Sicily Points of Interest and Places to Visit

Mount Etna, on the island of Sicily, is Europe’s tallest active volcano. Not only that, it’s one of the world’s most active volcanoes and, as of 2013, is an UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is a small wonder, then, that this mountain has shaped much of Sicily’s past and continues to impact life on the island today. The volcano sits near the eastern coast of Sicily, not far from the major port city of Catania. Eruptions from Mount Etna have been responsible for serious damage to cities and towns lying close to it, including one in 1669 that destroyed the villages that had been built on the mountainside. People continue to inhabit the mountain, however, partly because the rich volcanic soil makes an excellent base for crops. You’ll find not only fruits and vegetables growing on and around Mount Etna, but also grapes - there are many wines that owe their prominence to the volcano.

The Corso Umberto I is the main street in Taormina, running from one end of the historic center to the other. This pedestrian-only avenue is, as you might imagine, lined with shops, restaurants, and hotels, all beckoning the countless tourists who amble by each day during the high season. But it’s not just a tourist street - locals enjoy strolling along the Corso Umberto I, too. Taormina’s Medieval Quarter is one of the prettiest sections of the city, and Corso Umberto I cuts right through its middle. The clock tower that marks the start of the Medieval Quarter is actually in an arched tower that spans the Corso Umberto I. The particularly picturesque Piazza Aprile IX sits along the famous street, and it’s one of the most popular places to pause and do some people-watching. The view from the piazza over the water is lovely, and the piazza itself is a beautiful backdrop to whatever is going on.

You could be forgiven for getting a little bored of seeing one ancient Roman ruin after another in Italy - they’re everywhere, after all. But in Sicily’s Valley of the Temples near Agrigento, you get to see something particularly interesting - some of the best-preserved ancient Greek ruins anywhere. Like the ancient Romans, the ancient Greeks got around - and for some time this part of Sicily (along with other coastal areas of southern Italy) was part of Magna Graecia. The town that is now Agrigento was once the Greek city of Akragas, and the Greeks built several impressive temples on a ridge just outside of the city. The remains of seven of those temples are still impressive enough to draw visitors to the site thousands of years later.

The Sicilian town of Taormina, like the rest of Sicily, has changed hands many times over the centuries, the evidence of which can be seen in much of the island’s architecture. In Taormina, one building that captures the town’s history is the Palazzo Corvaja on the Piazza Badia. The first part of the Palazzo Corvaja was the tower, built in the 10th century by the Arabs who ruled the area at the time. The tower was then part of the city’s fortifications, and the cube-shape was typical of Arab towers built in that era. In the 13th century when the Normans were in charge, they added to the palace, making the tower bigger and building a new wing. Later, in the early 15th century, the Spanish ruled Sicily - and they added yet another wing to the existing construction at the Palazzo Corvaja. This time, the structure was designed to hold the Sicilian Parliament, formed in 1411.

A visit to Erice (pronounced EH-ri-chay) starts with the journey itself – either by riding the summer cable car or driving the dramatic winding road to the top of the Erice Mountain. Towering 750m over the port of Trapani, Erice is undeniably photogenic, affording spectacular views along the Sicilian coast and the nearby Egadi Islands. It’s also a striking example of a medieval fortified town and has a history dating back to ancient times, when it was an important center of the cult of Venus. The best way to discover Erice is on foot, climbing the steep rough-paved lanes and stopping to browse the many small shops and bakeries, where artisans sell local specialties like almond biscuits and ceramics. The obvious highlight of Erice is the hilltop Castello di Venere (Castle of Venus) and Torre di Pepoli (Tower of Pepoli), and following the impressively preserved medieval town walls is a popular pastime.

Palermo’s most famous piazza, the Piazza Pretoria, is just a few steps from the busy Quattro Canti - but a world away in terms of the kind of piazza experience it delivers. The centerpiece of the Piazza Pretoria is the fountain, known as the Fontana Pretoria. It’s huge, designed in the 1550s by a sculptor from Florence named Camilliani. The fountain was originally commissioned for a private villa in Tuscany, but was gifted to the city of Palermo in 1574. City officials had razed several homes to make way for a grand fountain, meant to show off Palermo’s impressive city plumbing, but locals weren’t quite prepared for the fountain’s decorations when it was unveiled. There are 16 figures on the Fontana Pretoria, all of which are entirely or partially nude, that circle the fountain. There is no side from which you can simply enjoy the water itself without seeing a nude statue - which many Palermitans in the late 16th century found scandalous.

You don’t have to understand much Italian to guess that the Isola Bella attraction near Taormina in Sicily is a “pretty island” - but what you can’t guess from the name is that it’s not actually an island at all. Isola Bella is a tiny, rocky outcropping just off the popular Lido Mazzarò beach in a small bay near Taormina. It looks like an island, but is connected to the mainland by a narrow strip of sand. It’s sometimes covered by the sea, so there are times when it looks like an island. This islet was given to the town of Taormina as a gift in 1806 by the then-king of the region, and later purchased by Lady Florence Trevelyan - a Scottish woman who lived in Taormina in the late 1800s. Lady Trevelyan built a house atop Isola Bella, which still stands today. Ownership of the islet changed hands several times over the years, until 1990 when Isola Bella went up for auction. It is now owned by Sicily and serves as a nature reserve.

Messina is the 'door of Sicily'. A busy port town located on the narrow Strait of Messina, famous for its unruly waters and conflicting currents, it is the closest city to mainland Italy and often a first port of call for travelers from other parts of Europe. The city has endured many tests over the centuries: revolt against the Spanish in 1678, which burnt the city to the ground; earthquakes in 1783 and 1908 (this one sank the shore half a meter and killed 80,000 people); and World War II bombing in 1943. Also, the famous volcano Mt Etna smokes and breathes daily in the hills behind the city. Despite all this, Messina thrives as a noisy, crowded port city. The cruise port is right in the heart of downtown Messina and it is easy to walk straight off the ship and into the Piazza del Duomo, the heart of the old town area and the part you'll want to explore.

Palermo’s beautiful opera house, the Teatro Massimo, is the largest opera house in the entire country. It’s an important landmark in the center of historic Palermo, and even if you don’t like opera you may be familiar with the theater’s imposing front staircase. The Teatro Massimo was built in the late 1800s, opening in 1897 with a production of “Falstaff” by Giuseppe Verdi. The original plan called for seating for 3,000 in the audience, but the theater seats 1,350 today. There are seven levels of theater boxes in a semi-circle around the seats on the floor, all pointed toward the stage - a design very typical of opera houses at the time. As mentioned, it’s the largest opera house in Italy - and it ranks third in size in Europe.

Some Italian piazzas are picturesque squares where locals stroll in the evenings, or watch their children play, or gossip with the neighbors. And sometimes, as is the case with Palermo’s Quattro Canti, they’re busy intersections. Despite the fact that the Quattro Canti - also known as the Piazza Vigilena - is an intersection that’s often full of cars, it’s still one of the attractions visitors seek out in the city. This is largely because of the four buildings that sit at the four corners of the intersection - “quattro canti” means “four corners” - which are Baroque buildings dating from the early 17th century. The four buildings are almost identical, save for a few details. Each of the four buildings is slightly curved, giving the piazza a rounded footprint, and there are statues in niches that represent the four seasons, the four Spanish kings of Sicily, and the four patron saints of Palermo. Each building is connected to a different Palermo neighborhood.

Should you grow tired of sunbathing all day on Taormina’s gorgeous beaches, there are great day trip options you can take, either with your own rental car or by signing up for a tour. One excellent excursion takes you to Villa Romana del Casale, with some of the best examples of ancient Roman mosaics anywhere. Sicily’s Villa Romana del Casale is a little less than two miles from the town of Piazza Armerina, in the southern part of the island. It’s roughly 92 miles from Taormina. The villa was originally built in the 4th century A.D., but it wasn’t until the early 19th century that the remains were excavated - they had lived underground, under fields used for farming - and the mosaics discovered.A landslide in roughly the 12th century A.D. covered the villa, which was bad news for the inhabitants but good news for archaeologists - because it meant the mosaics survived in much better shape than they would have had they remained exposed.

Italy’s public squares come in all shapes and sizes, and some are decidedly more beautiful than others. Taormina’s main square, Piazza IX Aprile, is both popular and gorgeous - which is why it features so prominently in many Taormina photographs. One of the first things you’ll notice about the Piazza IX Aprile is the paving - rather than a simple gray stone surface, the piazza looks a bit like a giant chessboard with its oversized alternating black and white marble squares. The impact is striking, especially on a sunny day. The ornate Church of St. Joseph, built in the 17th century, overlooks the square, and its bright pink and white facade gleams against the black and white squares. Another building on the piazza is the 15th century St. Augustine, a former church that now serves as Taormina’s library. The passageway in the 12th century clock tower on one side of the piazza leads to the Borgo Medievale, one of Taormina’s oldest districts.

The Sicilian town of Taormina has long been known as a popular beach resort destination, but it’s more than sparkling water and long stretches of sand that draw visitors. Taormina is also home to a spectacular ancient ruin - the Greek Theatre. Despite its name, the Greek Theatre - or Teatro Greco in Italian - is actually an ancient Roman structure. The design is more akin to how the ancient Greeks designed their theaters, so it is believed the Roman theater was built over an existing Greek theater. The ruins you see today date primarily from the 2nd century A.D., although the theater was started in the 7th century B.C.E. Taormina’s Greek Theatre sits high above the town’s famous beaches, so visitors who climb uphill to see the ruin are rewarded with more than just an up close look at an ancient monument - the views can be fantastic. From the theater, you can see the town of Taormina, the beaches far below, and the Mt. Etna volcano. It’s one of the best views in Sicily.

A volcano can create some pretty interesting terrain, and Sicily’s Mt. Etna is no exception. Some of the geographic impacts of Mt. Etna aren’t even visible above ground, as is the case with some of the Alcantra Gorges. The Alcantra River runs from Mt. Nebrodi, roughly 32 miles inland from Taormina, and feeds into the Ionian Sea near Giardini-Naxos. Because the river runs through and around volcanic rock, it has carved some intricate paths along the way. Most of them are open and visible, while others snake underground.

The contrast between impressive mountains and slate-coloured sea is the first thing that strikes visitors to this coastal town in Northern Sicily. But there’s more to this great city than spectacular views. Whether it’s a tour of Palermo’s historic centre, sampling world-famous cuisine and regional wine, or wandering shops selling hand-painted ceramics, docking in Palermo will likely be a highlight on any Mediterranean cruise. Cruise liners berth at the Stazione Marittima, which was built in 1950. Taxis and horse drawn carriages are usually waiting at the exit of the port to take travellers around the city. The small winding streets of Palermo make it ideal for exploring on foot, but many cruise companies also offer shuttle buses to the centre of town.

The city of Syracuse on the eastern coast of Sicily is partly located on an island called Ortygia, where much of the city’s history can be found. The island figures into Greek mythology as the place where the Greek goddess Leto gave birth to Artemis, and its name comes from the ancient Greek word for quail; Leto's sister is said to have turned into a quail and become the island when she fell into the sea. There are two islands that connect the island with mainland Sicily, and most of the city of Syracuse is on the mainland. Among the sights in the historic city on Ortygia are its seventh-century cathedral and the Fountain of Arethuse.

Though the giant, craggy La Rocca may dominate the Cefalù skyline, the Cefalù Cathedral competes for that attention. The Norman-style church was constructed starting in 1131, prompted — according to legend — by Roger II, who, during a shipwreck at sea, promised God that if he survived, that he’d construct a church right in this very place. Today’s cathedral is noted for its fortress-like exterior, and for its interior mosaics, particularly the lavish Christ Pantokrator mosaic. The grand mosaic is complemented by a relatively humble interior, which makes the contrast all the more striking. Almost just as important as seeing the inside of the church is experiencing it from the outside from the palm tree-filled plaza. It’s the perfect place to grab pizza, coffee or an ice cream — you might pay a premium for it, but the splendid views and free cathedral-entry more than make up for it.

One of the most famous sights in Palermo - albeit an incredibly macabre one - is the extensive network of Catacombs under the Capuchin Monastery. These crypts hold thousands of mummified remains, some of which are spookily well-preserved. The Capuchins began burying their own friars in the crypts underneath the monastery in the 16th century, and they soon discovered that the unique conditions in the catacombs - combined with their own burial traditions - preserved the bodies extremely well. It wasn’t long before Sicilians decided that being buried in the Capuchin Catacombs - and therefore being preserved after death - was a status symbol. In total, there are more than 8,000 bodies interred in Palermo’s Capuchin Catacombs, in varying states of preservation and from all walks of life. There are chambers dedicated to priests, monks, women, men, and children. Some are still encased in coffins, some are perched in standing positions on the walls.

Mandralisca Museum may not rank among Italy’s (or Sicily’s) largest cultural attractions, but visitors say it’s still worth making a stop. That’s because this small, privately owned destination is a Mecca for Greek ceramics, Arab pottery and some incredible Italian Renaissance portraits. The museum dates back nearly two centuries and houses the personal art collection of Barone Mandralisca, including an iconic portrait by Donatello da Messina. Although the museum is full of rare wonders, travelers and locals say visitors should be prepared, as most of the museum’s signage is only in Italian. Still, the works alone make it well-worth the trip.