221 Best Sights in Sicily, Italy

This beach of sandy red-gold dunes offers lots of fascinating sea plants and flowers growing straight out of the sand. There are no facilities, so bring provisions and sun protection. It's lovely for beach walks and birdwatching (look out for kingfishers, egrets, and herons) as well as swimming. Amenities: none. Best for: swimming; walking.

The area around Piscità and Ficogrande is full of narrow side streets that lead down to the sea, where you'll find an assortment of different coves, inlets, and lavic outcroppings. Just head downhill from the principal streets and you'll eventually hit water. The largest beach area is Spiaggia Nera on the island's northeastern coast, where the black sand and stones sit in stark contrast to the aquamarine waters. 

Construction of this formidable neoclassical theater, the largest in Italy, was started in 1875 by Giovanni Battista Basile and completed by his son Ernesto in 1897. A reconstruction project started in 1974 ran into severe delays, and the facility remained closed until just before its centenary, in 1997. Its interior is as glorious as ever, but the exterior remains more famous thanks to The Godfather Part III, which ended with a famous shooting scene on the theater's steps. Visits, by 30-minute guided tour only, are available in five languages, including English.

This still working theater from the 19th century offers guided tours of its small, ornate interior. Check ahead as it often presents programs of classic and contemporary theater in Italian. It was named for silent film actress Tina Di Lorenzo.

Scattered through the piazza just across the bridge to Ortigia are the ruins of a temple dedicated to Apollo, which dates back to the 6th century BC. A model of this is in the Museo Archeologico. In fact, little of this noble Doric temple remains except for some crumbled walls and shattered columns; the window in the south wall belongs to a Norman church that was built much later on the same spot.

This winery, in the shadow of San Nicolò, takes a decidedly biological approach to grape growing. Olive and fruit trees (kiwi, lemon, and orange) abound, and they alternate row crops between the vines to enrich the soil. Inside the winery and tasting room, you can see the stratification of Etna’s lava, with flows from 50,000 years ago and 3,000 years ago, and where plant roots continue growing down into the stone. In the old palmento, you can book a private winemaking experience with barefoot grape stomping and all.

On the morning of July 10, 1943, the port of Licata became the first town in Sicily to be taken by American soldiers of the 7th Army under General Patton. Anyone interested in this history should visit the small museum of memorabilia within the tourism office, where the finds include a Coca-Cola bottle found in a shipwreck, ammunition boxes, huge mobile food containers, and even a packet of American razor blades. The staff can also help you get access to the town’s former air raid shelter.

This mysterious octagonal tower stands above the lower part of town and has been celebrated for millennia as marking the exact geometric center of the island—thus the tower's (and the city's) nickname, Umbilicus Siciliae (Navel of Sicily). Climb the 97 steps of the spiral staircase for views over the city and beyond.

With the ever-looming volcano perfectly framed at the end of the road, this main street is lined with cafés and stores selling high-street jewelry, clothing, and shoes. At sunset, it plays host to one of Sicily's most enthusiastic passeggiatas, in which Catanesi of all ages take part. It is closed to automobile traffic (other than buses, taxis, and police) until 10 pm during the week and all day on weekends.

A moderately easy hike across the beach at Zimmari and up a stepped stone path brings you to Punta Milazzese, the rugged headland along the southern coast. There you'll find the remnants of an ancient Bronze Age village that was inhabited between the 13th and 15th centuries BC. The outlines of the 22 stone huts, discovered in 1948, are clearly visible. During the excavation, examples of Mycenaean pottery were discovered and are now on display in Lipari's archeological museum. A set of steps lead down from the village to Cala Junco below, a rocky cove with clear water that's popular with snorkelers.  

From Scauri, steep and narrow Contrada Zighidi climbs up to a small roadside parking lot (marked track 971 Grotta del Bagno Asciutto). Take a look first at the Byzantine tombs cut into the rock, then head downhill along a narrow track into broad, flat Valle di Monastero, planted with miniature olive trees and neat vineyards. The path then leads up through a charming crumbling and semi-abandoned village of dammusi before arriving at a car park with information boards, from where a clearly marked path leads to the Bagno Asciutto, a natural cave with hot steam emissions where you can lie and sweat before cooling off from a small courtyard surrounded by stone benches and fantastic views.