbarco in…
Western Sicily
It's impossible to miss the town's 15th-century church, a lumbering stone construction more evocative of a defensive fortress or jail than sacred place of…
Ionian Coast
Located beneath a 17th-century Capuchin monastery, Savoca's small catacomb is considered one of Sicily's most significant. Its mummified corpses date back…
Modica
The Museo Civico houses a modest collection of archaeological finds from Modica and Cava d'Ispica, dating back to the neolithic period. The most prized of…
Erice
Built by the Normans in the 11th century, this church later underwent extensive reconstruction, including the addition of an 18th-century baroque bell…
Western Sicily
With its glistening cluster of emerald-green, ceramic-tiled domes, the cathedral is an imposing sight. Originally dating to the 11th century, it was…
Santuario della Madonna delle Lacrime
Syracuse
Supposedly modelled on the shape of a tear drop, the 102m-high spire of this church dominates modern Syracuse's skyline. The church itself houses a statue…
Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore
Central Sicily
A reconstruction of a 13th-century church destroyed by a landslide in 1757, the current Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore made its debut in 1767…
Catania
The Museo Emilio Greco hosts a large collection of sketches by renowned Italian artist Emilio Greco (1913–1995), whose work is marked by a sensual, erotic…
Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi
Central Sicily
Caltagirone has an extraordinary number of churches, almost 30 in the historic centre alone. Most are baroque, dating to the building boom of the early…
Palermo
Featuring sculptures by Antonio Gagini, this 14th-century church is named after the patron saint of domestic servants. The Dominican priests who acquired…
Teatro-Museo dell'Opera dei Pupi
Ionian Coast
Acireale has a long tradition of puppet theatre, and you can learn all about it here. One-hour guided tours of the museum are available in English, albeit…
Syracuse
The Palazzo Municipale or Palazzo Senatoriale was built in 1629 by the Spanish architect Juan Vermexio, who was nicknamed 'Il Lucertolone' or 'the lizard'…
Taormina
Overlooking Piazza IX Aprile, this jewel-box church was completed in the early 18th century. The central portal is made of local marble while the portals…
Southeastern Sicily
A 400m walk north of Piazza del Popolo lies Piazza Moro, home to two exquisite baroque churches: the Chiesa Madre (on the southern flank) and the Chiesa…
Ragusa
Built between 1756 and 1796, this elegant church was commissioned by the wealthy Benedictine order. Inside, turn your gaze upward to appreciate Sebastiano…
Syracuse
At the heart of Ortygia is handsome Piazza Archimede, home to Giulio Moschetti's Fontana di Artemide. Constructed between 1906 and 1907, the fountain's…
Ionian Coast
Built in the 13th century, this dark, brooding Norman castle sits over an earlier Arab fortification. It's in surprisingly good shape considering its age,…
Tyrrhenian Coast
This ancient Greek holy place was founded by Dionysis of Syracuse after his victory over the Carthaginians in 396 BC. The secluded ruins (a basilica, an…
Central Sicily
Caltanissetta's historic centre converges on Piazza Garibaldi, a handsome square flanked by the Duomo, the town hall and the baroque Chiesa di San…
Messina
Located where Via Garibaldi spills into Piazza dell'Unità d'Italia, the 16th-century Fontana del Nettuno (Neptune's Fountain) is one of Messina's great…
Syracuse
Loitering beneath Palazzo Municipale are the scant remains of a 6th-century-BC Greek temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis, as well as the modest traces…
Syracuse
A renowned curiosity at the heart of the Latomia del Paradiso (Garden of Paradise) is the ear-shaped artificial grotto known as the Ear of Dionysius…
Central Sicily
In the suburbs, sporadically signposted from the city centre, the Museo Archeologico displays a collection of prehistoric finds from all over Sicily,…
Erice
Originally built in Gothic style in the 14th century, this church was demolished and completely rebuilt in the late 1600s. Its bright white interior is…
Chiesa di Sant'Agata al Carcere
Catania
The young virgin Agata resisted the advances of the nefarious Quintian (AD 250) and was horribly mutilated (her breasts were hacked off and her body…
Palermo
Standing confidently beside the Palazzo dei Normanni is the Porta Nuova (New Gate), built to celebrate the arrival of Carlos V in Palermo in 1535 after a…
Western Sicily
Favignana's centrepiece palazzo is a garden-framed caramel mansion, built in a fancy Liberty style in 1876 for local fishing tycoon Ignazio Florio who…
Museo Naturalistico Francesco Minà Palumbo
Tyrrhenian Coast
Named after the naturalist Francesco Minà Palumbo (1814–99), this unassuming museum is housed in the former convent of Santa Venera. Its wide-ranging…
Central Sicily
Next to the Museo della Ceramica, the Giardino Pubblico is a lovely place to see out the late afternoon, perhaps with an ice cream or a glass of something…
