Trapani and the west

The Golfo di Castellammare

Segesta

Calatafimi

Trapani

Erice

North of Trapani

The Egadi Islands

Mozia and the saltpans

Marsala

Mazara del Vallo

Selinunte and Marinella di Selinunte

Castelvetrano

The interior

Pantelleria

Closer to North Africa than the Italian mainland, Sicily’s western reaches are traditionally poor and remote, the economy dependent on fishing and small-scale farming. Since the opening of the A29 autostrada in the 1970s, connecting it with Palermo, the region has become more integrated with the rest of Sicily, but even today, access by public transport is limited. Indeed, much of the appeal of the area lies in the fact that it’s still very different from the rest of the island. Historically, the region has always been distinct, influenced by a strong Phoenician and Arab culture rather than the Greek and Norman traditions that prevail elsewhere in Sicily. The Arab influence can still be tasted in its food – couscous is a local favourite – and visually too, the flat land, dotted by white cubic houses, is strongly reminiscent of North Africa.

On the northern coast, the Golfo di Castellammare is only an hour by train or road from Palermo. Despite patches of industrial development along the gulf, it still manages to offer some empty beaches and a couple of unspoiled villages at its western end. In particular, the coastline between the old tuna-fishing village of Scopello and the resort of San Vito Lo Capo encompasses the beautiful Zingaro nature reserve. The capital of the province that encompasses this entire area, Trapani, is a congenial port town within sight of the flat saltpans on which its wealth was based. It is also a departure point for the Egadi Islands, and makes a good base for visiting the mountain town of Erice – originally a centre of Punic influence, though diverging from the region’s dominant trend in its uniform Norman and medieval character. The pattern re-establishes itself a little way down the coast at Mozia, Sicily’s best-preserved Phoenician site, while further south the Moorish imprint is discernible in the secretive alleys and courtyards of Marsala and Mazara del Vallo.

  Although the Greeks never wielded much influence in the area, the Hellenic remains at Segesta and Selinunte (Selinus) count among the island’s most stunning. Between the two, the Valle del Belice delineates the region struck by an earthquake in 1968, which left a trail of destruction still visible in many towns and villages. This is most notable at Gibellina, abandoned in its ruined state as a powerful reminder, and at the little town of Santa Margherita di Belice, whose once-proud palace and church were immortalized in that quintessential Sicilian novel, The Leopard. There could be no greater contrast to this disorder than the peaceful island of Pantelleria, a distant outpost just a short hop away from the African coast, mountainous and wind-blown, and adopted as a chic resort by a few high-profile glitterati.

SAN VITO LO CAPO

Highlights

1 Riserva Naturale dello Zingaro Hike the footpaths or swim from isolated pebble coves within Sicily’s loveliest nature reserve.

2 Segesta The most romantic of all Greek sites on the island, the theatre and temple here are beautifully positioned amid rolling hills.

3 Funierice cable car to Erice This stately ascent from Trapani to the hilltop town of Erice opens up a stunning panorama.

4 Swimming at San Vito Lo Capo Hidden away on Sicily’s northwestern tip, the idyllic beach at this appealing resort boasts a dramatic mountainous backdrop.

5 Hiking on Marettimo Take some panoramic walks on the most remote of the Egadi Islands, and end the day with a fish supper overlooking the port.

6 Pantelleria Though there’s not a beach in sight, this craggy island en route to Tunisia still makes an enticing place to unwind.

< Back to Trapani and the west

GETTING AROUND: TRAPANI AND THE WEST

By public transport You’ll find getting around the coast a simple matter, as frequent buses cover the short distances between all the towns and villages. Trains are useful for the main towns (Trapani, Marsala, Mazara del Vallo and Castelvetrano) and also for getting to Segesta. Inland, what interior bus services there are depart from Marsala or Castelvetrano.

By car Apart from the two arms of the A29 autostrada there are only two other main roads, the SS115 following the coast between Trapani and Castelvetrano and the inland SS188 between Marsala and Salemi.

The Golfo di Castellammare

Backed by a forbidding wall of jagged mountains, the wide bowl of the Golfo di Castellammare is almost entirely made up of small holiday towns. Some are uncomfortably close to industrial plants, though these disappear as you progress west. The main train line from Palermo (and the SS187 road) skirts the bay from Trappeto to Castellammare del Golfo, but despite the ease of access and the consequent development the resorts have not entirely shrugged off their original role as fishing villages – though they have completely lost the mean look they had when fishing was the only source of income. If you’re after a beach, Trappeto, Balestrate or Alcamo Marina make a reasonable place to stop off, with popular summer pizzerias, fish restaurants and hotels, but there’s no real reason to stay: in summer it’s just too busy and in winter too funereal. In July and August you would be wise to stay on the train, unless playing sardines on the sands is your thing. Otherwise, the train ride is as fair an entertainment, hugging the coast at the base of massive wedges of rock, often of a raw red colour, echoed by smaller, weathered nuggets poking out of the sea.

DANILO DOLCI: THE “SICILIAN GANDHI”

Today, the two villages of Trappeto and Balestrate, down on the coast northeast of Alcamo and just 5km apart (and both on the train line), display a tidy sense of well-being that’s in sharp contrast to the poverty found by social reformer Danilo Dolci (1924–97) when he came to the region in 1952. Regarded in Sicily as something of secular saint, Dolci was born near Trieste, and having first worked among the poor in Tuscany, he moved to Trappeto in 1952, determined to settle in “the poorest place I had ever known”. His Sicilian Lives records his first impressions of Trappeto: “Coming from the North, I knew I was totally ignorant. Looking all around me, I saw no streets, just mud and dust. Not a single chemist – or sewer. The dialect didn’t have a word for sewer.” He campaigned tirelessly but nonviolently (including by fasting and “reverse strikes”) to draw attention to the local conditions, and to have a dam built outside nearby Partinico – something that was resisted at every turn by the Mafia and their political clients, who controlled the existing water supplies. Inevitably, Dolci stirred up the opposition not just of the Mafia, but of the police, the church, and – eventually – even local people, who accused him of publicity-seeking and ill-conceived campaigns, and though twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, he spent the last twenty years of his life in obscurity. Today, the area presents a far more prosperous face, and the beaches on either side of Trappete and Balestrate, backed by orange groves, are regularly visited by Palermitan holidaymakers. However, this economic reversal is more a reflection of the general improvement in Sicilian standards of living during the late twentieth century than of Dolci’s campaigning.

Alcamo

Just inside the Trapani provincial boundary, ALCAMO was founded by Frederick II early in the thirteenth century. Good wine is made from Alcamo grapes, and the town, spread across a low hill with views towards the coast, has also become known thanks to the atmospheric descriptions in Mary Taylor Simeti’s classic memoir On Persephone’s Island (1986), much of which is set hereabouts. Otherwise, Alcamo will mainly be of interest to fans of medieval castles: adjacent to the broad main Piazza della Repubblica, the fourteenth-century Castello dei Conti di Modica in Piazza Castello has a small collection of archeological scraps and farming items as well as the headquarters of the regional wine association; however, the building was closed for restoration at the time of writing following the appearance of cracks in its walls. Alcamo also boasts some fine ecclesiastical architecture, its largely Baroque churches all found along and around the lengthy main street of the old town, Corso VI Aprile. The Chiesa Madre on the Corso is typical, with its bold frescoes and elaborate sculptures by members of the Gagini family.

  If you have your own transport, Monte Bonifato (825m), 5km south of Alcamo – a well-signposted climb up a corkscrew road – is worth the drive for the panoramic views from the top.

ALCAMO’S SPAS

Alcamo’s excellent, good-value spas may well tempt you to spend a few days here. The Stabilimento Termale Gorga ( 0924 23 842,  termegorga.com), is a thermal spa where you can bathe in the exquisitely hot pool (€7) or take other treatments such as a mud bath (€15) or sauna (€12). You can also stay comfortably here (double €60) – guests have free access to the pool – and there’s a ristorante-pizzeria. It’s just a couple of hundred metres along the right-hand dirt track from the train station (don’t go down under the bridge). At a second spa, Terme Segestane ( 0924 530 057; no credit cards), five to ten minutes’ drive west, mud treatments (June to mid-Nov only) cost €20, and entrance to the pool (closed 2 weeks in Dec) is €8.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: ALCAMO

By bus There are frequent bus connections to Palermo with Segesta ( segesta.it), which also operate a Trapani bus, though these are less frequent than you might hope, and they all leave before 9am. Russo Autoservizi buses ( russoautoservizi.it) run to and from San Vito del Capo and Valderice.

By train The nearest train station is down on the coast at Castellammare del Golfo, from where a few buses run up to Alcamo daily.

Tourist information Alcamo’s tourist office is on Piazza Mercato, near Piazza Ciullo (Mon–Sat 9am–1pm, plus Mon, Wed & Thurs 4–7pm summer, 3.30–6.30pm in winter;  0924 22 301).

EATING

Bar 900 Corso VI Aprile 105 (no phone). Founded in 1937, this Alcamo institution has the best pastries in town – including a fabulous choice of miniature morsels – and an excellent tavola calda at lunchtime, where a full meal is priced at €12 per head. The ice cream is excellent as well. Tues–Sun 8am–9pm; opens later in summer.

Salsapariglia Via Libertà 1  0924 508 302. Abundant fish dishes such as pasta with seafood, fish couscous and mussel and clam soup, all of them delicious. In the evenings they have pizza too. Tues–Sun lunch & dinner.

Castellammare del Golfo

CASTELLAMMARE DEL GOLFO, on the coast about twenty minutes’ drive northwest of Alcamo, is the biggest of the local fishing ports, entirely surrounded by high hills and built on and around a hefty rocky promontory that’s guarded by a squat castle from which the town takes its name. Castellammare’s incredible pedigree of bloodshed once gave it one of the worst reputations in Sicily for Mafia violence. The writer Gavin Maxwell, who lived locally during the 1950s, claimed that in that period eighty percent of the town’s adult males had served prison sentences, and one in three had committed murder; coupled with this are the official statistics for the same period that classify one family in six as destitute. Needless to say, all of this is extremely hard to believe today: strolling down the sloping Corso Garibaldi towards the castle and harbour, past handsome palazzi interspersed with bars and shops selling beach gear, it seems a most benign place, ideal for a few days’ relaxation. Originally Norman but much remodelled in later centuries, the castello (Tues–Sat 9am–1pm & 3.30–7.30pm; free) today contains well-presented collections dedicated to the history, archeology and maritime culture of the area.

  Beneath the castle walls, on the harbourside, the row of cafés and restaurants that face the fishing boats is a nice place to kill time and eat lunch. There’s a scrappy sand beach at the harbour, though you may prefer the fine sands 2km east of the centre, between the town and train station, while the coastline northwest of Castellammare is perhaps the most beautiful in the whole of Sicily, abounding in unspoiled coves and white pebble beaches, connected by paths to the road above. The road passes Baia di Guidaloca, a small bay that some people believe to be the spot where Nausicaä found the naked, shipwrecked Odysseus and finally set him on the last leg of his journey home to Ithaca. Legends apart, it’s a pretty beach with a stream running into the water and pleasant swimming. Away from the sea, the pinewood slopes of Monte Inici, accessed from the SS187 2km west of town, are a popular spot for picnics and views. They provide some relief from the summer heat, and there is a restaurant here.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: CASTELLAMMARE DEL GOLFO

By bus The bus station is in the upper part of the town on Via della Repubblica, which runs off Via Segesta. Regular services operated by Russo ( russoautoservizi.it) run from here to Scopello,; summer services run by Tarantola ( tarantolabus.it) carry on to Lo Zingaro.;

Destinations Alcamo (12 daily Mon–Sat; 25min); Calatafimi (5 daily Mon–Sat; 30min); Palermo (5–9 daily Mon–Sat, 1–3 daily Sun; 1hr 10min–1hr 40min); San Vito Lo Capo (2–4 daily Mon–Sat, 1–3 daily Sun; 1hr–1hr 30min); Scopello (4–8 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun in summer only; 30min); Segesta (2 daily; 40min); Trapani (4 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr–1hr 20min).

By train The local train station is 4km east of town; a bus meets arrivals and shuttles you into Castellammare, passing the campsite on the way, and dropping off passengers at the bus station.

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Tourist information The tourist office is inside the castle (Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 3.30–7.30pm;  0924 30 217).

Tours Between June and September, there are boat tours up the coast to Zingaro and San Vito Lo Capo, leaving from Castellammare port every morning, returning in the afternoon (around €35 including lunch;  331 868 6242).

ACCOMMODATION

Cala Marina Via Don Leonardo Zangara 1  0924 531 841,  hotelcalamarina.it. In a prime position right by the marina and beach, this smart, modern hotel provides a relaxed atmosphere. Ask for one of the three bright rooms with balconies and sea views (costing extra). €110

 Case d’Anna Corso Garibaldi 120  0924 31 101 or  339 661 0722,  casedanna.it. The large, clean rooms in this intimate, centrally located family-run place are beautifully and meticulously decorated with Art Deco or Victorian furnishings, and come with a/c, minibars and wi-fi. You’ll pick up loads of helpful tips from the friendly host family, and breakfast includes home-made pastries. No credit cards. €90

Nonna Giò Via A. Mario 28  334 594 1224,  sicilianelgolfo.it. Four good-value, en-suite and air-conditioned rooms are available in this place just up from Piazza Petrolo and the seafront. Breakfast is taken on the roof terrace. No credit cards. €80

EATING AND DRINKING

Most of the restaurants around the centre of Castellammare or down by the harbour feature cuscus a pesce (fish couscous). The harbour is also the place for an evening stroll and drink, with a selection of late-opening bars.

La Cambusa Via Don Luigi Zangara 67  0924 30 155. Very nice harbourside fish restaurant that does a lovely fish couscous, and makes all its own pasta. You can also choose your own fish (on display) to have cooked al cartoccio (dressed with herbs and baked in a parcel). First courses go for €7–12 and second courses €8–17. Arrive early or book for the best tables. Daily lunch & dinner.

 A Muciara du Rais Via Don Sturzo 12  0924 30 604. Backstreet trattoria just down the steps from the town gardens, with a vaulted stone interior and a few tables outside. Dishes have a pronounced North African influence (first courses €7–10, mains €10–14). Daily lunch & dinner; closed Mon Oct–May.

Scopello

SCOPELLO, 10km northwest of Castellammare, is a tiny inland hamlet perched on a ridge a couple of hundred metres above the coastline where stands the old tuna fishery (tonnara) that the village once serviced. The village consists of little more than Piazza Fontana – a paved square and a fountain – and a couple of alleys running off it. On one side of the square sits the gateway and enclosed courtyard of the village’s eighteenth-century baglio, or manor house, now the focus of local life. In here – centred on a huge eucalyptus tree – the courtyard buildings harbour a ceramicist’s workshop, artist’s studio, craft shop, a couple of bars and a pizzeria-restaurant. With the lights on and the wind rustling the leaves, it’s a magical place at night, though in July and August – when every bar table is full and queues develop – you could be forgiven for wishing for more solitude. Outside high summer, traditional village life is more to the fore: men playing cards at the tables, people gossiping around the fountain and neighbours helping out in each other’s fields.

  Three kilometres south of Scopello, the lovely bay of Cala Bianca offers some great swimming; the bus from Castellammare stops here.

Tonnara di Scopello

Always open • Free

Just before Scopello on the road from Castellammare, a right-hand fork will bring you after a few hundred metres down to the coast and the Tonnara di Scopello, set in its own tiny cove. This old tuna fishery and its associated outhouses was where the writer Gavin Maxwell lived and worked in the 1950s, basing his Ten Pains of Death on his experiences there. It’s almost too picturesque to be true – not least the row of abandoned buildings on the quayside, fronted by lines of rusting anchors, and the ruined old watchtowers tottering on knobbly columns of rock above the sea. From the shore, it’s still precisely as Maxwell described it more than fifty years ago: “a sea of purple and blue and peacock green, with a jagged cliff coastline and great faraglioni (rock towers) thrusting up out of the water as pinnacle islands, pale green with the growth of cactus at their heads”.

  The tonnara remained in intermittent use until the 1980s. Although it’s still privately owned, the gate is always open (beverage machines inside the building) to allow visitors to wander around the quayside – provided, according to the notice, they don’t bring with them a whole host of proscribed items (dogs, radios, chairs, umbrellas). An injunction like this is usually as a red rag is to a bull for your average Sicilian, and the place is regularly engulfed with all of the above on summer weekends – though more strictly enforced regulations may yet come into effect. Most visitors come to swim in the crystal-clear waters off the tiny shingle beach here. Whether or not you indulge in a dip, it’s a thoroughly photogenic spot (and scenes from the film Ocean’s Twelve were shot here).

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: SCOPELLO

By bus The bus from Castellammare drops you in Scopello’s square; out of season, four services a day (Mon–Sat) run back to Castellammare, the last at 4.45pm. In summer, there are four additional services on Sunday; the last returns to Castellammare at 7pm.

Services You won’t have to look far to find everything – there’s an alimentari, a bakery, a butcher’s shop and a post office, and an ATM inside the baglio courtyard.

ACCOMMODATION

Scopello can be rather an exclusive retreat, given the building restrictions that limit the accommodation choices. Book well in advance if you want to stay here in summer, and be prepared to accept half-board terms in the pensioni. Out of season you’ll be able to pick and choose, and the prices drop a little too. All the official places to stay are within a thirty-second walk of the square – if everything is booked up, you might find rooms to rent by asking around in the bars and shops.

Angelo Via Marco Polo 4  338 697 4276. This small B&B has two rooms with a/c, and a terrace overlooking Piazza Fontana. There’s also a little kitchen where guests can prepare simple food. €60

Baia di Guidaloca  0924 541 262,  campinguidaloca.com. A lovely campsite, a stone’s throw from a beach which bears a tempting resemblance to the one where Nausicaa met Odysseus in the Odyssey. It’s some 3km south of Scopello; the bus from Castellammare passes right by. Closed mid-Sept to Easter. €9 per person, plus €8 for a pitch

La Tavernetta Via A Diaz 3  0924 541 129,  albergolatavernetta.it. Twelve very pleasant, freshly refurbished rooms, all with balconies, sea views and pretty stencilled furniture, and a restaurant in a huge garden of olives, prickly pears and citrus trees. Friendly accommodating owners and a restaurant specializing in local dishes like couscous (€10) and spaghetti con sarde (€8). Half board in Aug. €85

La Tranchina Via A. Diaz 7  0924 541 099,  pensionetranchina.com. Simple en-suite rooms with a/c, and a friendly English-speaking owner: you’ll eat well here, too, on fresh fish, and interesting pasta dishes. €86

EATING AND DRINKING

Il Baglio Baglio Isonzo 4  0924 541 200. Extremely popular place for pizzas (€5–9), pastas (€10–16) and seafood dishes (€12–16), with attractive outdoor seating in the baglio courtyard. Eat early to avoid queues at weekends and in summer. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Nov–Feb.

La Tavernetta Via A. Diaz 3  0924 541 129. Reliable pasta and fish dishes made with local ingredients, doled out either inside or out on the terrace. A hearty three-course meal with local wine runs to around €35, though you could eat for less. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Nov–April.

Riserva Naturale dello Zingaro

Reserve Daily: April–Oct 7am–8pm; Nov–March 8am–4pm • €3, includes entrance to the museums • Museums Daily, usually 10am–4pm •  800 116 616 or  0924 35 108,  riservazingaro.it

Accessible from both Scopello and San Vito Lo Capo, the Riserva Naturale dello Zingaro was the first nature reserve to be established in Sicily. It comprises a completely unspoiled 7km stretch of coastline backed by steep mountains, and received protected status in 1980 following a successful protest to prevent a coast road being constructed from Scopello to San Vito Lo Capo. Around forty different bird species nest and mate here, including the rare Bonelli’s Eagle, and there are some six hundred species of plant. Apart from the wide variety of fauna and flora, there’s great archeological interest in an area that supported some of Sicily’s earliest prehistoric settlements.

  If you are approaching the reserve from San Vito, via the northern entrance (Ingresso Nord), note that there are no shops, bars or restaurants along the road from town. There are none in the park itself either (just seasonal refreshments at the two entrances), and in summer there is little shade, so come prepared. Coming from the other direction, the road from Scopello ends at Ingresso Sud, the southern entrance to the reserve, from where you can proceed on foot through pristine country and past some extremely beautiful coves and beaches. This is not exactly unknown territory, since hundreds of Palermitani descend on Scopello and its surroundings on summer weekends, but at other times – and especially out of season – it’s one of the most tranquil places in Sicily. In addition, since the whole area is regulated by building restrictions that actually seem to be enforced, the water quality – and hence the swimming – is excellent. The easiest and best-maintained of the network of paths through the reserve keep close to the coast. Of the two main routes, the Sentiero Alto is best in spring for the vegetation and natural life, while the Sentiero Basso, hugging the shore, is best in summer if you want to stop for swims. The mid- and high-mountain routes are favoured by well-prepared walkers and ornithologists; refuges here can be used at night, so long as you book ahead through the park authority.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP ERICE; SPAGHETTI ALLA TRAPANESE; RISERVA ZINGARO

WALKING IN THE RISERVA ZINGARO

If you’re heading off on Riserva Zingaro’s coastal path, make sure you carry plenty of water – any water you see along the way may not be fit for drinking. There’s a water fountain at the Ingresso Sud information hut and, in summer, a van selling ices and drinks. At the Ingresso Nord – the northern, San Vito Lo Capo, park entrance – you’ll find another information hut, water and, in summer, refreshments. Before you decide to walk on to San Vito, 11km away, make sure you have water, as there are no facilities en route.

The Sentiero Basso

Following the Sentiero Basso, it takes less than twenty minutes to reach the first beach, Cala Capreria, which can as a result be crowded at weekends and in July and August. When it’s not, it’s perfect: a tiny cove of white pebbles, azure water, shoals of little fish nibbling at the edge and baby squid darting in and out. A small Museo Naturalistico and visitor centre stand just above the beach. Further up the coast, another twenty minutes or so onward, there’s a museum above Cala del Varo dedicated to manna and the flowering manna-ash, examples of which grow hereabouts.

  Sticking with the coastal path, it’s 3km from the southern entrance to the successive coves of Disa, Berretta and Marinella, which should be a little more secluded. The next cove, Cala dell’Uzzo, holds a museum of rural life, while the Cala Tonnarella dell’Uzzo, 7km from the southern entrance, has a museum of fishing and other marine activity.

The northern entrance

The northern entrance to the reserve (Ingresso Nord) is 11km southeast of San Vito Lo Capo. Accessible by your own transport or on a boat trip from San Vito, it’s also a fine walk from the town, initially following the road along the lungomare from San Vito and across the flat headland, before winding up into the mountains. In the higher reaches, the views are exhilarating, with the surrounding scenery almost alpine in character – fir trees, flowers edging the road, and the clank of bells from goats roaming the hillsides. Sadly, though, the road through this secluded and dramatic landscape offers few opportunities to descend to the alluringly deserted coves below.

  The access road to the reserve is signposted just before the ruined Torre dell’Impiso, around a three-hour walk from San Vito. From the sign to the park entrance itself is about another 1km, following a gravel track and then a path, which runs down into the reserve, past the Tonnara dell’Uzzo. The beautiful little cove-beach below the entrance offers translucent water, with glorious peace and quiet all around – at least, whenever the first few little creeks here aren’t inundated with bathers. Travel on for less crowded spots, or else take one of the higher paths for greater isolation. Scopello is a 10km walk south from the San Vito entrance.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: RISERVA NATURALE DELLO ZINGARO

By bus Russo buses have a summer-only service from Castellammare del Golfo to the southern entrance.

Tourist information There are information huts at the Ingresso Sud and Ingresso Nord entrances. You can pick up a simple map showing the trails through the reserve – though as it’s not entirely accurate it should be treated with some scepticism.

Boat tours and diving The waters offshore of the reserve have some excellent dive sites, with wrecks and grottoes to explore; Cetaria, Via Marco Polo 3, Scopello ( 368 386 4808,  cetaria.it), offer dives, boat excursions and equipment rental.

ACCOMMODATION

 Baglio La Luna Via del Secco 11  335 836 2856,  bagliolaluna.com. Seven kilometres out of San Vito on the Zingaro road, so ideal for forays into the reserve, this rural B&B boasts lofty views from its terrace and complete tranquillity. The airy whitewashed interior with tiled floors has five simple rooms – those with sea views cost €10 extra. You’ll need your own transport to stay here, and there’s a two-night minimum stay in Aug. No credit cards. Closed Nov–March. €110

Casale Corcella Contrada Scardina  368 365 4482,  scopelloonline.com. Ideal for walkers, this is located 1km north of Scopello, within the Zingaro reserve. Five simple, cheerful and spotlessly clean rooms and five mini apartments. No credit cards. Closed Nov–March. Rooms and apartments €80

< Back to Trapani and the west

Segesta

Set amid deserted green countryside around 15km south of Castellammare del Golfo (and 30km east of Trapani), the remains of the ancient city of Segesta are among the most inspiring on the island. All that still stands is a Doric temple and a brilliantly sited theatre, relics of a city whose roots – like Erice’s – lie back in the twelfth century BC. Unlike Erice, though, ancient Segesta was eventually Hellenized and spent most of the later period disputing its border with Selinus. The temple dates from a time of prosperous alliance with Athens, but it was never finished – work on it was abandoned when a new dispute broke out with Selinus in 416 BC.

  Apart from the small café and shop at the site, the café-restaurant near the signposted turn-off is the only nearby place for refreshments, and the only accommodation hereabouts is in the nearby town of Calatafimi. Concerts and plays are staged at Segesta’s theatre between mid-July and early September. Ask at the tourist offices in Palermo and Trapani for details, or call  800 904 60. Special excursion buses leave from both cities to coincide with the performances, and tickets for the various productions cost around €15.

The site

Daily 9am–1hr before sunset; last entry 1hr before closing • €6, or €9 including the ruins at Selinunte • Half-hourly buses (€1.50) run from the site entrance to the theatre

The site is best seen early or late in the day, when visitors are fewer and the light less blanching in its effect. The temple itself, started in 424 BC, crowns a low hill beyond the café and car park. From a distance you could be forgiven for thinking that it’s complete: the 36 regular stone columns, entablature and pediment are all intact, and all it lacks is a roof. However, get closer (and for once you’re allowed to roam right inside) and you see just how unfinished the building really is: stone studs, always removed on completion, still line the stylobate, the tall columns are unfluted, and the cella walls are missing. In a way, this only adds to the natural grandeur of the site, and it’s not too fanciful to imagine that the pitted and sun-bleached temple simply grew here – a feeling bolstered by the birds nesting in the unfinished capitals, the lizards scampering over the pale yellow stone, and, in spring, the riot of flowers underfoot.

  From the main entrance, a road winds up through slopes of wild fennel to a small theatre on a higher hill beyond; if you don’t relish the twenty-minute climb you can use the bus service. The view from the top is terrific, across green slopes and the plain to the sea, the deep blue of the bay a lovely contrast to the theatre’s white stone – the panorama not much damaged by the motorway snaking away below.

  Behind the theatre, excavations (explained by information boards) have revealed the foundations of a mosque and Arab-style houses. These were pulled down in the thirteenth century when a Norman castle was erected on the high ground – though this itself lasted less than a hundred years, as political forces on the island waxed and waned. There are also the remains of a late medieval church, built for local shepherds and landholders and used, in one form or another, until the nineteenth century. Thus it is a site of enormous significance and utility, spanning generations.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: SEGESTA

By bus Tarantola buses run direct to Segesta from Piazza Malta in Trapani, leaving at 8am, 10am, noon and 2pm (Sun 10am only), returning at 12.50pm, 1.05pm, 4.05pm and 6.30pm (Sun 1.05pm only). There are also bus services from Castellammare del Golfo and Palermo.

By train There are four trains daily from Trapani to Segesta-Calatafimi, from where it’s a 20min uphill walk to the site.

By car If you’re driving, it’s easiest to see the site en route between Palermo and Trapani, since it lies just off the motorway.

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Calatafimi

Defended by a castle (hence the Arabic kalat of its name) whose remnants top a wooded hill, CALATAFIMI gained fame as the site of the first of Garibaldi’s victories against the Bourbon forces in 1860, which opened the way to Palermo and hence the rest of Sicily. The battle took place on the Salemi road, around 1km south of Calatafimi and then 3km up a hill, the summit marked by a white obelisk. It’s signposted “Ossario di Pianto Romana”, and named as such because the bones of the fallen from the battle are collected here. They used to be on display in cases for the edification of the local population; now they’re hidden behind commemorative tablets underneath an Italian flag. The custodian might attempt an explanation of the history if your Italian is up to it – a tip wouldn’t go amiss. The views outside, to Calatafimi itself, Erice and the Castellammare gulf, are magnificent.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: CALATAFIMI

By bus Calatafimi lies 4km south of its train station, so it’s better to come by bus – there are four services daily from Trapani.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Mille Pini Piazza F. Vivona 2  0924 951 260,  hotelmillepini.com. A fittingly old-fashioned hotel which has ten simple rooms with balconies and valley views, and a restaurant where you can eat well for around €15 – overall, it’s a very nice place for a quiet night in the sticks. €50

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Trapani

Although predominantly modern, TRAPANI, the first of three major towns on Sicily’s western edge, has an elegant old centre that’s squeezed into a narrow arm of land pointing out to sea. Lent an end-of-the-line feel by its port, the town’s inconspicuous monuments give no great impression of its long history. Nonetheless, Trapani flourished as a Phoenician trading centre and as the port for Eryx (modern Erice), profiting from its position looking out towards Africa. As an important stopover on the sea routes linking Tunis, Naples and Aragon, the town played an enduring role throughout the Middle Ages, when Europe’s crowned heads virtually passed each other on the quayside. The Navarrese king Theobald died here of typhoid in 1270; two years later Edward I of England touched down after a Crusade to learn he’d inherited the throne, while Peter of Aragon arrived in 1282 to claim the Sicilian throne, following the expulsion of the Angevin French. The city’s growth over the last century has been founded on the development of salt, fishing and wine industries, though severe bombardment during World War II has given rise to an excess of dull postwar building around the outskirts.

  Still, as a base for the rest of the west, Trapani can’t be beaten. It offers a good few accommodation possibilities, mostly in the old-town area; regular trains south to nearby Marsala and Mazara del Vallo; buses to Erice, the resort of San Vito Lo Capo and the more distant site of Segesta; and the nearest of the Egadi Islands is only twenty minutes away by hydrofoil. The only time when you might find a room hard to come by is during the procession of the Misteri at Easter.

TRAPANI’S MISTERI

One of Sicily’s most evocative religious processions, held since the seventeenth century, takes place in Trapani at Easter, when the Misteri, extraordinary life-sized wooden statues depicting scenes from the Passion, are carried shoulder-high through the streets on Good Friday. The procession through the town takes ten hours, starting at 2pm and finishing back at the Chiesa del Purgatorio at midnight. Sculpted from cypress wood and cork in the eighteenth century, each of the twenty groups of chocolate-brown figures is associated with one of the town’s trades – fishermen, metalworkers, saltworkers, and so on – whose representatives undertake to maintain them and, draped in cowls and purple robes, annually parade them. The rest of the time the statues are kept in the Chiesa del Purgatorio, on Via Francesco d’Assisi, south of the main Corso. The church is usually locked, but when it’s open, there should be a priest around to explain which of the trades is responsible for each of the sculpted groups, and what the particular figures represent – though most of the scenes are familiar enough. When it’s closed, you can arrange admission at the Cattedrale office.

  Note that this is a very popular time to visit Trapani, so be sure to book accommodation well in advance.

The old town

Almost everything of interest in Trapani is found in the old town, west of the Villa Margherita gardens. Churches and palaces have been renovated in recent years, and a plethora of bars and restaurants has opened along stylish pedestrianized streets – notably Corso Vittorio Emanuele, Via Torrearsa and Via Garibaldi – and the northern seafront, above a long beach, has been considerably smartened up. However, away from here, there’s still a scruffy, salty-old-port air to much of Trapani, its stark cubic houses, dusty streets and wind- and sun-thrashed palms more redolent of North Africa than Italy.

Corso Vittorio Emanuele

The old town is most elegant along Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the pedestrianized main street, dominated at its eastern end by the pinkish marble front of the Palazzo Senatorio, the seventeenth-century town hall. With its twin clocks separated by an imperious eagle, it adds a touch of grandeur to the thin promenading strip, otherwise hemmed in by balconied palazzi, a couple of Baroque churches, and the Cattedrale on the right, with its Baroque portico, cupolas and vast interior. Dedicated to San Lorenzo, it has a Crucifixion inside, in the fourth chapel on the right, attributed to Van Dyck.

  Changing its name along the way, the Corso runs almost to the end of the curving promontory from which the town took its Phoenician name of Drepanon (sickle). At its very tip is the Torre di Ligny, a squat Spanish fortification dating from 1671, now privately owned, but a good spot for a sit-down with a sandwich. On the way back into town, a walk down the north side of the promontory will show you what’s left of the medieval city wall, the bastione, breached by the thirteenth-century Porta Botteghelle.

Via Torrearsa

Back at the eastern end of Corso Vittorio Emanuele, Via Torrearsa is one of the old town’s main shopping streets. At its southern end, the church of Sant’Agostino on Piazzetta Saturno boasts a pretty fourteenth-century rose window of interlocking stone bands; the church is occasionally used as a concert hall (details of performances from the tourist office). Architecturally more appealing is the sixteenth-century church of Santa Maria di Gesù, just to the east of Via Torrearsa, on Via San Pietro, whose two doors display a diversity characteristic of the town, the right-hand one Gothic, the other defiantly Renaissance.

The Jewish quarter

There’s little more to see in this part of town apart from a few unusual facades, one of them buried in the wedge of hairline streets and alleys north of Corso Italia, at Via della Giudecca 43, where the sixteenth-century Palazzo della Giudecca sports a plaque-studded front and some Spanish-style Plateresque windows. The building lies at the heart of Trapani’s old Jewish quarter, an area dating from Trapani’s medieval heyday at the centre of Mediterranean trade. From here, it’s not far to the Villa Margherita, the shady town gardens (daily dawn to dusk); concerts are staged here in summer (information available from the tourist office).

Santuario dell’Annunziata

Via Conte Agostino Pepoli 180 • Santuario Daily 8am–noon & 4–8pm, closes 7pm in winter • Free •  0923 55 3269

The main point of interest in Trapani’s somewhat dull modern city is the lavishly decorated Santuario dell’Annunziata, a fourteenth-century convent and church whose cloisters incorporate the town’s main museum. The sanctuary was rebuilt in 1760 and only the facade, with its Gothic portal and magnificent rose window, is original. Inside you’ll find a series of sumptuous chapels, two dedicated to Trapani’s fishermen and seamen – one echoes the facade’s shell motif around the sides of the room – and, best of all, the Cappella della Madonna, containing Trapani’s sacred idol: the beautiful, smiling Madonna and Child, attributed to Nino Pisano in the fourteenth century. Responsible for a host of miracles, the statue is housed beneath a grandiose marble canopy sculpted by Antonello Gagini and surrounded by polychrome marble – as well, generally, as a crowd of hushed worshippers.

Museo Regionale Pepoli

Mon–Sat 9am–1.30pm, Sun 9am–12.30pm • €6

Adjacent to the Santuario dell’Annunziata, and entered through the Villa Pepoli park, the wide-ranging collection at the Museo Regionale Pepoli takes in everything from exemplary Gagini statuary to seventeenth-century coral craftwork. Highlights downstairs include a little bronze horse and rider by Giacomo Serpotta and a sixteenth-century marble doorway by Berrettaro Bartolomeu, taken from the old church of San Giuliano, which, though badly worn in parts, displays a lively series of tableaux. Downstairs, too, bizarrely, is a grim wooden guillotine from 1789, with a basket for the head and a coffin at the ready. The museum houses a good medieval art section – including a powerful Pietà by Roberto Oderisio, and a couple of fine fifteenth-century triptychs by the anonymous Maestro del Polittico di Trapani. Other displays include a coin collection, with Greek, Roman, Arab and Italian examples; an eighteenth-century majolica-tiled scene of La Mattanza (tuna slaughter), with the fishermen depicted corralling the fish in their boats; a small archeological section with a few finds from Selinunte and Mozia, though nothing outstanding, and some intricate coral work, including crib scenes with alabaster and shell decoration.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: TRAPANI

By plane Trapani’s airport, 15km south of the centre at Birgi, has flights to and from several Italian cities, and Lampedusa and Pantelleria (1–3 daily; 40min), as well as Ryanair services from mainland Europe, Britain and Ireland. Buses (run by Terravision, but usually with Segesta written on the side) call at Trapani port, Trapani station and Palermo’s Piazza Politeama and Stazione Centrale and are timed to coincide with Ryanair flights: seats are available only to Ryanair customers (you have to show your boarding card to buy a ticket; the fare is €8). Journey time to Palermo is about two hours. AST also has a regular (hourly) service to Trapani port and station. If picking up the bus at the port, tickets need to be bought before boarding from the Egatour agency, across the road from the bus stop at Via Amm. Stati 13 (daily 5.30am–8pm;  0923 21 754,  www.egatourviaggi.it). Top Transfer ( 0923 27 899 or  337 896 010,  toptransfer.it) offers airport shuttles as well as longer-distance transfers.

By train Trains stop at the Stazione Centrale, just around the corner from the bus station and a short walk along Via Garibaldi from the old town.

Destinations Castelvetrano (13 daily Mon–Sat, 6 daily Sun; 1hr 10min); Marsala (12 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 30min); Mazara del Vallo (12 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 40min–1hr); Palermo (6 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 2hr 15min–4hr); Segesta-Tempio (3–4 daily; 25min).

By bus Most buses (including those to and from Erice) pull up at the terminal in Piazza Malta. If you’re heading straight off to the Egadi Islands, note that the fast buses from the airport, Palermo, Palermo airport and Agrigento stop at the ferry and hydrofoil terminals as well as the bus station.

Destinations from Trapani Agrigento (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 3hr 10min–3hr 40min); Alcamo (2–3 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr); Bonagia (8 daily Mon–Sat, 3 daily Sun in summer; 25min); Castellammare del Golfo (5 daily; 1hr–1hr 20min); Castelvetrano (5 daily Mon–Sat; 2hr 15min); Erice (7–8 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 45min); Marsala (3 daily Mon–Sat; 45min); Mazara del Vallo (3 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr 30min); Palermo (1–2 hourly Mon–Sat, 14 daily Sun; 2hr); Palermo airport (4 daily; 1hr); San Vito Lo Capo (8–9 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun in summer; 1hr 20min); Segesta (2 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 50min); Trapani airport (1–2 hourly; 20–40min).

Destinations from Trapani airport Agrigento (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 2hr 45min–3hr 20min); Marsala (1–4 daily Mon–Sat, 2 daily Sun; 15min); Palermo (6–8 daily; 2hr 10min); Trapani (1–2 hourly; 20–40min).

By ferry and hydrofoil Ferries for the Egadi Islands, Pantelleria, Cagliari and Tunis dock at the Molo di Sanità, while hydrofoils for the Egadi Islands and Ustica dock to the east of the Molo, on Via A. Stati. The frequencies given below are year-round. Services usually increase between June 10 and September 10.

Ferry and hydrofoil companies All the companies have offices at the Stazione Marittima, Molo di Sanità, Via Ammiraglio Staiti. Grimaldi ( 0923 593 673,  www.grimaldi-lines.com) sails to Civitavecchia and Tunis; Siremar ( 0923 24 968 or  892 123,  siremar.it) to the Egadi Islands and Pantelleria; Tirrenia ( 892 123,  tirrenia.it) to Cagliari; and Ustica Lines ( 0923 873 813,  usticalines.it) to the Egadi Islands and Ustica.

Ferry Destinations Cagliari (1 weekly; 10hr); Civitavecchia (1 weekly; 13hr 30min); Favignana (1–2 daily; 1hr–1hr 25min); Lévanzo (1–2 daily; 50min–1hr 40min); Marettimo (1 daily; 2hr 35min–2hr 50min); Pantelleria (6 weekly; 5hr 45min).

Hydrofoil Destinations Favignana (hourly; 15–40min); Lévanzo (11 daily; 20–40min); Marettimo (4 daily; 1hr); Ustica (3–4 weekly; 2hr 30min).

BUS COMPANIES IN TRAPANI

S. Lumia  0922 20 414,  autolineelumia.it. Departures from Piazza Malta and Trapani airport for Agrigento and Sciacca.

Segesta  091 342 525,  segesta.it. Departures from Piazza Garibaldi for Alcamo, Palermo and Palermo airport.

Salemi  0923 981 120,  autoservizisalemi.it. Departures from Trapani airport for Marsala and Palermo.

Tarantola  0924 31 020. Departures from Piazza Malta for Segesta.

Terravision  0923 981 120,  terravision.eu. Departures from the port, bus station and airport for Palermo.

GETTING AROUND

By bus Everything in the old town is easily reachable on foot, though you’ll need to catch a city bus to visit Trapani’s museum, in the new part of the city: most routes depart from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele. Tickets are available from tabacchi, and are valid for one hour.

By taxi During the day, taxis usually wait outside the train station – just make sure they switch on the meter, or you could be in for a surprise. If you need to call a taxi, try  0923 30 0051,  337 896 010 or  368 734 0893 (24hr).

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Tourist office The main office is at Via Torrearsa 46 (summer Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4–7pm, Sun 9am–1pm; winter hours are changeable;  339 599 8645,  stradadelvinoericedoc.it), and has bike rental as well as info on B&Bs and agriturismi. There’s also a little kiosk at the foot of Via Torrearsa, near the port (same hours).

Tours Egatour, Via Amm. Stati 13 (daily 5.30am–8pm;  0923 21 754,  www.egatourviaggi.it), run boat tours to Favignana and Lévanzo (€39) and to Favignana and Marettimo (€45), as well as a fascinating bus tour of the nearby salt flats (€15).

ACCOMMODATION

HOTELS AND B&BS

Ai Lumi Corso Vittorio Emanuele 71  0923 540 922,  ailumi.it. Five small but pristine rooms entered through a flower-filled courtyard. In summer, street-facing rooms can be noisy. €90

Almaran Via San Cristoforo 8  0923 549 847 or  349 611 0211,  almaran.it. Clean and pretty B&B close to the hydrofoil port; rooms have private bathrooms and a/c. The English-speaking owner is friendly and helpful, but breakfasts are basic. €65

Casatrapani Via Livio Bassi 196  333 532 2010,  casatrapani.it. In the modern town, but just a 10min walk from the station, this friendly B&B offers great rates, a pick-up from the airport or station, clean, colour-themed en-suite rooms with a/c, and the use of a kitchen with a washing machine. No credit cards. €85

Maccotta Via degli Argentieri 4  0923 28 418,  albergomaccotta.it. Smart and friendly place behind the Palazzo Senatorio. The spacious modern rooms have comfortable beds and a/c, but bathrooms are small, and it can be noisy. No breakfast. €75

Messina Corso Vittorio Emanuele 71  0923 21 198. The city’s cheapest option occupies the first floor of the eighteenth-century Palazzo Bernardo Ferro, and is entered through the same courtyard as Ai Lumi. Something of an endangered species these days, it’s an unrepentant, basic one-star hotel with shared bathrooms. It can be noisy, especially in summer, when the street- and bar-life of Corso Vittorio Emanuele is in full swing. €40

Moderno Via Ten. Genovese 20  0923 21 247,  hotelmoderno.trapani.it. As you might imagine, the Moderno is no such thing, though it does have more character than some, housed in an old palazzo with a courtyard where limited parking is available. The simple rooms have a/c and some have little balconies over the street. No breakfast. €55

Nuovo Russo Via Tintori 4  0923 22 163,  nuovoalbergorusso@gmail.com. Trapani’s oldest hotel has a great position on the main Corso, just a few minutes’ walk from the port. There are 36 rooms, all of them different, and corridors sprinkled with a random assortment of family heirlooms. Rooms have been recently restored, mighty shutters cut out most of the street noise, and there are plans afoot to create a roof terrace. €90

Residence La Gancia Piazza Mercato del Pesce  0923 438 060,  lagancia.com. Smart, if slightly sterile, contemporary rooms and mini-apartments (with and without cooking facilities), a great roof terrace (where breakfast is served) and a superb position on the northern seafront right above the town beach at the head of Via Torrearsa. Rooms €130; apartments €115

CAMPSITE

Villa Maria Via Torre di Mezzo, Lido Marausa  0923 841 363 or  340 556 4225,  villamaria.marausa.it. With a basic but clean and shady campsite and six apartments to rent, this rural spot may be in the middle of nowhere but it’s the nearest accommodation to the airport, and one of the two closest campsites to Trapani (12km away), and 200m from the sea. Facilities are clean and reliable, and the lovely old couple running it are tops. You’ll need your own transport though – it’s off the SP21. Camping €12 per person including tent and car; apartments €50

EATING AND DRINKING

Eating out in Trapani is a real treat – you can get fresh fish and couscous almost everywhere, while the local pasta speciality, alla trapanese, is terrific – either spaghetti or home-made busiate served with a pesto of fresh tomato, basil, garlic and almonds. There are quite a few lively bars around, too, good for breakfast and snacks, and bustling at night with people stopping off from the clamorous passeggiata that fills Via Torrearsa and the bottom end of Corso Vittorio Emanuele.

RESTAURANTS

 Angelino Via Ammiraglio Staiti 87  0923 26 922. Examine the mouthwatering displays in this fashionable pasticceria/tavola calda, take a ticket, order at the bar and grab a table in the conservatory. You’re spoiled for choice – involtini of aubergine rolled around spaghettini, stuffed sardines, rosemary-roast potatoes, lasagne and focaccia, all at extremely reasonable prices. Wine by the glass and coffee and delicious dolci to follow, if you can manage it. Aug daily lunch & dinner; rest of the year closed Mon.

Le Baccante Via Garibaldi 56 (no phone). This recently opened little restaurant/bar has appealing candlelit tables on atmospheric Via Garibaldi and in the stepped alleyway above. It’s especially good in summer, as the cooking is light and fresh, with inventive salads, along with tasty pasta (from €7) and fish (from €10). Summer daily lunch & dinner.

 La Bettolaccia Via Gen. Enrico Fardella 25  0923 21 695. Popular with locals, this informal but sophisticated osteria is known for its excellent risotto and busiate dishes (mainly seafood, though alla trapanese is recommended). Expect to pay €30–40 per head, including good local wine. Delicious desserts include parfait al pistacchio. Book, or arrive early. Mon–Fri lunch & dinner, Sat lunch only.

 Calvino Via N. Nasi 72  0923 21 464. This backstreet pizzeria, with Moorish-style cubbyhole rooms, is a bit rough-and-ready but well worth a visit. The tasty pizzas come in four sizes, from Piccola (€5–6) to Tripla (€14–17), cut into bite-sized pieces and served on squares of greaseproof paper. Try the Rianata, a local speciality made with fresh oregano, tomato, garlic, anchovies and pecorino cheese; or a hearty plate of sausages and potatoes roasted with onions in the pizza oven, best washed down with cold beer. Book for a table, or be prepared to take away or queue. No credit cards. Mon & Wed–Sun 9am–1pm & 5–8pm.

Cantina Siciliana Via della Giudecca 32  0923 28 673. In the old Jewish quarter, this cosy restaurant with blue-tiled walls is a great spot for a romantic dinner, though service can be poor. The menu features traditional Sicilian dishes as well as fish couscous, and desserts include a sublime lemon ice cream with limoncello. Pastas and meat or fish mains are all €8–12. Daily lunch & dinner.

 I Grilli Corso Vittorio Emanuele 69  0923 20 663,  igrillibraceria.it. Several cuts above your average Trapani eatery, I Grilli focuses on simple, carefully sourced, high-quality grilled meats, along with an eclectic menu of French and Italian cheeses and hams, and over 150 wines. Even the mixed bruschetta (€3.50) is a gastronomic experience. Cheese and ham plates from €9, grilled meats €8–18, salads and grilled veg from €6. April–Oct Mon–Sat lunch & dinner, Sun dinner only; Nov–March Mon–Tues & Thurs–Sun dinner only.

Le Mura Viale delle Sirene 15/19  0923 872 622. On the seafront below the Bastione della Conca, this is a lovely seafood restaurant– there’s no better place to try the famed prawns of Mazara del Vallo. It serves exquisite fish dishes, with plenty of simple options as well as more elaborate dishes. A full meal will set you back €35–40. Tues–Sat lunch & dinner.

P&G Via Spalti 1  0923 547 701. This long-established restaurant in the modern town has seen better days, but it still lays on a fine selection of antipasti, seafood and grilled meats. Among the pastas (€7–12), try the fresh busiate casarecce, with a pesto of anchovy, garlic, pine nuts and tomato. There are a few tables outdoors, and pizzas in the evening. Tues–Sun lunch & dinner.

 Tavernetta ai Lumi Corso Vittorio Emanuele 71–77  0923 872 418. The best restaurant in the old town occupies the brick-vaulted stables of an old palace – and there’s a shady outdoor terrace for summer dining. A typical meal from the regional menu might be home-made pasta with zucchini and shrimp, followed by a seafood stew or braised rabbit, and the wine list features good Sicilian wines. It’s not cheap, with most dishes €10–20. Mon & Wed–Sun lunch & dinner.

Trattoria del Porto Via Ammiraglio Staiti 45  0923 547 822. Friendly, family-run trattoria (also known locally as Da Felice) opposite the port, with occasionally slow service but good food and outdoor tables under the arches. Top choices are the spaghetti marinara, fish couscous, roast squid or, in season, involtini di spada (swordfish roulades). Good-value tourist menus are €20 and €30, otherwise there are plenty of dishes priced from €9–12. July & Aug lunch & dinner; rest of the year closed Mon.

BARS AND CAFÉS

Bar Il Salotto Via Garibaldi 1, corner Via Torrearsa  349 456 3480. A ravishing selection of cakes and puddings, fresh fruit salad for breakfast in summer, and cornetti with unusual fillings such as pear. Seats outside on Via Garibaldi, too. Daily 7am–4am; closes earlier in summer.

Gelateria Gino Piazza dalla Chiesa  0923 21 104. Make a beeline here for excellent ice cream and frullati, from kiwi to coconut, and grab a table in the piazza. Daily 9am–2.30pm & 3.30pm–late.

Nuovo Caffè Ra’ Nova Via Garibaldi  0923 23 311. Busy café with a range of hot snacks and pastas, and a large outdoor area on a traffic-free road. There’s also a huge array of ice creams and cocktails. Daily 8am–9pm; opens later in summer.

Torrepali Webcafé Via Ammiraglio Staiti 73  0923 25 532. Chic, contemporary bar opposite the hydrofoil port, good for beers, cocktails and snacks. With numerous terminals on hand and free wi-fi, it’s a relaxed spot to catch up with your emails. Daily 6.30pm–2am.

DIRECTORY

Banks There are banks with ATMs on Piazza Umberto I, Corso Italia, Via Garibaldi and at the Stazione Marittima.

Hospital Ospedale S. Antonio Abate, Via Cosenza ( 0923 809 111).

Pharmacies Marini, Corso Vittorio Emanuele 117; Occhipinti, Corso Italia 67 (both usually Mon–Sat 8.30am–1.30pm & 4.30–8pm).

Police Questura at Piazza Vittorio Véneto ( 0923 598 111); Carabinieri, Via Orlandini ( 0923 330 000).

Post office At Piazza Vittorio Véneto, at the bottom of Via Garibaldi. Mon–Fri 8am–6.30pm, Sat 8.30am–1pm, but Aug Mon–Fri 8am–1.30pm, Sat 8.30am–1pm.

Supermarket Margherita Conad, Corso Italia 35 (Mon–Sat 8am–1.30pm & 5–8.15pm), is a central supermarket for food.

< Back to Trapani and the west

Erice

Despite being just a brief hop from Trapani and the coast, ERICE couldn’t be further away in spirit. It’s a walled mountain town – around 750m above sea level – thoroughly medieval, with its creeping hillside alleys, grey stone buildings and silent charm, but boasting a truly ancient lineage. Nowadays it’s a centre for scientific conferences, and you’re likely to see numbers of foreigners with labels on their lapels among the milling tourists.

  Though there are enough cobbled alleys and quiet spots to enable you to avoid the tour groups, the constant tourist presence in this small town can be wearisome – especially in August, when the streets are busy until late at night as trippers and sojourners negotiate the polished cobblestones. Easter is another popular time to visit Erice, when the Misteri sculptures representing the Stations of the Cross are paraded through the streets on Good Friday. But the greatest pleasure here is simply to wander around. You’ll soon get lost in the town’s winding alleys, but the most convoluted of routes is only going to take a couple of hours, and every aspect is delightful. Square and solid from the outside, the houses hide pretty courtyards, and while most of the churches are locked, there’s usually something to admire – a carved door, a cupola or a belltower. The only modern blots in the town’s otherwise homogeneous aspect are the pylons that tower above the grey walls. Beyond these, the views from Erice’s terraces are superb, taking in Trapani, the Egadi Islands and even (allegedly) distant Cap Bon in Tunisia.

THE FUNIERICE CABLE CAR TO ERICE

Even if it weren’t the quickest means to reach Erice – far more convenient than driving or catching a bus – the Funierice cable car (funivia) ride from Trapani would be worth the excursion. In fact the ascent, which takes about twelve minutes, constitutes one of the region’s most memorable experiences, revealing a gradually expanding panorama that extends over the flat saltpans to the south, the mountainous coast north, and out over the narrow limb that holds the old city to the Egadi Islands and the blue sea beyond. By night, the scene is very different, with Trapani’s lights sparkling under a starry sky.

  From the Trapani terminal on Via Caserta, departures are continuous (Mon 1–8pm, Tues–Fri 8.10am–8pm, Sat 10am–10pm, Sun 10am–8pm;  funiviaerice.it), with tickets costing €5.50 one-way, €9 return. Note that the service may be cancelled if it’s windy, in which case you’ll have to take the AST bus from the stop on Via G.B. Fardella. Check whether the service is operating on  0923 869 720.

  Driving to the cable-car station on Via Caserta, at the extreme eastern end of the modern city, is not straightforward: from the old centre, follow Via G.B. Fardella east, bear left at Corso Mattarella, keep straight along this and its continuation Via Manzoni (following signs for Erice), and turn left at the end into Via Fratelli Aiuto, from which it’s a right turn into Via Caserta and the large car park. It’s simpler by bus: take #21 or #23 from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele (direction Ospedale S. Antonio Abbate) and get off at the stop before the hospital, from where it’s a short walk.

Brief history

Founded by Elymians, who claimed descent from the Trojans, the city was known to the ancient world as Eryx. A magnificent temple, dedicated to Aphrodite Erycina, Mediterranean goddess of fertility, once topped the mountain and was big enough to act as a landmark to sailors. According to legend, it was here that Daedalus landed, unlike his son Icarus who flew too near the sun, after fleeing from Minos; he presented the temple with a honeycomb made of gold as his gift to the goddess. Even though the city was considered impregnable, Carthaginian, Roman, Arab and Norman armies all forced entry over the centuries, but all respected the town’s sanctity, the Romans rebuilding the temple and setting two hundred soldiers to serve as guardians of the shrine. Later, the Arabs renamed the town Gebel-Hamed, “Mohammed’s mountain”, while Count Roger called it Monte San Giuliano, a name that stuck until Mussolini returned its ancient moniker in 1934.

Chiesa Madre

Daily: March 10am–4pm; April–June & Oct 10am–6pm; July & Aug 10am–8pm; Sept 10am–7pm; Nov–Feb 10am–12.30pm • €2.50

Just inside the Norman Porta Trapani, at the southwestern edge of town, is the battered stone Chiesa Madre. It dates from around 1314, though the massive Gothic entrance was added a century later and much of the structure was rebuilt in the nineteenth century. The neo-Gothic interior preserves some exceptional lace-like carving.

  The church’s stout, battlemented campanile owes its name, Torre di Re Federico II, to its original role as a lookout tower for Frederick III of Aragon (Frederick II of Sicily), who made Erice his base during the Wars of the Vespers. Climb to the top for sublime views over village, mountains and sea.

Piazza Umberto I

Museo Cordici Mon & Thurs 8.30am–1.30pm & 3–5pm, Tues, Wed & Fri 8.30am–1.30pm, plus Sat 9am–1pm in summer • Free

From Porta Trapani, the main Via Vittorio Emanuele climbs steeply past houses, shops and pasticcerie to the pretty Piazza Umberto I, where café tables are strewn adventurously across the sloping cobbles. The small Museo Cordici here boasts a good Annunciation by Antonello Gagini and the pick of the local archeological finds. Further north, the medieval Porta Carmine marks the other end of town, from where the line of ancient city walls leads back to the Chiesa Madre.

Castello di Vénere

April–Oct daily 10am–1hr before sunset; Nov–March Sat & Sun 10am–4pm • €3.50

A natural start or finish to an exploration of Erice is the ivy-clad Castello di Vénere at the far end of town; the Norman castle was built on the site of the famed ancient temple, chunks of which are incorporated in the walls. When it’s fine, the views from the terraces of Erice are phenomenal – over Trapani and the slumbering whales of the Egadi Islands.

Giardini del Balio and around

Below the Castello di Vénere are the Giardini del Balio public gardens, in the middle of which sits a restored fifteenth-century tower, the Torretta Pépoli. From here, you can wind towards Piazza Umberto I, perhaps passing clifftop San Giovanni Battista and its distinctive dome before eventually negotiating the minuscule Piazza San Domenico, whose church and palace facade are among the town’s most harmonious sights.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: ERICE

By cable car The easiest way to get to Erice fom Trapani is the cable car.

By bus Buses from Trapani (7–8 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 45min) stop outside the Porta Trapani by the cable-car terminal.

By car From Trapani, it’s a twisty half-hour’s drive. Leave your car in the car park outside the Porta Trapani – don’t even think of driving into the old town.

Tourist information The helpful tourist office (Mon–Fri 8am–2pm;  0923 869 388,  prolocovalderice.it) is just off Piazza Umberto I on Via Tommaso Guarrasi.

ACCOMMODATION

Staying the night in Erice is relatively expensive, and in summer, or at Easter and Christmas, you’d do well to book in advance. If you stay in the old town it’s best to park outside Porta Trapani and carry your luggage up. The other option is to stay in Valderice, a 20min drive back down the mountain.

Il Carmine Piazza del Carmine 23  0923 869 089 or  0923 194 1532,  ilcarmine.com. Spacious, bright rooms, with separate private bathrooms, in a former Carmelite convent in the heart of town. €80

Elimo Via Vittorio Emanuele 75  0923 869 377,  hotelelimo.it. Luxurious rooms in a beautifully restored hotel with a small courtyard garden – this is the place to stay if you feel like treating yourself (though without breaking the bank). €130

San Domenico Via Tommaso Guerrasi 26  0923 860 128,  hotel-sandomenico.it. Engaging family-run hotel in a medieval house in the heart of Erice – with the owners’ children’s toys in evidence in the sitting room along with some robust rustic antiques. Two sets of connecting rooms, and a triple. Breakfast is in a tiny courtyard. €115

Ulisse Camere Via S. Lucia 2  0923 860 155 or  389 985 6089,  sitodiulisse.it. Nicely furnished rooms dispersed over two buildings, with private bathrooms. The most evocative are grouped around a tranquil central courtyard. €65

EATING AND DRINKING

Though restaurant prices are a good bit higher in Erice than elsewhere in the region, you can still eat out fairly reasonably if you stick to the set-price menus. Bring a picnic and you can sit in the shady Giardini del Balio, or there’s a panineria on Via Vittorio Emanuele.

 Monte San Giuliano Vicolo San Rocco 7  0923 869 595. Entering this backstreet restaurant is like visiting a castle, through a stone archway and up steps. There’s a sort of courtyard too, where tables are spread out amid plants with seaward views. Try the ravioli védova allegra (“happy widow”), with ricotta and squid ink. First courses are €8–10, mains are €10–18. Tues–Sun lunch & dinner; closed three weeks in Nov & Jan.

Pasticceria di Maria Grammatico Via Vittorio Emanuele 14 (no phone). Famous speciality cake shop and café selling marzipan fruits, amaretti and the like, a popular tourist stop. Maria Grammatico learned her trade as a girl in a convent, and has co-written a recipe book with writer Mary Taylor Simeti. You can admire the view from a minuscule balcony, and there’s a more spacious garden with tables. Open daily in summer; closed Tues in winter.

La Pentolaccia Via G.F. Guarnotti 17  0923 869 099. Atmospherically housed in an old monastery, this moderately priced place serves excellent home-made pasta and couscous. Try the ravioli stuffed with cernia in a sauce of cherry tomato, swordfish, mint and prawns (€10), or the pasta nostromo, dressed with the roe of a John Dory, Mazzara prawns, tomatoes and garlic (€15). Mon & Wed–Sun lunch & dinner.

 Ulisse Via Chiaramonte 45  0923 869 333. Reached down the stepped Vico San Rocco, just off the main square, and with a pretty courtyard garden. The pizzas here (€5–9) are the best in town (and Sun sees a queue form early), while the regular menu is good too, if on the pricey side. Gluten-free dishes are offered. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Thurs in winter.

< Back to Trapani and the west

North of Trapani

North of Trapani, the main attraction is the resort town of San Vito Lo Capo, though with a car you could explore the rugged coastline en route, the road weaving under some of the gigantic outcrops of rock that characterize Sicily’s west. The most spectacular, Monte Cofano (659m), is protected as a nature reserve. Although none of the settlements is particularly beautiful, a couple of outstanding hotels might make you decide to base yourself near Valderice or Bonagia.

Valderice and Bonagia

Between Trapani and San Vito Lo Capo, 40km away, two wide gulfs – Bonagia and Cofano – are backed by holiday homes and small plantations, overlooked both by the heights of Erice and by its lower neighbour VALDERICE, a ribbon development occupying a prominent ridge. From Valderice, a minor road winds 5km down to the coast at BONAGIA, where the old tuna fishery has been converted into a hotel that’s well worth considering for anyone travelling with children.

ACCOMMODATION: VALDERICE AND BONAGIA

 Baglio Santa Croce SS187, Km 12.3  0923 891 111,  bagliosantacroce.it. A glorious renovation of a seventeenth-century stone-built estate, some 1km outside Valderice, whose rooms have beamed ceilings, exposed walls, tiled floors and iron bedsteads (other rooms are in the modern annexe). There’s a pool, a renowned restaurant and superb views to the coast. €130

Lido ValdErice  0923 573 477 or  349 854 2190,  campinglidovalderice.it. Located close to the sea and a couple of good bars, this is a small but clean and friendly campsite. It’s connected by up to six buses a day from Trapani’s bus terminal, a 30min ride, then a 5min walk from the bus stop. Closed Nov–Feb. Camping €4.90 per person, plus €7.90 per tent

Tonnara di Bonagia Piazza Tonnara di Bonagia, Valderice  0923 431 111,  tonnaradibonagia.it. Occupying the mellow buildings of an old tuna fishery, this is a perfect base for a pool-and-beach summer holiday. There is an excellent pool, and activities for children in summer. Paths lead to miniature rocky coves for those who prefer to swim in the sea. Accommodation is in either hotel rooms or self-catering apartments. Rooms €140

San Vito Lo Capo

With its dense ranks of trattorias, hotels and bars, SAN VITO LO CAPO is certainly geared to holiday consumers, but its comparative remoteness has helped to stave off the worst pressures of the tourist industry, even in high season. All the same, you’ll have a lot more elbowroom outside the peak months – the best time to appreciate the town’s beach, one of Sicily’s finest.

  Running down to the beach, San Vito’s long shop- and restaurant-lined main strip, the pedestrianized Via Savoia, is the focus of the evening passeggiata, with its shops staying open late in summer. It holds one sight worth a glance: the curious, square and fortified-looking Santuario (concerts are held outside in summer; check posters around town). A pleasant promenade backs the beach, which stretches east of town. Framed by the looming cliffs behind and overlooked by jagged slabs of rock, the wide, curving stretch of white sand is ideal for swimming and sunbathing, though it gets pretty congested in August. Deckchairs and parasols are available to rent (€10–12/day).

  West of the main beaches, an old watchtower at the small harbour is destined to hold the Museo del Mare, holding sundry marine exhibits, though don’t hold your breath – it could take years. A ten-minute walk past the harbour brings you to the point of Capo San Vito itself – a rocky and windswept plain on which a fenced-off lighthouse is perched. For views you need to climb above the town (bear left on the way out to the lighthouse), up a steep road leading to the top of the high cliffs and looking down over the Golfo di Castellammare. The other local walk is east to the Riserva Naturale dello Zingaro, a nature reserve.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: SAN VITO LO CAPO

By bus Regular daily AST buses run to San Vito from Trapani’s bus terminal and Russo buses from Palermo’s Piazza Marina; all stop on Via P.S. Mattarella, close to the seafront and three blocks up from Via Savoia.

Destinations Palermo (3–4 daily summer; 1–2 daily winter; 2–3hr); Trapani (8–9 Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun in summer; 1hr 20min).

Bus companies AST, for Trapani and Bonagia ( 0923 23 222,  aziendasicilianatrasporti.it); Russo, for Castellammare del Golfo and Palermo ( 0924 31 364,  russoautoservizi.it).

By car Parking is highly restricted during the summer months: your best bet is to search out one of the car parks on the edge of town; some are free, others cost €5–6 per day. From the biggest of these, the free Parcheggio Comunale Sud (Villaggio Azzurro) shuttle – for which take an early right turn onto Via La Piana as you enter town – runs to the centre in the summer months. Alternatively, you can park between the blue lines in a few more central areas (€1/hr; buy a scratch-card from tabacchi).

GETTING AROUND

Car, bike and scooter rental Auto Vesco, Via Orazio di Bella 20 ( 388 140 8305,  autovesco.it), and Serse, Via Dogana 3 ( 0923 974 434,  autonoleggioserse.com), have cars, motorbikes and scooters. Bikes can be rented May–Sept from various stalls behind the beach (usually €2.50/hr or €5–10/day).

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Tourist information The tourist office is at Via Venza 12 (June–Sept daily 9am–1pm & 5–11pm; Oct–May Mon–Fri 9am–1pm & 4–8pm;  0923 974 300,  sanvitoweb.com).

Festivals San Vito gets impossibly busy in August and during the Cous Cous Fest ( couscousfest.it), which takes place over six days in late September and includes free samplings of dozens of versions of the dish, as well as nightly concerts in Piazza Santuario and a fireworks extravaganza on the last night at midnight. In recent years, a Cous Cous Preview, a sort of mini-version of the main event, has been staged over three days in early June; and there are free concerts and more festivities around San Vito’s day in mid-June.

Boat excursions Between May and September, boats operated by several companies run daily to Zingaro, Scopello and Monte Cofano. Hippocampus ( 338 612 5140;  hippocampus-sanvito.it) is well organized, with space for just twelve people in its boats, and has both morning and afternoon departures.

Services There’s a pharmacy at Via Regina Margherita 26 (Mon–Sat 9.30am–12.30pm & 4.30–8.30pm, reduced hours in winter), and a Post office at Via Savoia 58 (Mon–Fri 8am–1.30pm, Sat 8am–12.30pm).

ACCOMMODATION

Accommodation in San Vito is plentiful and mostly central – as with all resorts, the nearer the sea, the more expensive the room. It’s worth noting that in July and August and during the Cous Cous Fest of late September, many places virtually double their prices and demand a minimum stay of three days or a week. Furthermore, you’ll almost always have to agree to half-board terms, and you’re unlikely to find anything suitable without an advance reservation. In winter, you won’t find many places open; ask around the bars in the centre if you get stuck. There are several campsites in the area and the “No camping” signs on the town beach should be heeded.

HOTELS AND B&BS

Bougainville Via Mulino 61  0923 972 207,  sanvitoweb.com/bougainville. Quite a walk from the beach, this family-run place features climbing plants, five decent rooms and a spiral staircase leading to a roof terrace. Fridge available for guests. Closed Oct–March. €90

Capo San Vito Via San Vito 1  0923 972 122,  www.caposanvito.it. Right on the seafront, this top-of-the-range hotel has smart, modern rooms, those at the front (costing more) with balconies and sea views; those at the back can be noisy. There’s a spa (not included in the price), meals are taken in the terrace restaurant, and a small garden gives on to the beach. Minimum stay six nights in high season. €250

Halimeda Via Generale Arimondi 100  0923 972 399,  hotelhalimeda.com. This small, modern hotel away from the sea has spacious, themed rooms – Arabic, Nordic, Oriental, etc – each with minibar, a/c and internet access, and there’s a lovely Art Nouveau staircase. Breakfast on the terrace includes fresh cornetti, biscuits and local dolci. There’s free parking too – a useful bonus in San Vito. Normally a one-week minimum stay in Aug. Closed Nov–Feb. €135

Pocho Contrada Macari  0923 972 525,  pocho.it. Making the most of its coastal location, 4km south of town, this cliffside hotel-restaurant provides a stylish and soothing base for anyone with transport, with twelve quiet and elegant rooms with fridges and wi-fi (those sea views cost extra). The food is terrific too, and there’s access to the small rocky beach below. Closed Oct–March. €150

Poseidon Via P.S. Mattarella 28  0923 972 444,  poseidonresidence.com. Good for families, these stylish one- and two-room apartments have a/c, kitchenette and shower, plus parking. Ground-floor apartments have garden access but no views; you get more light and a balcony higher up. Low-season rates are negotiable. Closed Dec–Feb. Two-person apartments from €400 weekly

Sigiuma Via Santuario 39  0923 972 952 or  347 863 8967,  sigiuma.it. Very central B&B with ample rooms in bright, summery colours with fridges and a/c, and there’s a patio (where breakfast is served) and a tranquil garden. The welcoming hosts – two brothers – are ready with local info and good advice. Closed Nov–March. €120

CAMPSITES

El Bahira Contrada Macari  0923 972 577,  elbahira.it. The largest and classiest of San Vito’s sites, this “camping village” has a range of facilities as well as a private beach, but it’s some way out of town, 4km south, and pricey. Caravans (€600 per week) and apartments (€1000 per week) are available. Closed Oct–March. Camping €8.90 per person, plus tent pitch €15.50

 La Pineta Via del Secco  0923 972 818,  campinglapineta.it. With a bar, pizzeria, a pool and bungalows to rent, this is the best of San Vito’s campsites, shady and efficiently run, located a 10min walk from town east along the seafront. Camping €10.30 per person, plus tent pitch €8.80

EATING AND DRINKING

Via Savoia and the lungomare are lined with bars, ice-cream parlours and pizzerias, and there’s no shortage of fish restaurants either, most on the pricey side. It’s always worth booking during San Vito’s festivals, when restaurant queues are common.

Agorà Piazza Marinella 5  0923 974 442. Always busy, this smart trattoria near the seafront has tables in the piazza, and serves pastas for €8–15, mains for €12–15, or fresh fish at €5.50/kg. The house speciality is cassatelle Agorà, fresh pasta stuffed with zucchini, pistachio and basil, served with mussels and shrimps (€12). Mon–Tues & Thurs–Sun lunch & dinner, Wed dinner only; closed Wed in winter.

Caffè Pino Via Savoia 24  392 358 0791. A nice choice for breakfast, with friendly service and delicious cakes and pastries. Try the torrone ice cream and the cannoli, but preferably not at the same time. Closed Thurs Oct–June.

Delfino Via Savoia 15  0923 972 711. A pizzeria-trattoria on the main street and near the beach, with smoked-fish antipasti, fresh pasta, fish couscous and a short list of decent pizzas to eat in or take away. One of the cheaper places in town, it offers tourist menus for €15.50 including wine. Daily lunch & dinner.

 Pocho Contrada Macari  0923 972 525. Small and casually chic, and with an unparalleled location overlooking the rocky coast 4km south of town, this place has tables inside – where there’s a collection of Sicilian puppets – and on a lovely panoramic terrace. Inventive dishes are available on a six-course set menu (€38 including water and an aperitivo). The owner, Marilù, occasionally ends the evening with Sicilian songs. On Sunday there is a special couscous lunch (€38 per person). Mon–Sat dinner, Sun lunch.

La Sirenetta Via Savoia, corner of Via Faro (no phone). Gelateria overlooking the beach, with a summer shaded terrace and a choice of twenty ice creams. Specialities are gelsomino (jasmine flower, summer only), torrone and caldofreddo (ice cream with hot chocolate sauce). Daily 9am–late; closed Tues Nov–March.

Thaam Via Duca degli Abruzzi 32–36  0923 972 836. Elaborately decorated restaurant with a marked Tunisian influence, with merguez, kebabs and couscous (all €12–13) featuring alongside more mainstream Italian dishes. The outdoor tables beneath a tent-like canopy fill fast, so book or arrive early. Daily lunch & dinner.

< Back to Trapani and the west

The Egadi Islands

Moored off the western coast, the three Egadi Islands (Isole Egadi) are the easiest of Sicily’s offshore islands to visit – which accounts for the summer crowds that swarm over Favignana. The other islands are much less affected, however, and if you come out of season things are noticeably quieter everywhere.

  The largest of the Egadis and the nearest to the Sicilian mainland, Favignana is also the site of the main fishery. The Genovese link is most apparent in the island of Lévanzo, across the strait, which is named after a quarter in Genova and shelters the Grotta del Genovese, a cave in which a rich bounty of prehistoric cave paintings was discovered. These days, with the annual tourist influx, the greatest hope for peace and quiet lies in the furthest island, Marettimo, whose rugged coasts are indented with a succession of coves, ideal for clean and secluded swimming. The island also offers a choice of hikes across its interior and along the rocky coasts.

  You could easily see any of the islands as a day-trip from Trapani; seeing two on the same day is also feasible. If you want to stay longer, be warned that accommodation is extremely limited, and in summer you should phone ahead to reserve a room. It’s certainly worth staying over, though you should also bear in mind that, in general, prices for rooms and food are higher than on the mainland.

GETTING TO THE EGADI ISLANDS

Ferries operated by Siremar ( 0923 24 968,  siremar.it) and hydrofoils operated by Siremar and Ustica Lines ( 0923 873 813,  usticalines.it) depart several times daily from Trapani. They’re more frequent between June and September, and most frequent in July and August. They generally call at Favignana, Lévanzo and Marettimo, in that order, though Lévanzo is sometimes the first stop, and some services don’t run as far as Marettimo.

  Ferries depart from the Stazione Marittima in Trapani, and hydrofoils from further east along Via A. Staiti; you can buy tickets at booths on the dockside. Ferries are less frequent than hydrofoils and take at least twice as long, but they’re cheaper. One-way ferry tickets from Trapani to Favignana and Lévanzo cost around €10, and to Marettimo around €15; one-way hydrofoil tickets are around €12 and €20 respectively; all return tickets cost double. In summer, Siremar also runs fast ferries (navi veloci) to Favignana and Lévanzo, which may take half the time of a normal ferry, depending on the route.

  Ustica Lines also operate a year-round hydrofoil service three times daily to Favignana from Marsala (30min; €8.60).

Brief history

Before the advent of tourism, the economic success of the Egadi Islands was largely based on a historical relationship with the northern Italian city of Genova, whose sailors plied the trading routes on which the Egadis stood throughout the Middle Ages. The link was formalized in the middle of the seventeenth century, when the Bourbon king Philip IV sold all the islands, in lieu of a debt, to Genoan businessmen. Then, as now, a major element in the local economy was the tuna fish, which congregate here to breed at the end of spring. Channelled through the straits between the two main islands during their migrations around the Sicilian coast, they have traditionally been systematically slaughtered in an age-old rite known as La Mattanza – though in recent years the practice has been discontinued due to falling stocks and the efficiency of the offshore “factory ships”.

Favignana

Fifteen to forty minutes from Trapani by hydrofoil, FAVIGNANA has progressed over the years from tuna centre to prison and now tourist resort. Shaped like a lopsided butterfly, the island is almost split in two, its narrow “waist” holding the port, Favignana town, and most of the population. To the east lie the best swimming spots, accessible from a succession of rocks and inlets, while the western half of the island is only reachable along the southern coastal road, which tunnels through Monte Santa Caterina (300m).

Favignana town

FAVIGNANA TOWN is the focus of most of the tourist traffic. As the archipelago’s only town, it holds the island’s main services and best choice of accommodation and restaurants, but otherwise there’s no particular reason to hang around. From the port, you can see the dome of the church: aim for that and you’ll reach the main square, Piazza Madrice. Everything else is contained in the short streets between here and the nearby Piazza Europa.

  The town’s only distinctive feature is the imposing building near the port, the Palazzo Florio. Now part of the town hall, it was built by Ignazio Florio, an entrepreneur who took over the islands in 1874 and revitalized the fisheries; there’s a statue of him in nearby Piazza Europa. His tuna fishery, Stabilimento Florio, is similarly impressive, its vaulted nineteenth-century buildings a solid counterpoint across the bay. It is currently open for visits (with a flexible timetable), and plans are afoot to open a marine and fishing museum here at some future date. Otherwise, all there is to do is window-shop in the many places selling “prodotti tipici”– traditional tuna products, of course, as well as bottarga (fish roe), oil, local dried herbs, wine and bloody postcards of la Mattanza.

Monte Santa Caterina

The island’s sole hill, Monte Santa Caterina is topped by an abandoned Norman castello, floodlit at night, and reached by a crazy-paved stairway from the west side of Favignana town. Alternatively, follow the lower path over the mountain to a crest with views to Marettimo. The path down the other side, however, is hard to follow and you may end up scrambling over walls and through fields to reach the road.

The rest of the island

Away from the town, Favignana is tidily cultivated, pitted with square white houses built from tufa quarried from curious pits all over the island – an export that has historically provided the island with a second source of cash (after fishing). One of the old quarries, on the fringe of town by the decrepit chapel of Santa Anna, has been landscaped and turned into a quirky sunken garden.

  You can swim at the beach near the town, but the sandy beach at Lido Burrone, on the island’s south side, is better, with a friendly pizzeria-restaurant-bar that rents out parasols and sun-loungers. Otherwise, just follow the coast roads and plunge in off the rocks, or settle down on one of the tiny handkerchiefs of sand. Call in at Cala Azzurra, below the lighthouse at the island’s eastern end, where there’s a beautiful blue bay but little sand; or, just north, the spectacular Cala Rossa, where you can swim off rocks at the base of towering tufa cliffs. Its name – Red Cove – is said to derive from the blood washed ashore after the Roman defeat of the Carthaginians in a fierce sea battle in 241 BC. The road to Cala Rossa in particular is noted for its tufa quarries – just before the cove itself is a huge quarry where stacks of tufa and unexcavated pillars rise high from the gloomy depths. On the other side of the mountain, the best beach is at Cala Rotonda, where, local legend would have it, Odysseus washed up before being attacked by the Cyclops.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: FAVIGNANA

By ferry and hydrofoil Siremar ( 0923 921 368,  siremar.it) and Ustica Lines ( 0923 921 277,  usticalines.it) both have offices at the port in Favignana town. They operate services throughout the year between Trapani, Marsala and the other Egadi Islands. The services detailed here are year-round; schedules are increased from June 10 to September 10.

Ferry departures Lévanzo (2–3 daily; 35min); Marettimo (1 daily; 40min); Trapani (2–3 daily; 1hr 10min).

Hydrofoil departures Lévanzo (5 daily; 10–15 min); Marettimo (4 daily; 45min); Marsala (3 daily; 30min); Trapani (hourly; 20–40min).

By airport transfer Siciltransfert ( 348 262 0089) arranges transport direct to Favignana from Palermo (€45 per person) and Trapani (€30) airports (and vice versa), including hydrofoil crossing and taxi.

GETTING AROUND

By bike The best way to get around the island is by bike, since the flat terrain and good road surfaces enable you to see the whole of Favignana in an afternoon. There are bike rental shops all over town, including down at the port – look for the words “noleggio bici”, or try Isidoro, at Via Mazzini 40 ( 347 323 3058), which rents bikes for €3.50 a day (€6 in high season), and scooters for €25–30 a day (€35–45 in Aug).

By bus A bus service leaves from down by the port on three routes: #1 to Cala Azzurra, #2 to Punta Sottile, #3 to the turn-off for Cala Rossa. Departures are roughly hourly during the summer, much less frequent in winter; buy tickets on board (€1).

By taxi Call  347 479 6745 or  333 318 3112.

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Tourist information The tourist office is at no. 25 Piazza Madrice, Favignana town (Mon–Sat 10am–12.30pm, usually closed Jan & Feb;  0923 921 647). A useful website for Favignana and the whole archipelago is  egadi.com.

Boat tours Trips to the island’s offshore grottoes are offered down at the port, costing around €35 per person including lunch for a full day (less for a 2hr or 3hr excursion) – there’s always someone around in summer, but you may have to ask in town at other times.

Diving Progetto Atlantide ( 347 517 8338 or  347 050 4492,  progettoatlantide.com) offers courses and equipment rental.

ACCOMMODATION

HOTELS AND B&BS

Albergo Aegusa Via Garibaldi 11, Favignana town  0923 922 430,  aegusahotel.it. Central, clean and quiet three-star hotel just off Via Roma. Rooms have a/c, minibar and safe; some are in an annexe, 100m away. It’s worth taking half board here, as there’s a rated garden restaurant. Closed Nov–March. €90

B&B Favignana Via Roma 10, Favignana town  392 725 2398,  bbfavignana.com. One of the cheapest choices on the island, this place has simple, colour-themed rooms with private bathrooms and a/c. It’s a good choice if you want to stay centrally, just minutes away from the port. Prices almost halve in low season. No credit cards. Closed mid-Jan to mid-March. €110

Bouganville Via Cimabue 10, Favignana town  0923 922 033,  albergobouganville.it. This small, reasonably priced hotel has spacious rooms and a restaurant in the garden. It’s near the beach on the southwestern edge of town: follow Via Diaz and Via Battisti from the centre, a 10min walk. Closed Dec–Easter. Half board obligatory in summer; prices are much reduced for the rest of the year. Half-board from €110

Cave Bianche Cala Azzurra  0923 925 451,  cavebianchehotel.it. Boutique hotel within an abandoned quarry, with chic and minimalist rooms. There’s a pool, hydro-massage and a great restaurant, and scooters and bikes are available to rent. It’s about 10min from town by bike. Closed Nov–March. €305

Hotel delle Cave Contrada Torretta Strada, Vic. della Madonna  0923 925 423,  hoteldellecave.it. This boutique hotel is built on the lip of an abandoned quarry a couple of kilometres east of town, in an area known locally as Zona Cavallo, with gardens, a hydro-massage pool and a restaurant inside the quarry itself. The structure is severely functional, but the rooms are full of designer features, and come with minibar, a/c and wi-fi. Excellent deals in low season. Closed Nov–Easter. €230

Villa Antonella Via Punta Marsala, Favignana town  0923 921 073,  egadi.com/villaantonella. A family-run B&B a couple of kilometres outside town which also has self-catering mini-apartments sleeping 2–4 people. A good choice for families or those on a budget who want to be able to cook for themselves. It is walkable from town, but you might prefer to have your own transport. €50

CAMPSITE

Camping Egad Contrada Arena  0923 921 555,  campingegad.com. A little over 1km east of town, and 500m from the beach at Lido Burrone, this has a range of accommodation, including rooms in wooden cabins, and igloo-type apartments with cooking facilities sleeping two–four. Facilities include bar, restaurant, store and scooter and bike-rental, and there’s transport to and from the port. Closed Nov–Easter. Camping €7.30 per person, plus pitches €7.50; cabins €65; igloos €130

EATING AND DRINKING

Piazza Madrice, Piazza Europa and the surrounding streets are where you’ll find Favignana’s bars and restaurants, but be warned: restaurant prices on the island tend to be high. Excellent slices of pizza, schiacciata and the like are sold at the bakery Costanza on Via Roma, just up from Piazza Madrice, or you may prefer to picnic on the town beach. For picnic provisions, carry on past Costanza to the Egadi supermarket, where the deli counter has local ricotta and a good range of cheeses and hams.

La Bettola Via Nicotera 47  0923 921 988. With a terrace for eating al fresco, this popular spot serves up a memorable couscous di pesce (€19). As an antipasto, the fritelle di gamberi (prawn fritters) are also worth sampling. Prices are reasonable, with starters at €7–9, mains €10–15. Daily lunch & dinner; sometimes closed Mon in winter.

Pizza Pazza Via Mazzini 16, off Piazza Madrice (no phone). You can pick up excellent and inexpensive pizzas here, cooked in a wood-fired oven. Don’t miss the local speciality, rianata, made with pecorino instead of mozzarella, and oregano instead of the usual basil, and picnic on them in the piazza. Daily 7–10.30pm; closed Tues in winter.

Pizzeria Salvador Via Nicotera 7  0923 921 271. This family-run place serves great pizza (from €5) and other dishes too, including local specialities like couscous. In summer there are tables outside. Daily lunch & dinner.

DIRECTORY

Banks The banks in Piazza Europa and Piazza Madrice both have ATMs.

Internet Elyos, Piazza Madrice 37 (April–Oct Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 3–7.30pm, Sun 9am–1pm).

Pharmacy Abramo, Piazza Europa (English-speaking); Barone, Piazza Madrice (both Mon–Fri 8.30am–1pm & 5–8.30pm). At other times see rota on the door.

Post office Via Marconi 2 (Mon–Fri 8am–1.30pm, Sat 8am–12.30pm).

Lévanzo

LÉVANZO, 4km north of Favignana, is the smallest of the three main Egadi Islands. Most of it is used to pasture sheep and goats, and, with its turquoise seas and white houses, it has very much the feel of a Greek island. Its population is concentrated in LÉVANZO TOWN, little more than a cluster of square houses and holiday homes around a tiny port, where you’ll find the island’s two hotel-restaurants and a couple of bars.

  The coastline is rocky and largely inaccessible, but you can get around on foot by following the dirt paths along the shore and over the hills. Following the only road twenty minutes west of the port, you’ll come to a rocky spire sticking out of the sea – the Faraglione – beyond which a rocky path leads north up the coast. This becomes a stone and dirt track once it reaches the upper part of the valley. If you stick to it, it takes around an hour to reach the lighthouse at Capo Grosso at the northeastern point of the island.

  On your way to the cape, you can swim at the lovely white Tramontana bay: just before you reach an old metal gate, a track leads down the red-earth mountainside, ending in an acute concrete slope, which you can just about slither down, though scrambling back up is hard work. Tracing the coast eastwards from Lévanzo Town, you can reach Cala Minnola in about fifteen minutes – a lovely rocky cove ideal for swimming.

Grotta del Genovese

On the island’s northwest coast, on a slope overlooking the sea, the Grotta del Genovese is the main attraction for most visitors. The cave walls display some remarkable Paleolithic incized drawings, discovered in 1949, as well as later Neolithic pictures; they’re mostly of animals, and are between six thousand and ten thousand years old. Despite their age, the evocative drawings retain their impact, drawn by prehistoric man in an attempt to harness and influence the power of nature: one lovely picture of a deer near the entrance dates from when the island was still connected to the Sicilian mainland. The later Neolithic sketches are easy to pick out too; less well drawn, more stylized representations of men and even of tuna fish and a dolphin.

GETTING TO THE GROTTA DEL GENOVESE

All visits to the Grotta del Genovese ( grottadelgenovese.it) have to be arranged at least a day in advance through the official custodian, Signor Natale Castiglione: either telephone  0923 924 032 or  339 741 8800, or pass by at Via Calvario 11, above the quay. Tickets cost €22.50 each, either by jeep or by boat. By boat, the round-trip will take nearly two hours, usually departing at 10.30am and (if there’s enough demand) 3pm. Note that the smallest swell may be enough to make it impossible for the boat to pull into the narrow rocky disembarkation point. You can also extend the tour by opting for the round-island trip (€5 supplement), taking up to three hours including a swimming stop.

  By jeep, the two-hour round trip is roughly 10km, following an inland route through the valley in the centre of the island. The fairly difficult descent on foot to the grotto from where the jeep stops is not recommended for anyone infirm. You might negotiate a discount jeep fare if you feel like walking back. Booking for either route is essential. Winter tours only take place when the conditions are right – again, always telephone ahead.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: LÉVANZO

By ferry and hydrofoil The port is just below the island’s only road, Via Calvario. In summer both Siremar and Ustica Lines have ticket booths at the port; in winter, they move into the town, out of reach of stormy waves (precise locations vary from year to year). Services are good enough throughout the year to make day-trips from Trapani and Favignana an easy prospect.

ACCOMMODATION

In summer, the island’s hotel will usually require a week’s minimum stay and only accept guests on half-board terms, though as the only other options for food on Lévanzo are two bars, an alimentari and a bakery, this is no hardship. In any case, the food is good at both places. If you’re self-catering at the Lisola Residence, you may want to bring supplies from the mainland, as the choice of food at the alimentary is a bit limited.

Lisola Residence  0923 194 1530 or  320 180 9090,  lisola.eu. Seven apartments 400m outside the port sleeping between two and four, occupying simple tufa cottages originally built by nineteenth-century tuna-canning magnate Florio for his workers. Extras include a large pool with parasols and sun-loungers, and free transport to the port whenever you need it. Closed Nov–March. Two-person apartments €500

Paradiso  0923 924 080,  albergoparadiso.eu. Close to the port, next to the bar, this has a terrace-restaurant and marvellous sea views from the en-suite, air-conditioned rooms, some of which are a bit cramped. Half-board doubles €170

Marettimo

Wildest and furthest out from Trapani, MARETTIMO was claimed by Samuel Butler, in his The Authoress of the Odyssey, as the original Ithaca, home of Odysseus. Even more far-fetched, Butler also thought that Homer himself was the princess Nausicaa of ancient Trapani. These theories aside, there are compelling reasons to come to Marettimo. Its spectacular fragmented coastline is pitted with rocky coves sheltering hideaway beaches, several of which – such as those at Cala Sarde and Cala Nera on the south coast, or at the Saracen castle at the northeastern point of the island – can be reached by footpath. Even in high season, you’re likely to have much of Marettimo to yourself, as few tourists can be bothered to visit a place with limited accommodation and no more than half a dozen trattorias. That said, there are signs of heightened interest these days in the shape of a sprinkling of new holiday homes, while EU money has gone towards paving a couple of sections of track. However, such “improvements” are still fairly low-key and, at least for now, the island retains its air of being far off the beaten track.

MARETTIMO HIKES

None of the walks detailed here is particularly onerous, though you might have to scramble at times. Always make sure you’re carrying enough water with you.

TO THE CASE ROMANE

Marettimo’s simplest walk takes you to some old Roman defensive works, the Case Romane, which are still in pretty good condition. Climb up the road to the side of Caffè Tramontana and, at the top, scout around to the left and then right to find the signpost for the start of the walk. The remains are half an hour on, sitting next to a small and dilapidated church that shows marked Arab characteristics but is thought to have been built by Byzantine monks in the twelfth century.

TO CALA SARDE AND CALA NERA

Follow the road south of Marettimo port, turning inland after about 1km where the path divides. There’s a steep climb, with the town’s cemetery below you, rising to about 300m. After about half an hour, you’ll pass a pine forest and a small outhouse, looking out on views towards Tunisia; below is the Cala Sarde, a small bay reachable along a smaller path to the left in another half an hour.

  Instead of descending to the bay, continue for about an hour on the main path along the island’s rocky west coast. You’ll pass a lighthouse and a route down to Cala Nera, where you can swim off the rocks in perfect isolation.

TO THE CASTLE AT PUNTA TROIA

This walk follows the footpath all the way to the northeastern tip of the island, a hike that should take you around three hours; you’ll need a head for heights in certain stretches. Go past the fishing harbour with the sea on your right, and keep to the coast along the path for about ten minutes, until the terrace wall on your left stops. When a sign here (“Castello Punta Troia”) points to the left, cut up to find the main path on a small spur above you. This stretches along the whole length of the island about 100m above the sea, ending at some concrete steps that descend to a lovely secluded beach and the foot of the castle, perched on an impregnable rocky crag. This precipitous fortification was originally built by the Saracens, enlarged by Roger II, and further extended by the Spanish in the seventeenth century, when it became a prison, and acquired a dire reputation for cruelty.

Marettimo town

As you pull into port and explore its few streets, MARETTIMO TOWN appears almost North African in character, with its flat-roofed cube houses with blue shutters and painted tiles, and alleys full of tumbling bougainvillea. There’s one main street, a little square and church, and a second harbour, the fishing port, just along from the main harbour. Two of the island’s most popular bathing spots are conveniently close, one near the main harbour, one near the fishing harbour.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: MARETTIMO

By ferry and hydrofoil Both Siremar (ferries and hydrofoils) and Ustica Lines (hydrofoils) run year-round from Trapani and Favignana to Marettimo, but there are far fewer services than to Favignana and Lévanzo. There is a skeleton low-season service, and boats are often cancelled due to bad weather.

Tourist information There’s no information office on Marettimo, but plenty of useful stuff online at  marettimoweb.com.

Boat trips Various options are available via Rosa dei Venti: around the island to Cala Bianca for swimming costs €15 per person; the same with a picnic (including home-cured fish and local cheeses and wines) is around €30 per person. On either, you can be left at a cove to swim and be collected an hour or so later. Alternatively, you could take a three-hour boat tour of the island (a “giro dell’isola”), available from operators at the main harbour, which allows you to see Marettimo’s entire rocky coastline and dive into otherwise inaccessible waters that are clean and clear and a joy for snorkellers.

Services Marettimo’s main street, Corso Umberto, is about a minute’s walk from the harbour where the ferries and hydrofoils dock. It holds a bank with an ATM, a Siremar ticket agency and an Ustica Lines agency in a little shop just up from Piazza Umberto.

ACCOMMODATION

Marettimo offers a better choice of accommodation than Lévanzo, with a couple of B&Bs and a few apartments and holiday residences for weekly rents. If these are full, ask around in the bars and restaurants for rented rooms, but it’s always best to book before you come.

I Delfini Corso Umberto 34  0923 923 137 or  339 239 9867,  idelfinimarettimo.it. Central B&B with great sea views on one side. Rooms are simple but clean and comfortable, with private bathrooms, and there’s a roof terrace on which delicious breakfasts are served. No credit cards. Closed Nov–March. €90

Marettimo Residence Via Telégrafo 3  0923 923 202,  marettimoresidence.it. Small resort-like cluster of cottages above a stony beach south of the main port, available for B&B or weekly rental (€1050 per week in high season). Demand is high, but you’ll find greater availability and much lower prices outside the summer period. B&B rooms €165

Rosa dei Venti Punta Simone 4  0923 923 249 or  333 675 8893,  isoladimarettimo.it. As well as operating various other tourist activities, this outfit has rooms and self-catering apartments dispersed around the island, also available for short stays. €60

Sealife Corso Umberto and Via Tedesco  0923 923 288 or  347 542 9713,  sealifesnc.com. The two apartments are centrally located, accommodating two to five people usually by the week, though they’ll let you have them for shorter periods if there are vacancies. One has a terrace, the other a small courtyard, and both are equipped with barbecues. €550 per week

 La Terrazza Via G. Pepe 24  0923 923 252 or  368 768 1571,  bedandbreakfastmarettimo.it. The best feature here is the wide, semi-shaded terrace, with terrific views over the castle and sea, where breakfast is served and which guests can use all day. The four rooms are simply and tastefully decorated. No credit cards. Closed mid-Oct to March. €80

EATING AND DRINKING

Marettimo offers a reasonable range of eating options, though prices are a little higher than on the mainland, given the cost of shipping in ingredients. Not all the places listed here stay open throughout the year, but there’s always something open. There are two alimentari on Via Garibaldi, off the main drag, one of which has takeaway items.

Baia del Sole Piazza Umberto. Next to the Siremar office on the main road, this bar has a few tables and excellent ice cream and granitas. Daily 8am–8pm.

Caffè Tramontana Via Campi. On the road above the fishing harbour, people gather here all day for the superb sea views. It’s the place to come for breakfast, or for an aperitif with snacks at sunset. Summer daily 8am–late.

Il Pirata Via Scalo Vecchio  0923 923 027. Pesce spada all’arancia (swordfish with orange) and pasta con le sarde (with sardines, fennel seeds, pine nuts and raisins) are among the specialities in this pleasant trattoria by the fishing harbour. First courses are around €10, mains €10–18. For a real feast, splash out on the zuppa di aragosta – first you eat the flavoursome broth with pasta, then the lobster, at €55 per head. Daily lunch & dinner.

Il Veliero Corso Umberto  0923 923 274. Owned by a fisherman, this trattoria has excellent fresh seafood and a summer cane-and-fishing-trap-bedecked terrace by the harbour. First courses, such as pasta with squid ink or bottarga (tuna roe), cost around €12; mains aren’t much more. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Nov–Feb.

< Back to Trapani and the west

Mozia and the saltpans

Fifteen kilometres down the coast from Trapani, the uninhabited Stagnone Islands (Isole dello Stagnone) have been mostly given over to salt extraction since the fifteenth century. On the mainland opposite, several windmills still stand near the surviving saltpans, which form a crystalline patchwork between Trapani and Marsala. Offshore, the long, thin Isola Grande shelters the only one of the Stagnone group that you can visit, San Pantaleo, set in the middle of a shallow lagoon that’s now the year-round scene of windsurfing, kitesurfing and sailing. You can rent the equipment from shacks strung along the coast road; some outlets also rent out canoes (around €6 per half-day), allowing you to weave around the saltpans. San Pantaleo also holds the site of the ancient Phoenician settlement of Motya (Mozia in Italian); this is the the big cultural attraction hereabouts, and the whole island is usually referred to as Mozia rather than San Pantaleo.

Mozia

Daily 9.15am–6.30pm • €9

Flat, cultivated and only 2.5km in circumference, Mozia is one of the most manageable of Sicily’s ancient sites, with the unique Phoenician ruins spread across the whole island. You could circle the perimeter in an hour or so, but it’s more enjoyable to make a day of it and bring a picnic (and there’s a bar with basic snacks on the island).

  Along with Palermo and Solus (Solunto), Mozia was one of the three main Phoenician bases in Sicily, settled some time during the eighth century BC and completely razed to the ground by Dionysius I in 397 BC. It’s the only one of the three sites that wasn’t subsequently built over, though it remained undiscovered until the seventeenth century, and wasn’t properly excavated until Joseph “Pip” Whitaker (amateur archeologist and member of one of the marsala wine dynasties) bought the island in the late nineteenth century and started to dig it up.

  You reach the island site and its archeological museum by a short ferry ride from the mainland. Although the linguistic link between the archipelago’s name (Stagnone) and our “stagnant” is not entirely coincidental, that doesn’t deter some visitors from wading into the lagoon on the mainland side and crossing to Mozia in beachwear – the island museum, at least, has had enough and won’t allow entry to anyone who’s not properly clothed.

THE VIA DEL SALE BUS

Local bus company Salemi ( 0923 951 522,  viadelsaleinbus.it) run a hop-on, hop-off bus connecting all the main sites between Marsala and Trapani, including Mozia, the Saline Ettore e Infersa/Museo del Sale and several other windmills with small museums devoted to the history of salt. A day-ticket costs €12.50 for adults, €7.50 for children.

Museo Whitaker

Daily 9.15am–6.30pm • Included in Mozia entry ticket

Joseph Whitaker’s house – once incongruously furnished in Edwardian style – now holds the Museo Whitaker, which holds finds from the site. Its cool rooms are packed with a beautiful collection of jewellery, arrowheads, terracotta figurines and domestic artefacts, with the earliest pieces dating from the eighth century BC. Pride of place goes to the magnificent fifth-century BC marble sculpture of a youth, Il Giovinetto di Mozia, sensual and self-assured in his pose. The identity of the subject is unknown, but he was likely to have been a high-ranking official, suggested by the subtle indentations round his head, indicating some kind of crown or elaborate headwear.

  Outside stands an aristocratic bust of “Giuseppe” Whitaker, and there’s a shaded picnic area under the trees nearby.

Casa dei Mosaici and the cothon

The remains of ancient Mozia start immediately outside the Museo Whitaker. In front and 100m to the left is the Casa dei Mosaici, two houses containing some faded black-and-white mosaics made from sea pebbles. One, probably belonging to a patrician, shows animal scenes; the other, thought to be a craftsman’s, yielded numerous shards of pottery. Further along the path you come to the cothon, a small artificial boat dock built within the ancient town’s walls and similar in style to a much larger one at Carthage itself.

The north gate

To the right of the Museo Whitaker, rough tracks that were once the city’s main thoroughfares cut through flowering cacti and vine plantations. Most of the tracks end at the once-impenetrable north gate, now a ragged collection of steps and ruined walls, which stands at the head of a causeway built by the Phoenicians in the sixth century BC to connect the island with the mainland (and a necropolis) at Birgi, 7km to the north. The road is still there, although these days it’s submerged under the water.

Tophet burial ground

Left along the shore from the north gate is the Tophet burial ground. Most of the information about day-to-day life in Motya has come from here, the sanctuary revealing a number of urns containing the ashes of animals sacrificed to the Phoenician gods (chiefly Baal Hammon) and of children, probably stillborn or who died of natural causes. A remarkable series of inscribed votive stele from the Tophet is on display in the museum.

Cappiddazzu

Just inland of the north gate, the Cappiddazzu site shows the foundations of a large building, probably a temple, while between gate and Cappiddazzu is a Punic industrial zone that was dedicated to the production of pottery and ceramics. This was where the famous marble sculpture was found, probably hidden by the city’s inhabitants as the Greeks stormed the island.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: MOZIA

By bus From Marsala, take the local Linea D bus from Piazza del Popolo to the Mozia ferry landing. Return buses are on a similar schedule; a reduced service in either direction operates on a Sunday. From Trapani, you’ll have to take the bus or the train to Marsala and connect from there.

By ferry Ferries out to the island are run by Arini & Pugliese ( 347 779 0218) and Mozia Line ( 329 476 0294) from two separate spots. Arini & Pugliese boats leave from the ferry landing near the bus stop, Mozia Line from a dock about 1km away. A steady flow of visitors ensures that there’s usually a ferry waiting during the hours when the museum is open; tickets for the 10mn crossing cost €5 return. Parking is available near the two embarkation points.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Baglio Vajarassa Contrada Spagnola 176  0923 968 628,  bagliovajarassa.com. This peaceful agriturismo lies a couple of kilometres south of the Arini & Pugliese ferry landing, and has rooms furnished with antiques, and typical local dishes for dinner around a communal table. Half board only. €60

Mamma Caura Mozia Lines Ferry Landing  0923 966 036. You can eat well here – try the fish couscous – but try to arrive early enough to watch the sun setting over the sea (they serve wine and nibbles as well). There are also canoes to rent. Daily dinner only.

The saltpans

The series of saltpans glistening in the shallows between Trapani and Marsala has been worked since Phoenician times. Bare-chested men toil with shovels, carting full wheelbarrows across from the pans to a rising conveyor belt that dumps 2m-high mounds of white salt along the banks. At different times of the day, as the light changes, there’s a pink tint to the saltpans, while Marettimo rises in the distance through the haze.

Saline Ettore e Infersa and the Museo del Sale

April–Sept 9.30am–7pm; call ahead in winter as hours vary • Museo del Sale €6, audioguide €2 •  0923 733 003

On the mainland, just opposite Mozia, one of three windmills has been turned into a showroom and museum, the Saline Ettore e Infersa, dedicated to the whole salt-making process. It’s free to enter if you just want to browse the locally produced foods and crafts in the showroom, but the Museo del Sale is fascinating, especially if you take the instructive audioguided tour.

< Back to Trapani and the west

Marsala

When the island-city of Motya had been put to the sword by the Syracusans, the survivors founded Lilybaeum (modern MARSALA), 10km to the south. The main city of the Phoenicians in Sicily, and the only one to resist the Greek push westwards, Lilybaeum finally succumbed to Rome in 241 BC, and not long after was used as a springboard for an attack against the Carthaginian heartland itself. The town’s position at Sicily’s western tip later made it the main Saracenic base on the island, and it was renamed Marsah Ali, Arabic for the “port of Ali”, son-in-law of the Prophet, from which its modern name derives.

  The town scored a place in modern Italian history for its role in the saga of the Risorgimento, the struggle for Italian unity in the nineteenth century. It was here that Garibaldi kicked off his campaign to drive out the Bourbons, in the company of his red-shirted “Thousand”. Until a planned Garibaldi museum on Marsala’s southwestern seafront (on Via Scipione l’Africano) gets round to opening, memorials to the swashbuckling freedom-fighter are confined to a few statues and street names, and the nearby Porta Garibaldi, at the end of Via Garibaldi, which recalls the hero’s entry into the town. Local enthusiasts clad in red shirts parade through the gate each year on May 11, in commemoration of the exploits of the “Thousand”.

Piazza della Repubblica

Marsala’s town centre is a predominantly Baroque assortment of buildings, though there are hints of the older town’s layout in the narrow, largely traffic-free streets around the central Piazza della Repubblica. The elegance of the square is due to its two eighteenth-century buildings: the arcaded Palazzo Comunale, and the Chiesa Madre – dedicated to San Tommaso di Canterbury, patron saint of Marsala – from which four statues peer loftily down. The church’s large but rather disappointing interior has a few Gagini sculptures.

Museo degli Arazzi

Via Garraffa 57 • Tues–Sun 9am–1pm & 4–6pm • €4 •  0923 711 327

Behind the Chiesa Madre, the sole display at the Museo degli Arazzi is a series of eight enormous hand-stitched wool and silk tapestries depicting the capture of Jerusalem. Made in Brussels in the sixteenth century, they were the gift of the Spanish ambassador, who doubled as the archbishop of Messina, and are beautifully rich, in burnished red, gold and green.

Pinacoteca Comunale

Summer Tues–Sun 10am–1pm & 6–8pm; winter Tues–Sun 10am–1pm & 5–7pm in winter • Free

Past the Museo degli Arazzi, you can view the remains of Punic walls and pavements from the Greco-Roman period in Piazza San Girolamo. Still further, a left turn off Via Garraffa leads into Piazza del Carmine, where a fourteenth-century convent has been stylishly renovated to hold the Pinacoteca Comunale. Visitors can enjoy a good collection of art and regular exhibitions – mostly contemporary and with local connections.

Complesso San Pietro and the Museo Civico

Via Ludovico Anselmi Correale • Tues–Sun 9am–1pm & 4–8pm • Free •  0923 718 741

The Complesso San Pietro is a fifteenth-century monastery, now fully restored as a cultural centre that incorporates the Museo Civico, where you can see a selection of archeological items from the Punic, Greek and Roman eras and, more compellingly, rooms dedicated to Garibaldi’s triumphant campaign in western Sicily, including letters, photos, arms and uniforms. The complex also contains the town library and a courtyard for occasional open-air performances.

Porta Nuova and Capo Boeo

At the far end of Via XI Maggio, through the eighteenth-century Porta Nuova, Piazza della Vittoria has a gate into the municipal gardens and a bar where you can sit and admire the austere Art Deco front of the Cine Impero, so out of keeping with the Baroque arch opposite. Beyond the piazza lies Capo Boeo, the westernmost point of Sicily that was the first settlement of the survivors of annihilated Motya. All the town’s major antiquities are concentrated here, including the old Insula Romana, closed to the public at present, but normally accessible from Via Vittorio Véneto. The site contains all that’s been excavated so far of the city of Lilybaeum, though most of it is third-century BC Roman, as you might guess from the presence of a vomitorium, lodged in the most complete section of the site – the edificio termale, or bathhouse. There’s some good mosaic-work here: a chained dog at the entrance and, much better, a richly coloured hunting scene in the atrium, showing a stag being savaged by a wild beast.

San Giovanni a Marsala

Viale N Sauro • Usually daily 9am–noon & 3–6pm

From Piazza della Vittoria, Viale N. Sauro leads to the church of San Giovanni, under which is a grotto reputed to have been inhabited by the sibyl Lilibetana, endowed with paranormal gifts. There’s another slice of mosaic here, and a well whose water is meant to impart second sight. A pilgrimage takes place every June 24, the feast day of San Giovanni.

THE MAKING OF MARSALA WINE

The Baglio Anselmi, which houses Marsala’s archeological museum, is one of a number of old bagli, or warehouses, conspicuous throughout this wine-making region. Many are still used in the making of the famous dessert wine that carries the town’s name. It was an Englishman, John Woodhouse, who first exploited the commercial potential of marsala wine, when he visited the town in 1770. Woodhouse soon realized that, like port, the local wine could travel for long periods without going off, when fortified with alcohol. Others followed: Ingham, Whitaker, Hopps and many more whose names can still be seen on some of the warehouse doors. Interestingly, it was the English presence in Marsala that persuaded Garibaldi to launch his campaign here rather than in Sciacca (his first choice), judging that the Bourbon fleet wouldn’t dare to interfere so close to Her Majesty’s commercial concerns.

  Marsala owes much of its current prosperity to the marketing of its wine, which is still a thriving industry, though no longer in British hands. You can visit some of the bagli and sample the stuff for free: try the Cantine Montalto (Mon–Fri 9am–1pm & 3–6pm, Sat 9am–1pm, other times can be booked at  0923 969 667) at Contrada Bérbaro, 3km along the road south towards Mazara del Vallo, reached along Lungomare Mediterraneo. Free guided tours and samplings are offered, and there’s an Enomuseum where you can look over the old apparatus and techniques for wine-making. Otherwise, you’ll find marsala or the sweeter marsala all’uovo (mixed with egg yolks) in every bar, enoteca and restaurant in town.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP SELINUNTE; CERAMICS, ERICE; MARSALA WINE

Museo Archeologico

Lungomare Boeo • Tues–Sun 9am–7.30pm • €4 •  0923 952 535

One of the stone-vaulted warehouses that line the lungomare contains the Museo Archeologico, mostly dedicated to a very skeletal but still surprisingly well-preserved warship from the classical period. Displayed in a heat- and humidity-regulated environment, it ranks as the only extant liburnian, a specifically Phoenician or Punic warship, probably sunk during the First Punic War in the great sea battle off the Egadi Islands that ended Carthage’s rule of the waves. It was discovered in 1971 and brought here after eight years of underwater surveying by a British team working under the archeologist Honor Frost. Originally 35m long, nearly 5m wide and rowed by 68 oarsmen, the vessel has been the source of much detailed information on the period, including what the crew ate and the stimulants they chewed to keep awake. Scattered about lie ranks of amphorae and anchors, and other items found in or around the ship, plus photographs and explanations (in Italian and English) of the ship’s retrieval from the sea.

  On the left-hand side of the building is displayed a medley of archeological finds from various sites hereabouts, both on land and sea. Prize exhibit is a marble torso dredged up from the sea in 2005, the Venus of Lilybaeum: comparable in style to the more famous Venus Landolina in Siracusa, it’s probably a Roman copy of a Hellenistic statue of the second century BC. Other items include more mundane ceramics from the Punic tophet (“sacrificial grounds”) on Motya and other ancient necropolises in the neighbourhood, a good Roman mosaic and some colourful examples of Italian and North African pottery.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: MARSALA

By train Trains to Marsala, from Trapani in particular, are quicker and more frequent than buses. The train station is at the southeastern edge of town on Viale A. Fazio, a 15min walk from the centre.

Destinations Castelvetrano (10 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 45min); Mazara del Vallo (10 daily Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 20min); Palermo (6 daily Mon–Sat, 3 daily Sun; 3hr 10min; may involve change); Trapani (12 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 30min).

By bus Buses arrive centrally at Piazza del Popolo (also known as Piazza Marconi), near Porta Garibaldi.

Destinations Agrigento (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 2hr 25min–3hr); Campobello (4 daily Mon–Sat; 55min); Castelvetrano (7 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr 15min); Mazara del Vallo (1–2 hourly Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 30min); Palermo (1–2 hourly Mon–Sat, 7–9 daily Sun; 2hr 30min); Salemi (2 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 35min); Sciacca (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 1hr–1hr 30min); Trapani (4 daily Mon–Sat; 55min–1hr 15min); Trapani airport (1–4 daily Mon–Sat, 2 daily Sun; 15min).

By hydrofoil Hydrofoil services to and from the Egadi Islands are operated by Ustica Lines ( 348 357 9863) at the harbour, a 15min walk from the centre – you can buy tickets on the dockside. There is year-round service to Favignana (30min) and in recent years there has also been a summer-only service to Marettimo (1hr 10min–2hr 15min).

Tourist information There’s a tourist office at Via XI Maggio 100, off Piazza della Repubblica near the Chiesa Madre (Mon–Sat 8am–1.30pm & 3–8pm;  0923 714 097).

ACCOMMODATION

Centrale Via Salinisti 19  0923 951 777,  hotelcentralemarsala.it. Plain but spacious and comfortable en-suite rooms with a/c and minibar, arranged around a courtyard. The hotel has a quiet location in the old town, and there’s off-street parking. Breakfast is in a nearby bar. €75

 Hotel Carmine Piazza del Carmine 16  0923 711 907,  hotelcarmine.it. Very central, Marsala’s most stylish hotel combines modernity with domed rooms, antique trimmings and fabulous breakfasts. The spacious rooms have exposed brickwork and wood or tiled floors, some with balconies, some overlooking the internal garden. €125

Palazzo Diaz Via Salinisti 22  348 019 0662 or  329 216 3780,  palazzodiaz.com. This B&B in a converted nineteenth-century palazzo has large, airy rooms with a/c and en-suite bathrooms, and there’s a grand roof terrace where breakfast is served. €90

Villa Favorita Via Favorita 27  0923 989 100,  villafavorita.com. This beautiful, secluded villa on the outskirts of town is set in its own gardens and has a pool, a tennis court and a restaurant, where the food and service alternate between superb and dire. Regular wedding receptions can disrupt the overall serenity of the place. It’s signposted 2km northeast of the centre, off Via Trapani. €125

EATING AND DRINKING

In the centre of Marsala at least, which empties of life after 9pm, restaurants can be hard to come by, but you’ll eat well and relatively cheaply at the ones listed here. The couple of bars in Piazza della Repubblica are good for a tè freddo alla pesca (cold peach tea), accompanied by earnest discussion of lottery numbers – otherwise try the places listed here. For general groceries, there’s a lively daily market around the Porta Garibaldi, selling fresh fish as well as fruit and vegetables.

Al Capo Via Lungomare Boeo 40  328 862 8586. In a restored warehouse near the Museo Archeologico, this makes a handy pre- or post-museum lunch stop. There are several “piatti unici” (which means you get a pasta dish and a secondo combined) such as the fresh busiate with a sauce of tuna and aubergine, which comes accompanied by a slice of tuna (€15). There’s also pizzas (from €5) in the evenings and fish couscous at weekends. Set-price menus at €15, €20 and €25. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Wed in winter.

 Divino Rosso Largo di Girolamo  0923 711 770. Congenial pizzeria and wine bar where you can sit outside opposite a seventeenth-century palazzo. Snack on cheeses, cold meats, panini and salads, or go for a range of tasty pizzas (around €7). There are also some meat and fish dishes (€8–15), and a fantastic range of wines. Daily dinner only.

E&N Via XI Maggio 130  0923 951 969. This classy pasticceria and gelateria has a small courtyard which makes for a nice place to sit and savour a pistachio ice cream or decadent pastry. There are savouries, too, at lunchtime. Mon–Tues & Thurs–Sun 8am–8pm.

Il Gallo e l’Innamorata Via S. Bilardello 18  0923 195 4446. Small and friendly osteria with great food, including bruschetta with tuna, salami and tomato (€6), grilled fish (€5 per 100g) and, in season, busiate con ragù di tonno (pasta with tuna sauce; €12). Prices are very reasonable – you can eat abundantly for €30 per head including drinks. Mon & Wed–Sun lunch & dinner.

< Back to Trapani and the west

Mazara del Vallo

The North African element in Sicily’s cultural melange is at its strongest in the major fishing port of MAZARA DEL VALLO, 22km down the coast from Marsala. Under the Muslims, Mazara was one of Sicily’s most prosperous towns and capital of the biggest of the three administrative districts, or walis, into which the island was divided – hence the “del Vallo” tag. The first Sicilian city to be taken by the Arabs, and the last they surrendered, Mazara’s prosperity lasted for 250 years, coinciding with the height of Arab power in the Mediterranean. Count Roger’s anxiety to establish a strong Norman presence in this Muslim powerbase ensured that Mazara’s importance lasted long after his conquest of the city in 1087, and it didn’t give up its rank as provincial capital until Trapani took over in 1817.

  The Arab links have revived since the port became the prime Sicilian destination for Tunisian immigrants flocking across the sea to work in the vast fishing fleet – one of Italy’s biggest. Indeed, wandering through Mazara’s casbah-like backstreets, there are moments when you could imagine yourself to be in North Africa, passing Tunisian shops and a café plastered with pictures of the Tunisian president, and Arab music percolating through small doorways. For the visitor, the attraction of Mazara is its profusion of fine churches in a slowly reviving – though far from genteel – old town. The tree-shaded lungomare and seafront gardens add another facet to its character, and with a row of sea-view restaurants, Mazara is one of the few towns in the west to make the most of its coastal location.

The old town

Mazara’s old town is where all the interest lies, bordered by the River Mazaro and sea on two sides and the main corsos – Umberto I and Vittorio Véneto – on the other two. At the southern end of Corso Umberto I, Piazza Mokarta holds the scant ruins of Count Roger’s castello, magnificently floodlit at night, when the square is the focus of promenading crowds.

  From Piazza Mokarta, Via Garibaldi leads up to Santa Veneranda, perhaps the most beautiful of Mazara’s Baroque churches, its twin belltowers styled with a jaunty twist. Further west at the edge of the old town on a platform overlooking the Mazaro River, the church of San Nicolò Regale has a more restrained air. A restored Norman church, it has strong Arab elements, with a honey-toned, battlemented exterior and a simple interior rising to a single cupola.

The Duomo

Piazza della Repubblica • Usually daily 9am–noon & 4–7pm

Mazara’s Duomo was originally Norman but completely remodelled in the late seventeenth century – though the relief over the main door showing a mounted Count Roger trampling a Saracen underfoot was carved in 1584. The light and airy interior reveals an almost indigestible profusion of stuccoed and sculptured ornamentation, including, behind the altar, a group of seven marble statues depicting the Transfiguration, carved by Antonello Gagini. To the right, a niche reveals a fragment of Byzantine fresco, dating from the end of the thirteenth century, while, through the marble doorway on the right side of the nave, you’ll find some excellently chiselled Roman sarcophagi, with reliefs of a lively hunting scene and a battle, rich with confusion. Outside the Duomo, Piazza della Repubblica heralds a harmonious set of Baroque buildings: the square itself is flanked by the elegant, double-storey porticoed facade of the Seminario and the Palazzo Vescovile, both eighteenth century.

Museo del Satiro

Piazza del Plebiscito • Daily 9am–6pm • €6

The fifteenth-century church of Sant’Egido now houses the Museo del Satiro, whose centrepiece is a rather risqué fourth-century BC bronze satyr captured in the ecstatic throes of an orgiastic Dionysian dance. It was, quite literally, caught by a Mazara fishing boat in the waters between Pantelleria and Cap Bon, Tunisia, in 1998. Sadly, as the fishermen hauled the catch aboard, one of the arms broke off and has yet to be recovered. A 25-minute video with English subtitles relates the story.

The Tunisian quarter

Most of what remains of the old town was built after Mazara’s teeming Arab population had dwindled to nothing – but it’s here, especially in the Pilazza neighbourhood, that their descendants have returned, making up a low-key Tunisian quarter centred on Via Porta Palermo and nearby Via Bagno. Stroll around the quiet alleys here and you’ll pass authentic Tunisian cafés and shops, and the occasional social club resounding with Arab music and the clack of backgammon tables.

The port

West of the Tunisian quarter, the waters of the Mazaro River are hidden by the hulls of the two hundred-odd trawlers that clog Mazara’s port. Heavy overfishing and the use of illegal explosives (dropped into the sea to stun the fish) have greatly decreased the catch in recent years, but the rich waters above the continental shelf have ensured that there are enough fish left to make it worthwhile for the fishermen to pursue their trade – at least, given the reduced wages that the Tunisians are prepared to accept.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: MAZARA DEL VALLO

By bus Buses stop at Via Salemi, either outside the train station or 200m up at Piazza Matteotti.

Destinations Agrigento (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 2hr–2hr 40min); Campobello (3 daily Mon–Sat; 20min); Castelvetrano (3 daily Mon–Sat; 40min); Marsala (1–2 hourly Mon–Sat, 4 daily Sun; 30min); Palermo (8–12 daily Mon–Sat, 2–6 daily Sun; 2hr–2hr 35min); Trapani (4 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr 30min–1hr 45min).

By train Mazara’s train station is centrally located off Corso Vittorio Veneto.

Destinations Campobello di Mazara (11 daily Mon–Sat, 6 daily Sun; 10min); Castelvetrano (10 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 20min); Marsala (10 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 20min); Palermo (5 daily Mon–Sat, 3 daily Sun; 2hr 40min–3hr; may involve change); Trapani (10 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 50min).

Tourist office Mazara’s tourist office is on Piazza Mokarta (Tues–Sat 8am–1pm & 3–7pm, Sun 8.30am–1pm;  0923 942 776).

ACCOMMODATION

Foresteria Monastica  0923 906 565 or  347 722 5069,  foresteriasanmichele.com. Very plain but clean and quiet rooms in this old-town convent annexed to San Michele church. You probably won’t see any sign of the seven Benedictine nuns who are resident here, and who make the local pastries served at breakfast, which costs €5. Closed Nov–Feb. €50

Hopps Hotel Via G. Hopps 29  0923 946 133,  hoppshotel.it. Large resort-style three-star centred on a palm-fringed pool, a 5min walk down the lungomare from the public gardens. Rooms are spacious if a bit dated, and breakfast is by the pool. All in all good value for what you get, though poolside entertainments in summer can be noisy. €75

Nosteon Via Plebiscito 9  0923 651 619 or  347 571 8904,  nosteon.it. Great-value B&B off Piazza Plebiscito, with a double room and an apartment consisting of a double in the loft and a bunk downstairs, with a kitchen and bathroom. Breakfast is taken at the nearby Bar Garden. No credit cards. €40

 Villa Altair Via Salemi 9  0923 944 088 or  347 666 2963,  villaaltair.com. A couple of kilometres southeast of town (call for directions), this peaceful B&B occupies an old baglio, or farmhouse, in the middle of vineyards and olive groves. The five rooms have a/c and wi-fi connections, and the owners can arrange airport transfers, excursions and vehicle rental. €80

EATING AND DRINKING

RESTAURANTS

Alla Kasbah Via Itria 10  0923 906 126. Don’t be fooled by the name: apart from a very acceptable fish couscous, the food here is modern Sicilian rather than North African. You can just have antipasto, couscous and wine for €15; other fixed-price menus are €20–25. The ambience is relaxed and friendly. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Mon Sept–June.

La Béttola Via Maccagnone 32  0923 946 422. Near the train station, this simple, old-fashioned place is recommended for regional fish and seafood specialities. Try the catch of the day, sliced thin and marinated, and the fish couscous (€12). Mon–Tues & Thurs–Sun lunch & dinner.

 Eyem Zemen Via Porta Palermo 36  347 386 9921. Tiny place, with three or four tables outside and authentic and cheap Tunisian snacks – brik (fried pastry parcels), oily aubergine salads and couscous. You can eat well for €15. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Tues in winter.

Lo Scoiattolo Via N. Tortorici 9  0923 946 313. With tables outside, “The Squirrel” has a fine antipasto buffet and daily fish specials, though many locals come here at night for the huge choice of pizzas (€4–6). All other dishes cost €7–12. Mon–Wed & Fri–Sun lunch & dinner.

BARS

Bar Garden Piazza della Repubblica 7  0923 941 909. Facing the town’s most harmonious buildings, this is a nice place for a breakfast or sit-down by day, and to soak up the weird green illuminations in the evening. Tues–Sun 8am–8pm, opens later in summer.

Villa delle Rose Via Conte Ruggero  0923 945 565. With tables under shady trees in the public gardens, this makes a pleasant retreat for a quiet evening drink. Daily 6pm–late.

< Back to Trapani and the west

Selinunte and Marinella di Selinunte

SELINUNTE, the site of the Greek city of Selinus, lies around 30km east of Mazara del Vallo, stranded on a remote corner of the coast in splendid isolation, just west of the modern village of Marinella di Selinunte. Selinunte is a crucial sight if you’re travelling through the west of Sicily, its series of mighty temples lying in great heaps, where they were felled by earthquakes.

  Most westerly of the Hellenic colonies, Selinus reached its peak during the fifth century BC. A bitter rival of Segesta, whose lands lay adjacent to the north, the powerful city and its fertile plain attracted enemies hand over fist, and it was only a matter of time before Selinus caught the eye of Segesta’s ally, Carthage. Geographically vulnerable, the city was sacked by Carthaginians, any attempts at recovery forestalled by earthquakes, which later razed it altogether. However, people continued to live here until 250 BC, when the population was finally transferred to Marsala before the Roman invasion. The Arabs did occupy the site briefly, but the last recorded settlement at Selinunte was in the thirteenth century, after which time it remained forgotten until rediscovered in the sixteenth century. Despite the destruction, the city ruins have exerted a romantic hold over people ever since.

Marinella di Selinunte

Although it can get a bit hectic in summer, MARINELLA DI SELINUNTE is an atmospheric place to spend a few hours. Its most appealing parts lie on and around the long, narrow road that winds down to the small harbour, where fishing boats are hauled up onto the sands by pulleys.

  Marinella is no longer the isolated place it used to be, with new buildings and streets in evidence everywhere, while the seafront has become top-heavy with trattorias, and shops selling Tunisian carpets, souvenirs and beachwear. But it remains an attractive place, of particular appeal if you’re planning to use the fine sand beach that stretches west from the village to the ruins. The water isn’t great to swim in, since it’s often clogged with seaweed at the sand’s edge, though this doesn’t deter the kids. However, the surfing here can be good, and you can rent equipment in the summer, as well as pedalos, chairs, shades and all the usual beach paraphernalia. Another beach, Mare Pineta, is located east of the village, backed by pine trees stretching into the distance; follow the road east of the port for ten minutes.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: MARINELLA DI SELINUNTE

By bus Buses from Castelvetrano (4–8 daily; 30min) to Selinunte pass through Marinella, and continue to the site.

Tourist information The small but obliging tourist office (Mon–Sat: summer 9am–7pm; winter 9am–1.30pm & 2–6pm;  0924 46 251), which is often thronged with visitors in summer, is on the roundabout near the entrance to the site.

Services Costa del Sole, Via Castore e Polluce 17 ( 0924 46 712 or  389 698 1058) rents out bikes (€10/half-day, €13/day).

ACCOMMODATION

You may well be offered rooms as you get off the bus, which are worth accepting in summer when the hotels and pensions in the village fill rapidly.

Garzia Via A. Pigafetta 2  0924 46 024,  hotelgarzia.com. This large, Arabic-themed hotel on the seafront road lacks charm, but it has a wide range of rooms (some with sea-facing balconies), friendly staff and its own patch of beach. The restaurant offers good set-price menus. €89

 Il Pescatore Via Castore e Polluce 31  0924 46 303,  affittacamereilpescatore.it. With a roof terrace that enjoys views over to the temples and sea, this place offers eight good-sized rooms with private bathrooms and a/c or fans, breakfast (that includes fresh fruit) on the terrace plus use of a kitchen. Alternatively, you can sleep on the roof for €15, and there are also four self-catering apartments. No credit cards. Doubles and two-person apartments €80

Porta del Sole Via Apollonio Rodio 32  0924 46 035. A B&B offering four basic rooms with private or shared bathrooms, and there are five larger ones with balconies (not that there’s a view) in the Holiday House across the road, run by the same family. Furniture and beds are from the visit-grandma school of comfort. No credit cards. €40

 Sicilia Cuore Mio Via della Cittadella 44  0924 46 077 or  336 612 769,  siciliacuoremio.it. Right across from the archeological site, and with a long terrace overlooking the sea in front, this friendly, modern B&B offers five rooms, three with a sea view and two of them in a separate building next door with a kitchen for guests’ use. Closed Dec–March. €80

EATING AND DRINKING

Most of the best eating and drinking places are located on Via Marco Polo, the road above the west beach. That starts down at the little harbour where a couple of bars put out tables from which you can watch the sun set, while the fishermen chatter and dispute among themselves. At night in summer, visitors emerge from their holiday homes to join locals from the surrounding villages on foot, in cars and on Vespas, and the party chugs along merrily until well after midnight. If you are wanting to take a picnic up to the temple, there’s an alimentari nearby on Via Caboto, while beyond it, in the main residential district, you’ll find a supermarket behind the Alceste hotel.

Africa da Bruno Via Alceste  0924 46 456. In the residential district, this cheerful trattoria with bright white walls offers superlative antipasti (€4–10) and locally inspired fish dishes such as pasta with seafood (€10.50). In the evenings, you can enjoy crispy pizzas (from €5) cooked in a wood-burning oven. March–July Mon–Wed & Fri–Sun lunch & dinner; Aug daily lunch & dinner; closed Nov–Feb.

Baffo’s Via Marco Polo 51  0924 46 211. Sea views and a good menu that includes magnificent forno a legna pizzas (€6–8), a range of tasty fettuccine dishes (€8–9) and grilled fish. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Nov–March.

Déjà Vu Via Marco Polo (no phone). Lively bar/birreria overlooking the sea, open late, that makes a great venue for watching the sun set. There are DJs most Saturday nights in summer, and cold snacks. Daily 6pm–late; closed Oct–March.

 La Pineta Mare Pineta  0924 46 820. This trattoria on the beach east of the harbour is a real find, serving fresh seafood including sea urchins (ricci). It’s the perfect spot for a lunch or leisurely evening meal just metres from the sea (€10–18 for most dishes). Call ahead to book in winter. Summer daily lunch & dinner; winter lunch only.

The Selinus ruins

Daily 9am–1hr before sunset; last entry 1hr before closing • €9 including Segesta • Navetta buggies cost €6 for the nearer temples, €12 for the complete circuit

The ruins of Selinus are back behind the main part of Marinella di Selinunte, split into two main sections, the east group and the acropolis, with individual temples known simply as “A”, “B” etc. The two parts are enclosed within the same site, with the car park and entrance – lying through the landscaped earthbanks that preclude views of the east group of temples from the road. Selinus is claimed to be the biggest archeological site in Europe, so it can be quite a challenge if you want to see everything; you might make use of the buggy service, or navetta, for the remoter sites, or rent a bike. On foot, you could cover everything in two or three hours, but the total lack of shade makes for hard work in the full heat of summer.

CAVE DI CUSA

If you have your own transport, it’s well worth calling in at the quarries where the stone for the building of Selinus was extracted in the fifth century BC. They lie 3.5km south of the scruffy town of Campobello di Mazara, deep in olive country. From Selinunte, a lovely 20km drive takes you along country roads lined with olive groves and vines. When you reach Campobello, take the road to Tre Fontane and follow the signs (“Cave di Cusa”), keeping your eyes peeled and fingers crossed.

  At the site of the Cave di Cusa (daily 9am–1hr before sunset; free), a path leads into a bucolic setting that is more reminiscent of English Romanticism than of ancient Greece. In early summer, workers fork hay into piles in between the rock ledges and tended shrubs, while behind them stretch shaded groves of olives. Everywhere, you can see the massive column drums and stumps lying randomly about, quarried and chiselled into shape here before being dragged to the ancient city on wooden carts, where they formed part of the great temple complex. There are examples of all the various stages of the process, with unfinished pieces poignantly abandoned, the work interrupted when Selinus was devastated in 409 BC. The most impressive pieces are those stone drums and column sections that remain in place where they were being excavated. A couple are 6m high and 2m across, with a narrow groove dug all the way around in which the stonemasons had to work – the reflected heat must have been appalling. Other rock sections indicate clearly where drums have already been cut – parts of the site look as though someone has been through with a giant pastry-cutter.

The east group

Shrouded in the wild celery that gave the ancient city its name, the east group temples are in various stages of reconstructed ruin. The most complete is the one nearest the sea (Temple E), probably dedicated to Hera (Aphrodite) and re-erected in 1958. A Doric construction, almost 70m by 25m, it remains a gloriously impressive sight, its soaring columns gleaming bright against the sky, its ledges and capitals the resting place for flitting birds. Temple F, behind, is the oldest in this group, from around 550 BC, while the northernmost temple (Temple G) is an immense tangle of columned wreckage, 6m high in places and crisscrossed by rough footpaths. In Sicily, the only temple larger than this is the Tempio di Giove at Agrigento.

The acropolis

The road leads down from the East Group, across the (now buried) site of the old harbour, to the second part of excavated Selinus, the acropolis, containing what remains of the other temples (five in all), as well as the well-preserved city streets and massive stepped walls that rise above the duned beach below. These huge walls were all constructed after 409 BC – when the city was sacked by the Carthaginians – in an attempt to protect a limited and easily defensible area of the old city.

  Temple C stands on the highest point of the acropolis, giving glorious views out over the sparkling sea. Built early in the sixth century BC (and probably dedicated to Apollo), it originally held the finest of the metopes (decorative panels) that are now in Palermo’s archeological museum. Its fourteen standing columns were re-erected in the 1920s: other fallen columns here, and at the surrounding temples, show how they were originally constructed – the drums lying in a line, with slots and protrusions on either side that fitted into each other. The buildings immediately behind temples C and D were shops, split into two rooms and with a courtyard each.

The rest of the site

At the end of the main street beyond stands the north gate to the city – the tall blocks of stone marking a gateway that was 7m high. Behind the north gate stood the rest of the ancient city, still largely unexcavated, though crisscrossed by little paths through the undergrowth. The agora was sited just north of here, and a necropolis further up, while to the west, across the Modione River, stood the Santuario Malophoros, part of a complex that marked the western boundary of the city. Animal sacrifices were performed at the small well in front of the structure. Beyond it, on the edge of the archeological zone, the Antiquarium holds statuettes and terracotta fragments, mostly excavated in the 1980s from a temple dedicated to Hera Matronale, south of the Malophoros.

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Castelvetrano

It’s hard to recommend a visit to CASTELVETRANO, for any reason other than to get the bus straight out again. A depressed town, it’s lightened only marginally by an elegant if traffic-choked centre, where the Teatro Selinus – looking rather like a copy of a Greek temple – boasts a proud plaque commemorating Goethe’s visit in 1787. Just around the corner stands a good-looking Chiesa Madre from the sixteenth century. The church’s finely engraved doorway leads into an interior warmly illuminated by stained-glass windows – a rare thing in Sicily – and ornamented by a number of stuccoes by Serpotta and Ferraro. Off the adjacent square, Piazza Garibaldi, it’s a short walk down to Via Garibaldi 50 and the Museo Civico (Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 3–7pm, Sun 9am–1pm; €2.50), home of the bronze Éfebo di Selinunte, a statue of a young man from the fifth century BC.

  From behind the church, Via Vittorio Emanuele leads down towards Piazza Matteotti and the train station. Piazza Matteotti marks the end of Via Serafino Mannone, where aficionados of banditry can visit the courtyard in which the body of the island’s most notorious outlaw, Salvatore Giuliano, was found on July 5, 1950. The courtyard is between Via Mannone 92 and 100, though it’s a rather less appealing spot than its legend might suggest.

Santissima Trinità di Delia

Three and a half kilometres west of Castelvetrano, the Santissima Trinità di Delia makes a pleasant rural excursion for anyone not in a blazing hurry. Head down Via Ruggero Séttimo from Piazza Umberto, along a country lane fringed by vineyards, keeping left where the road forks. A domed twelfth-century Norman construction, the church is signposted before you arrive at the artificial lake of Lago Trinità: ring the bell to the right of the church for the key. The small, square building, its four slender columns and triple apse reminiscent of Saracenic styles, was meticulously restored by two brothers, whose mausoleum the church has become. Their tombs, dominating the small interior, rival those of the Norman kings in Palermo for splendour.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: CASTELVETRANO

By train To reach the town centre from the train station in Piazza Améndola, walk up to the main road and turn left: it’s just a few minutes to Piazza Matteotti, from where Via Vittorio Emanuele leads all the way to the rear of the Chiesa Madre church.

Destinations Marsala (10 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 40min); Mazara del Vallo (10 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 20min); Palermo (6 daily Mon–Sat, 3 daily Sun; 2hr 30min–3hr; may involve change); Trapani (10 daily Mon–Sat, 5 daily Sun; 1hr 15min).

By bus Buses from Marsala and Trapani stop in Piazza Matteotti. To get to Selinunte from Castelvetrano, take the bus for Marinella from outside the train station – a timetable is posted inside the station – or from piazzas Matteotti, Dante or Regina Margherita in town.

Destinations Agrigento (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 1hr 40min–2hr 25min); Campobello (7–11 daily Mon–Sat, 4–6 daily Sun; 25min); Gibellina (1 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr); Marinella (for Selinunte, 5–8 daily; 25min); Marsala (9 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr–1hr 15min); Mazara del Vallo (9 daily Mon–Sat; 30–40min); Palermo (10 daily Mon–Sat, 2–3 daily Sun; 1hr 45min); Salemi (1 daily Mon–Sat; 1hr 15min); Sciacca (3 daily Mon–Sat, 1 daily Sun; 30–50min); Trapani (4 daily Mon–Sat; 2hr 15min).

Tourist information There’s a tourist office at Piazza Carlo d’Aragona, below Piazza Garibaldi (Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4–7pm, plus Sun in summer 9am–1pm;  0924 902 004).

< Back to Trapani and the west

The interior

North of Castelvetrano and east of Marsala, the interior of Trapani province is intensely rural, its few small towns little changed by the coming of the A29 autostrada, which cuts across the region. The whole area is green and highly fertile, mainly given over to vine-growing; indeed, the wine around the Salemi district is among Sicily’s best. But, hard though it is to believe, the entire region still hasn’t recovered from the earthquake of January 15, 1968, which briefly spotlighted western Sicily, sadly more for the authorities’ inadequate response to it than for the actual loss of life. Four hundred died and a thousand were injured, no great number by Sicilian standards, but it was the 50,000 left homeless that had the most lingering impact on this already depressed part of the island, and the effects of the earthquake are still evident everywhere. Ruined buildings and ugly temporary dwellings still being used more than four decades later testify to the chronically dilatory response to the disaster, aggravated by private interests and particularly by the Mafia contractors who capitalized on the catastrophe. Even where rebuilding went ahead, such as in the new town of Gibellina, it’s still possible to see the dread hand of inertia.

  It goes without saying that this is a little-visited area of Sicily, but it’s intriguing nonetheless. This is, after all, the part of the world known best to Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, whose classic novel, The Leopard, is partly set in the little town of Santa Margherita di Belice – also badly damaged in 1968 but emerging slowly from the doldrums, and an essential stop for anyone who’s read the book.

GETTING AROUND: THE INTERIOR

By car Local buses run to all the towns in the region, but it’s impossible to construct any kind of sightseeing itinerary using them – you have to have your own car, not least to avoid the possibility of getting stuck in backwaters with no accommodation.

Salemi

The town of SALEMI, 20km north of Castelvetrano and 30km east of Marsala, oddly enjoyed the privilege of being the first capital of a united Italy in 1860, albeit for only three days, as recorded by a plaque in front of its heavily restored thirteenth-century castello on Piazza Alicia, at the top of the town. Another plaque marks Garibaldi’s declaration of a dictatorship, asserting that “in times of war, it’s necessary for the civilian powers to be concentrated in the hands of one man” – namely Garibaldi himself, though King Vittorio Emanuele still gets a mention.

The Collegio dei Gesuiti museums

Via d’Aguirre • All Tues–Sat 10am–1pm & 4–7pm • Combined ticket for all museums €5

On Via d’Aguirre, the former Collegio dei Gesuiti houses a quintet of museums. The Museo del Risorgimento holds assorted pieces of “Garibaldini” – letters, documents and arms connected with the town’s finest hour; the Museo Archeologico contains finds from local excavations including Monte Polizzo; the Museo dell’Arte Sacra gathers treasures from various local churches, including the cathedral destroyed in the earthquake; and the Museo del Paesaggio explores aspects of the Sicilian landscape by means of videos. The Museo della Mafia brings together films, photographs, recordings of interviews, and paintings and sculptures by local artists of prominent figures in the Mafia’s history – including representations of the two assassinated anti-Mafia judges Falcone and Borsellino, plus work by a pentito, or informer. It’s a pretty disparate mix, and fairly indigestible if you attempt to take them all in, but the collections are definitely worth putting aside a couple of hours for.

INFORMATION: SALEMI

Tourist information There’s a tourist office at the bottom of the hill on Piazza Libertà (daily: summer 9am–1pm & 4–8pm; winter 9am–1pm & 3–7pm;  0924 981 426), where buses stop.

Gibellina Nuova

Salemi escaped the earthquake lightly, even though a third of the population had to abandon their shattered homes. Other towns, like Gibellina, were completely flattened, and the population moved en masse to a site close to Santa Ninfa, reached from Salemi along the SS188. This is GIBELLINA NUOVA, a modern town that was once a symbol of progress in the region, its wide, empty streets adorned with numerous weird constructions and abstract sculptures designed by a handful of iconoclastic architects with big budgets. A vast stainless-steel star straddles the motorway where you exit for Gibellina, while elsewhere the town holds huge white spheres, giant ploughs, snails and much besides – some fifty constructions in all, though many of them are crumbling already (one church collapsed in 1994), and many of the designs themselves are embarrassingly frozen in the image of what appeared futuristic in the 1970s. The town, meanwhile, bakes in the summer sun, since all the modern piazzas are vast concrete spaces with little shade.

  You can get a taste of what Gibellina is all about by driving to the main square – Piazza XV Gennaio 1968, in case there was any doubt about what’s to blame for all this – where the arcaded City Hall is fronted by some particularly abstract examples, and the tall Torre Belice clocktower chimes four times a day with taped human voices instead of bells, a reminder of the earthquake victims.

Baglio di Stéfano

Museums Tues–Sun 9am–1pm & 3–6pm • €5 combined ticket •  0924 67 844,  orestiadi.it

The cultural centre, Baglio di Stéfano, to the east of the centre, is home to a couple of good museums, one containing contemporary art – mainly works by Italian painters, but the sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro is also represented – the other, more gripping, dedicated to Mediterranean culture, from Spain to Turkey and from Corsica to Africa, taking in costumes, jewellery, ceramics, tapestries, calligraphy and carpets, all beautifully presented. A separate space here, the Atelier, holds pieces donated by the various sculptors and designers who contributed to Gibellina Nuova’s townscape.

  The Baglio di Stéfano complex also holds a theatre, which is the main venue for the Orestiadi, a series of classical and modern dramas, concerts and events performed almost nightly every July and August. As well as works by Euripides, Sophocles and others, there are modern interpretations by the likes of Jean Cocteau, Stravinsky and John Cage, plus a full programme of exhibitions, cinema and music.

EATING: GIBELLINA NUOVA

La Massara Viale dei Vespri Siciliani 41  0924 67 601. Inexpensive trattoria, a 10min walk from the central piazza, where the very filling house pasta, busiate napoleonica (€6), is made with aubergines, tomato and sausage. Tues–Sun lunch & dinner.

Ruderi di Gibellina

Eighteen kilometres east of Gibellina Nuova, overlooked by ranks of wind turbines, the old town of RUDERI DI GIBELLINA complements the new: a mountain of rubble from which smashed and mutilated houses poke out, strewn over a green hillside. On the way into town, you’ll pass what is ironically its best-preserved fragment: a shady cemetery stretching down the side of the valley, where the inhabitants of the new town return every year to remember the catastrophe. Further down, modernism has left its mark here too, in the form of a wide, grey-white mantle of concrete, Il Cretto, poured over one slope, and carved through by channels that recall the previous layout of streets. It’s an arresting spectacle, not least for its sheer scale.

  Everything else remains as it was after the earthquake struck: only a church has since been restored. Nearby, a jumble of scaffolding on a hummock cradles a stage that makes up one of the two venues for the Orestiadi, though it’s only infrequently used.

Santa Margherita di Belice

Often ranked among the finest of all historical novels, Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa’s The Leopard (“Il Gattopardo” in Italian) is a masterpiece of manners and morals, written by a Sicilian prince who only ever completed this one work. Set in 1860s Sicily, it draws heavily on Lampedusa’s own experiences, not least the summers he used to spend in his grandmother’s palace in SANTA MARGHERITA DI BELICE, a small village 35km east of Castelvetrano. This is the Donnafugata of the book – the fictional prince’s summer home, a place cherished for the “sense it gave him of everlasting childhood”. The 1968 earthquake, unfortunately, completely wrecked the seventeenth-century palace and church described so intently in the novel, though fragments of the palace have been incorporated in a gleaming new Municipio. This, with its cool internal courtyards and lovely garden to the side, at least echoes the spirit of the original. More poignant is all that’s left of the adjacent Chiesa Madre – a two-storey corner open to the elements, displaying its elegant marble tracery and painted medallions to the birds. Having paid your literary dues, it’s a quick matter to look around the rest of Santa Margherita, which shows a few signs of revival these days – there’s a thoroughly modern church with a space-rocket spire, new extensions grafted onto older, damaged buildings, and a traffic-free stretch of street with a café where you can grab a cold drink.

< Back to Trapani and the west

Pantelleria

With an area of 83 square kilometres, PANTELLERIA is the largest of Sicily’s offshore islands. Forty kilometres closer to Tunisia than to Sicily, it has been occupied since early times by whichever power controlled the central Mediterranean. By the time of the Phoenicians, who colonized it in the seventh century BC, it was called Hiranin, “island of the birds”, after the birds that still stop over here on their migratory routes; for the Greeks, it was Kossyra, or “small”. Its present name probably derives from the Arabic bint ar-riah (“daughter of the winds”), after the restless breezes that blow around the island’s rugged shores. Despite its remote, rocky appearance, however, Pantelleria is not as unsophisticated as some of Sicily’s other offshore islands – it’s long been on the African shipping route and has proved a popular destination for celebs: former aficionados like Truman Capote and Aldous Huxley have been succeeded more recently by such A-listers as Madonna, Giorgio Armani and Sting, and parts of Il Postino (The Postman) were filmed here, too.

  Pantelleria is a dramatic, black island, thick with volcanic debris and dotted with dazzling white houses known as dammusi. Unembellished, these sombre cubic dwellings, unique to the island, blend in perfectly with their environment. These, too, are examples of technological adaptation, the thick walls and shallow-domed roofs designed to maintain a cool internal temperature, while ridges in the roofs catch the rain.

  There are no beaches of any kind on Pantelleria, its rough black coastline consisting mainly of jagged rocks, but the swimming is still pretty good in some exceptionally scenic spots. Inland, the largely mountainous country offers plenty of rambling opportunities, all an easy moped or bus ride from the port, which holds most of the accommodation options. If you’re spending any length of time on Pantelleria, a novel option is to rent one of the local dammuso houses: their strong walls and domed roofs keep the temperature down indoors.

  The main drawback to spending time on Pantelleria is the cost of living: the few hotels are pricey, while food (and water) is mostly imported and therefore relatively expensive. However, a few days spent here will probably leave you wanting more. Best times to visit are May/June or September/October, before and after the crowds and scorching heat of summer.

MAKING A LIVING ON PANTELLERIA

Surprisingly, most of Pantelleria’s population of 8500 are farmers rather than fishermen. With a soil nourished by frequent past eruptions (the last in 1831), the islanders traditionally preferred tilling to risking life and limb in a sea swarming with pirates on the prowl. Farming on Pantelleria does have its problems, however, not least the numerous chunks of lava and basalt in the earth that preclude mechanical ploughing, not to mention the incessant wind, scorching sun and almost complete lack of water. The islanders have come up with methods of minimizing these disadvantages by some ingenious devices that would bring a gleam to an ecologist’s eye. The prolific zibbibo vines are individually planted in little ridges designed to capture the precious rainwater; and the famous giardini arabi – high walls of stone built round orange trees and other plants – afford protection from the wind and the salt it carries with it. All over the island, various cooperatives (often signposted from the road) sell homegrown produce to visitors and locals – capers, wine, jojoba oil, honey and candles. If you want to buy, look for the words “azienda agricola”.

Pantelleria town

If you arrive off the ferry at dawn, PANTELLERIA TOWN, the only settlement of any size on the island, presents an undeniably romantic aura, revealing a spread of serene, white-painted cubes. Only close up do these emerge as modern rather than medieval, as most of the town was flattened during the last war when Allied bombers pulverized what had become one of the main German bases in the Mediterranean. Consequently, much of the town has a homogeneous appearance, its low-rise concrete buildings spreading back two or three streets deep from the harbour.

  While it may not fit the stereotype of the idyllic island port, Pantelleria town has a certain appeal, and there’s much to be said for simply observing the regular to-and-fro of delivery vessels and fishing smacks from one of the seafront café-bars, while the marina sees the manoeuvrings of some uncommonly flash yachts and even the odd schooner. Things get a bit livelier in the evening, when the harbourside fills with perambulating locals.

Castello Barbacane

Via Castello • Aug daily 6pm–midnight; call to arrange a tour at other times • Free •  327 363 9284

The only building that predates the war is the morose, black Castello Barbacane, a legacy of the Spaniards. Its partly restored interior is destined to hold an archeological museum, but in the meantime it’s the venue for changing exhibitions and has photos and videos showing aspects of island history and culture, from World War II bombing to carnival celebrations.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: PANTELLERIA TOWN

By plane The airport ( 0923 911 172,  pantelleriairport.it) is 5km southeast of town. A bus service makes the 12min run into town four times daily from a stop outside. Taxis into town charge €15, though you might be able to haggle them down to €10 if you are lucky; alternatively, it’s a 45min downhill walk. For airline tickets, try the La Cossira travel agency, Via Borgo Italia 77 ( 0923 911 078).

Destinations Palermo (2–3 daily in summer; 50min); Trapani (3 daily in summer; 40min).

By ferry and hydrofoil Arriving by sea, you’ll disembark right in the centre of town, close to most of the bars, restaurants and hotels. In bad weather, you may be deposited instead at Scauri, a smaller port on the island’s southwestern side, from where a bus takes foot passengers into town (remember to disembark promptly or it will leave without you). Siremar operates a ferry service to Trapani leaving at noon (June–Sept daily and Oct–May Fri & Sat) or at 10am (Oct–May Mon–Thurs); buy tickets from Agenzia Rizzo, Via Borgo Italia 22 ( 0923 911 120,  siremar.it). Ustica Lines operates hydrofoils to Trapani from June to Sept only; buy tickets from Agenzia Minardi, Via Borgo Italia 15 ( 0923 911 502,  usticalines.it).

GETTING AROUND

By bus Local buses make regular departures from Piazza Cavour to all the main villages on the island, with reduced or no services on Sundays. Buy tickets in advance from any tabacchi for €1, or on the bus for €1.20.

Destinations Bugeber (3 daily; 20min); Khamma (9 daily Mon–Sat; 25min); Rekale (9 daily Mon–Sat; 20min); Scauri (9 daily Mon–Sat; 20min); Siba (4 daily Mon–Sat; 30min); Tracino (9 daily Mon–Sat; 30min).

By taxi Consolo, Piazza Castello ( 0923 912 716 or  339 715 7586).

Bike rental Viva Pantelleria, Vicolo Leopardi 5 ( 0923 911 078 or  349 619 9210), charges €12 for up to 2hr, €15 for half a day. Escorted bike tours and kayak rental are also available.

Car and scooter rental Autonoleggio Policardo is at Via Messina 31 ( 0923 912 844,  policardo.it) and at the airport. Expect to pay up to €65 per day for a Fiat 600, €60 per day for a scooter, less in low season.

GETTING TO AND AROUND PANTELLERIA

You can reach Pantelleria by ferry (year-round) or hydrofoil (summer only) from Trapani. Flights from Trapani or Palermo take under an hour and are convenient if more extravagant alternatives – however, taking the overnight ferry on the way out effectively negates the longer journey time while saving a night’s accommodation expense.

  Siremar ferries do the journey in around six hours (June–Sept daily; Oct–May daily except Sat), leaving Trapani at midnight, for a deck-class fare of €34 one-way (slightly less in low season). The summer-only hydrofoil service is equally frequent and a lot quicker (daily in summer; 2hr 30min). For €5.50 you can reserve a reclining chair (poltrona), an expense worth considering since the regular seats are difficult to sleep in and uncomfortably close to the TVs; or there are couchette-cabins for around €15 (without WC) or €21 (with WC) per person. Tickets are on sale in the Siremar office at the Stazione Marittima in Trapani ( 0923 24 968,  siremar.it), right up until departure.

  Pantelleria is just a forty-minute flight from Trapani (3 flights daily) or a fifty-minute flight from Palermo (2–3 flights daily). One-way tickets are €40–85, depending on availability and flexibility (try  expedia.it,  skyscanner.com and  edreams.it); it’s worth booking some time in advance in summer. Between April and September, there are also direct flights from Milan, Bologna, Rome, Verona and Venice.

GETTING AROUND

It’s easy enough to get around the island by bus, and there are plenty of places offering bike rental.

  To visit the isolated coves of the southeastern Dietro Isola, and other good swimming spots, you’ll need to rent a boat. There are notices in the agencies along the harbour, in every hotel, and on the boats themselves. If you don’t want to navigate yourself, you’ll find boat tours from the port.

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Tourist information There’s no longer any tourist office on Pantelleria, but the Italian-language websites  prolocopantelleria.it,  pantelleria.it and  tuttopantelleria.it are all useful.

Guided tours Excursions by jeep, on foot and on horseback are organized by the Gira l’Isola agency at Vicolo Messina 21 ( 0923 913 254), from about €30 per person. Cooperativa Uros ( 327 363 9284) conducts tours all over the island, including archeological and gastronomic tours, from €15 per person.

Boat tours Trips depart daily from the port in summer; a giro dell’isola (round-island tour) costs around €30 per person for a full day (leaving around 10am, returning at 4.30pm), including a spaghetti lunch. Call Franco Cosano ( 339 204 7757,  francofutura.it) for details.

Diving Viva Pantelleria, Vicolo Leopardi 5 ( 0923 911 078 or  349 619 9210), offers diving excursions and equipment rental.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT FAVIGNANA; PANTELLERIA DIVING; PANTELLERIA DAMMUSI

ACCOMMODATION

Mediterraneo Via Borgo Italia  0923 911 299. Immediately at the end of the dock, on the harbourfront, this three-star offers comfortable rooms and a pool. The restaurant at the top has great views (meals €20); a buffet breakfast is also served here. Free pick-up from the airport. €130

 La Rosamarina Via Sicania 10, off Via Villa  328 924 0159,  larosamarina@hotmail.it. You’ll find the lowest prices on the island in this friendly B&B, a remodelled dammuso that’s a 10min walk from the port and 300m from the sea. The two rooms have warm colours and a/c, and one has cooking facilities. There’s a terrace, a garden and sea views. No credit cards. €110

Yacht Marina Via Borgo Italia  0923 913 649,  marinahotelpantelleria.com. Full of designer touches, this hotel has 37 rooms with a/c, satellite TV and internet access; the best, costing €20 extra, have a harbour-view balcony. €120

PANTELLERIA ACCOMMODATION

Accommodation on Pantelleria is generally expensive, with options in the town usually cheaper than those in more remote and romantically located places. During July and August, many places impose a minimum stay of three days or even a week, but at other times of the year, there are no such constraints (indeed islanders are only too happy to have some out-of-season business), and prices drop considerably: be prepared to bargain. There’s no campsite on the island, and camping rough is impractical given the terrain and lack of water.

  The most alluring option is to rent one of the idiosyncratic dammuso houses dotted around the island. Ask at the tourist office or contact one of the agencies in Pantelleria town; try La Cossira, Via Borgo Italia 77 ( 0923 911 078,  lacossira.it); Dammusi di Rukia ( 335 120 6226,  pantelleria.com); or Pantelleria Travel ( 199 440 862,  pantelleriatravel.com). Most dammusi are €300–1000 per week according to size and season (you may be able to book less than a week’s rental in low season), and you’ll usually need a car to get to and from them.

EATING AND DRINKING

There are several restaurants and trattorias in town – mostly rather flash, though not unaffordable. Many double as pizzerias – and good ones too – so you don’t need to spend a fortune every night. As for drinking, the bars on the harbourfront are where all the action is, starting at 6am (when they open their doors for the arriving ferry passengers) and finishing any time between midnight and 2am depending on season and the manager’s inclination. All have tables by the water, where prices are higher.

EATING AND DRINKING ON PANTELLERIA

With its mix of Sicilian and North African elements, Pantelleria offers some unique gastronomic experiences. At some point, you ought to sample the locally produced ricotta-type cheese known as tumma, which is one of the ingredients of ravioli con menta e ricotta, a slightly bitter but fresh-tasting dish for which Pantelleria is famous. Pasta often comes served with pesto pantesco, a rough sauce of tomatoes, garlic and basil; while an insalata pantesca utilizes tomatoes, onions, cubes of boiled potato, herbs and local capers – the local capers are touted as the best in the Mediterranean.

  The island’s wine is well thought of too, made from the zibbibo grapes that grow well in this volcanic soil. The day-to-day drinking stuff – vino pantesco – is mostly white, with a nice fruity fragrance, while for something considerably stronger try the fortified Moscato, a sweet, amber-coloured dessert wine. Even better is the raisin wine, known generically as passito, which has a rich golden colour and a dry and heady flavour – the best-known variety is Tanit.

  If you’re self-catering, you’ll find all you need in the town’s supermarkets, bakery and fruit and veg shops, though for a taste of traditional island life, buy fresh fish from the stalls on the road to the hospital and the lighthouse, on the far side of the harbour from the dock, and fruit and veg from the morning market (Tues & Fri) on Via San Leonardo. Most shops are open daily in summer, and close Wednesday afternoons and Sunday at other times.

RESTAURANTS

Acquamarina Via Borgo Italia 1  0923 911 422. This trendy little joint is the best-placed restaurant in town, with large windows overlooking the harbour. There’s a long menu, including fish couscous (€15). Daily lunch & dinner; closed Sun Oct–May.

 Donne Fugate Corso Umberto I 10  334 760 3261. Small, rather unprepossessing place where you can nevertheless indulge in an excellent selection of antipasti, spaghetti alla menta e gamberi (with mint and prawns) and an unforgettable fish couscous (Thurs only). You’ll pay around €40 for a full meal, drinks excluded. Mon–Tues & Thurs–Sat dinner only.

Il Gabbiano Via Trieste 5  0923 911 909. Just off the seafront, this modest, white-walled and vaulted trattoria offers some of the cheapest food in town: nothing exceptional but the usual range of island specialities and a calm atmosphere. Pastas are around €6–8, secondi €6–10. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Wed in winter.

La Risacca Via Errera 18  0923 912 975. At the end of the harbour, this busy ristorante-pizzeria with a terrace has an array of grilled seafood and outdoor seating. Try the ravioli con pomodoro, burro e salvia (with tomato, butter and sage €12), or, in the evening, couscous alla pantesca, with fish, aubergine, peppers, courgette and tomato (€16). Daily lunch & dinner; closed Mon in winter.

CAFÉS AND BARS

Café Aurora Via Borgo Italia 43  0923 911 313. With a fine seating area overlooking the port, this bar serves classy aperitifs with olives and other nibbles. Daily 10am–late; closed winter.

 Cicci’s Via Cagliari 7  0923 913 696. Just off the main piazza, this place has a lively evening crowd, musical accompaniment and snacks. Daily 6am–late; closed Sun in winter.

Tikirriki Via Borgo Italia 3  0923 911604. Good snacks, pastries and ice cream, which you can eat by the harbour. Daily 8am–late; closed Sun in winter.

DIRECTORY

Banks ATMs at Banco di Sicilia, Piazza Cavour, Monte dei Paschi, Via Napoli 2, and Banco Nuova, Via Catania 5.

Hospital For first-aid and medical matters, go to the Ospedale B. Nagar, Piazzale Almanza ( 0923 910 234).

Pharmacy Farmacia Greco on Piazza Cavour (Mon–Fri 8.30am–1pm & 5–8.30pm;  0923 911 310). Pharmacies operate on a rota outside normal opening hours, noted on the door.

Police Carabinieri, Via Trieste 29 ( 0923 911 109).

Post office The island’s main post office is off Piazza Cavour on Via de Amicis (Mon–Fri 8am–1.30pm, Sat 8am–12.30pm).

The southwest coast

The route south of Pantelleria town is initially very unpromising, through an industrial wasteland of noisome and noisy factories, abandoned farmhouses and past a military barracks. Things pick up after a couple of kilometres at the Cuddie Rosse, volcanic red rocks that mark the site of a prehistoric cave settlement. Fifteen minutes’ walk further on, a signposted track on the left leads up 300m to the first of the island’s strange Sesi, massive black Neolithic funeral mounds of piled rock, with low passages leading inside; a second one lies further up to the left. They’re thought to be products of Pantelleria’s first settlers, possibly from Tunisia. The main one here is 6m high, a striking sight, completely at one with its lunar-like environment. Scores of these must once have dotted the island, satisfying some primeval fears and beliefs. That so few survive is not so hard to understand when you take a look around at the regular-shaped stones from which the dammuso houses are built – centuries of plunder have taken their toll.

  Beyond the Sesi, at Punta Fram, there’s public access to the coast; look for a footpath, marked “Discesa a mare”, opposite a side road to a little tower.

Sataria

On foot, it’s just over an hour all told from the Sesi to Sataria, where concrete steps lead down to a tiny square-cut sea-pool, ideal for splashing around in. In the cave behind are more pools where warm water bubbles through, reputed to be good for curing rheumatism and skin diseases: a handful of people can usually be found jumping from pools to sea. There’s room on the concrete apron around the pool to lay out a towel, and it’s the only place for kilometres around with any shade – a nice place to eat your picnic.

Scauri Porto and around

From the port at Scauri, on the west coast, you can see Cape Mustafa in Tunisia on a clear day. The village itself is a steep twenty-minute walk above its harbour, and consists of no more than a minuscule church perched on a shelf of land, surrounded by a cluster of houses; it does at least hold a bakery, as well as an alimentari that does decent panini, if you don’t feel like splashing out in one of the restaurants.

  Beyond here is Rekale, an even smaller and more remote hamlet, beyond which the extensive southeastern segment of the island, the Dietro Isola, curves round. Further hot springs at Punto Nikà are most easily reached by boat, though you can get there on foot.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING: SOUTHWEST COAST

La Nicchia Scauri  0923 916 342. This is one of the island’s most renowned eateries, and is worth dressing up for. You can dine inside or in the garden beneath the shade of an old orange tree, on such dishes as shrimps in a zibbibo sauce (see Eating and drinking on Pantelleria) and the island speciality, mint- and tumma-stuffed ravioli bathed in sage butter (both €13). Antipasti run at €9–13, and secondi are around €15. Daily dinner only; closed Wed in low season.

La Vela Scauri Porto  0923 916 566. A very nice bar-restaurant, with a terrace right on the portside, where you can eat ravioli with ricotta and mint (€10), grilled fish and sweet, ricotta-filled baci. Open daily all day in summer; closed Nov–Easter.

Villaggio Punta Fram Contrada Camilla  0923 917 000,  aurumhotels.it. Posh hotel with a tennis court, a fine outdoor swimming pool and steps leading down to its own little rocky cove, where guests can swim happily. Full board is obligatory. Closed mid-Sept to mid-May. Doubles €252

The northeast coast

Although not the most striking part of the northeast coast, Bue Marino, some 1km east of town, has reasonable swimming from the rocks, though a little further on, there is better swimming from the flat rocks below the road junction to Bugeber.

  East of here lies the Cala dei Cinque Denti, where fantastically shaped rocks jut out of the sea like monstrous black teeth – hence its name, “Bay of the Five Teeth” (though the rocks are really best seen from the sea). Just beyond, a minor road cuts away to the lighthouse at Punta Spadillo, where the cliff edges are covered with a carpet of surprising greenery that’s somehow taken hold in the volcanic rocks.

The Specchio di Venere and Bugeber

From the first road junction on the northwest coast, it’s a ten-minute walk up and around before you get the initial stunning views of the small Specchio di Venere (Venus’s Mirror), shimmering below in a former crater. Though it glistens aquamarine in the middle, the lake has a muddy-brown edge, deposits of which you’re supposed to apply to your body and allow to bake hard in the sun. Then you dive in and swim, washing all the mud off in the pleasantly warm water. A path skirts the edge of the lake, around which horse races take place as part of the August ferragosto celebrations.

  Beyond the lake, the road climbs up for another 2km to the hamlet of Bugeber, set amid tumbling fields of vines and craggy boulders. The bus back to town runs past here three times a day; alternatively, walk the 3km past the lake back to the main road, where you can pick up any of the buses from Tracino.

Gadir

At a fork in the road past Punta Spadillo, the bus can drop you at the top of the smartly engineered route down into Gadir, one of the most perfect spots on Pantelleria. It’s a small anchorage, with just a few houses hemmed in by volcanic pricks of rock, which – when the wind is up – can be battered and lashed by violent waves. At other times, people lie about on the flat concrete harbourside, and splash in the small thermal pools hereabouts.

Cala Levante and around

The lower road from Gadir toward Tracino is one of the loveliest on the island, following slopes that are terraced and corralled behind a patchwork of stone walls. Vines grow in profusion, with capers and blackberry bushes in the hedgerows. It’s an easy, fairly flat hour’s stroll to the charming Cala Levante, a huddle of houses around another tiny fishing harbour. There’s good swimming from the rocks – provided the sea’s not too rough – and a bar-restaurant above, with a terrace overlooking the sea. Where the road peters out, bear right along the path at the second anchorage and keep along the coast for another five minutes to view the Arco dell’Elefante, or “Elephant Arch”, named after the lovely hooped formation of rock that resembles an elephant stooping to drink. Again there’s no beach, but it’s a good place to swim anyway.

Tracino and Khamma

From Cala Levante, a stupendously steep road climbs all the way up to Tracino in around twenty minutes, passing old dammusi, newer holiday homes, and striking gardens of vines and flowers. The top of the road marks the centre of Tracino, where there’s a small square and a bar-restaurant. It’s difficult to see where Tracino ends and adjacent Khamma starts, though this matters little once you’re on the bus back to town.

  Keen hikers make Tracino the start of their route into the pretty Piano Ghirlandia. The road runs out the other side of Tracino and soon becomes a track, which continues all the way down to meet the road on the south coast near Rekale.

Siba and the Montagna Grande

The summit of Pantelleria’s main volcano, the Montagna Grande (836m) is the island’s most distinctive feature when seen from out at sea. The walk up to the top begins in the crumbly old village of SIBA, perched on a ridge below the volcano, with views over the terraced slopes and cultivated plains to the sea. Few of the ancient dammusi here are so much as whitewashed, let alone bristling with mod cons. Outside, large wooden water barrels sit on the mildewed dry-stone volcanic walls, while the hamlet’s only services are an alimentari and a tabacchino. If time hasn’t exactly stood still here, it’s in no great hurry to get on with things either. To find the trailhead, keep left at the telephone sign by the tabacchino here, and strike off the main road. The mountain’s slopes afford the best views on the island, and are pitted by numerous volcanic vents, the Stufe de Khazen, marked by escaping threads of vapour.

Sauna Naturale

From Siba, another (signposted) path – on the left as you follow the road through the village – brings you in around twenty minutes to a natural sauna, Sauna Naturale (or Bagno Asciutto), where you can sweat it out for as long as you can stand. It’s little more than a slit in the rock-face, where you can crouch in absolute darkness, breaking out into a heavy sweat as soon as you enter. It’s coolest at floor-level; raising yourself up is like putting yourself into a pizza oven, while the ceiling is so hot it’s impossible to keep the palm of your hand pressed flat against it. Ten minutes is the most you should attempt the first time – emerging into the midday sun is like being wafted by a cool breeze. Bring a towel.

Valle Monastero

From the road that descends from Siba to Scauri and the coast, you can take a track off to the left that runs through the so-called Valle Monastero. This lovely route leads past the abandoned monastery which gives the valley its name. Make sure you carry enough water if you tackle this hike, which is best accomplished early in the day. The path meets the road midway between Scauri and Rekale.

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