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Castiglione di Sicilia


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The village with its position from which it dominates the Alcantara Valley and the Etna Park, has its origins in the Bronze Age. The entire town is dominated by Lauria Castle, on top of a hill like a stronghold. But not only that, the town is full of monuments and works of art, especially churches such as the seventeenth-century Church of Sant'Antonio Abate and the Basilica of the Madonna della Catena.
  • Village with park
  • UNESCO heritage
  • Camper parking area
  • Most beautiful villages in Italy
  • City of wine
  • Oil city
Castiglione di Sicilia   | Boris Stroujko/shutterstock.com
Castiglione di Sicilia
Boris Stroujko/shutterstock.com
Castiglione di Sicilia   |
Castiglione di Sicilia
Castiglione di Sicilia   | Vitalii Kyktov
Castiglione di Sicilia
Vitalii Kyktov
Castiglione di Sicilia   |
Castiglione di Sicilia
Castiglione di Sicilia   |
Castiglione di Sicilia
Castiglione di Sicilia   |
Castiglione di Sicilia
Castiglione di Sicilia   |
Castiglione di Sicilia
A look at Castiglione di Sicilia
A look at Castiglione di Sicilia

About the village

Located on a hill situated on the northern slope of Mount Etna, in the midst of the valley of the river Alcantara, Castigghiuni (in Sicilian dialect) has its origins in the bronze age.
It tells that when they arrived the Greeks in Sicily (in about 750 B.C.), climbing up precisely this valley is convened in front of the village of castiglionesi: Castel Leone.

They built the fortress, dug into the rock, and today called Castello di Lauria (from the last lord who occupied the village): a point of fortified sighting to control the only way of access of the sicilian hinterland. In the thirteenth century under the Norman domination, arrived at its maximum splendour, with the construction of the walls and the Cannizzo, a watchtower placed at one end of the village, which tells it's been split in two by a lightning.
Today it is still possible to admire it in its evocative position and frame: sandstone caves under it, the village behind him. From here it dominates the entire valley of the Alcantara. In addition to the fortress and the Cannizzo, deserves a visit the church of Santa Domenica, near Castiglione, perhaps the most important Byzantine cuba present in Sicily (VII century about).
The testimony of the various cultures that ensue in the domain of the city (not only Greeks and Normans, but even the Romans, the Arabs and the Swabians) are reflected today in the local traditions, represented by numerous local festivals that animate Castiglione and the entire Alcantara Valley. As the procession of the Madonna della Catena, which is celebrated on the first sunday of May. Near the 10th of August it takes place the traditional gastronomic festival with tasting of typical products of the place, including some unique wines in the world, as the Nerello Mascalese and the Carricante.

Village of Castiglione di Sicilia
Municipality of Castiglione di Sicilia

Metropolitan of Catania city
Sicily region

Population: 3,215
Altitude Center: 621 m s.l.m.

The Municipality is part of:
I Borghi più belli d'Italia
Città del vino
Città dell'olio
Strada del Vino dell'Etna
Castiglioni d'Italia

Unesco site:
Monte Etna

Protected natural areas:
Parco dell'Etna
Parco fluviale dell'Alcantara

Municipality
Piazza Lauria 1 - phone +39 0942-980211

= distances as the crow flies

BY CAR

  • Traveling on the highway, the closest exits to the center of Castiglione di Sicilia are:
    - Exit Fiumefreddo (A18 Messina-Catania / Siracusa-Rosolini)
    - Giardini Naxos exit (A18 Messina-Catania / Siracusa-Rosolini)
    - Exit Falcone (A20 Messina-Buonfornello)

ON THE TRAIN

  • Taormina station
  • Giarre-Riposto station

BY PLANE

  • Catania airport
  • Reggio Calabria airport

Events

from
tuesday
8
august, 2023
to thursday 10 august 2023

Food and Wine Festival

thursday
24
august, 2023

Seasoned Bread Festival

sunday
5
may, 2024

The Feast of Mary SS. of the chain

Our news about Castiglione di Sicilia

Sicilian cannoli’s name derives from river canes to which the shell was rolled up during the preparation since a few decades ago and it is one of the typical pastries of Italian confectionary. Ingredients FOR THE DOUGH: Rice flour 800 gr Cornmeal 200 gr, cornstarch 300 gr, xanthan gum 10 gr Granulated sugar 120 gr Unsweetened cocoa powder 15 gr, baking powder 15 gr Mars...
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