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Palermo
Palermo is the capital of the main Italian island of Sicily, located on the north coast of the island.
Get in
By plane
Palermo International Airport is located some 32 km west of the city at Punta Raisi and has flights incoming from other Italian centres and major European cities on a regular basis. Half hourly shuttle buses provide inexpensive transport into the city centre (5 euros). There are 1-2 trains per hour, 50 minutes, €8 (destination Punta Raisi). The usual taxi and car rental services are also available at the airport.
By ferry
Ferries steam between the port of Palermo and the following Italian ports on a regular basis: Genoa, Civitàvecchia, Naples and Cagliari (Sardinia).
By Train
Through trains from Roma and Napoli via the train ferry across the Messina straits.
Get around
Bus
Get a 24 hour ticket for €4. Many buses run on Via Roma. To ge to Pl Indipenza take bus 109 from the station.
Car
Just don't do it.
Eat
Il Proverbio, Via Discesa 24, tel: +39091 6173267. Close to station and Quattro Canti. Great sicilian food. most dishes are €4-6.Al Chioschetto. Pz. Indipendenza Di Fronte N. 31. Close to the new gate. Excellent fresh panini and salads. They keep all the ingredients in a cooled glass counter, makes the panini from scratch when you order, using only freshly cut pieces of meat.
Buy
Isola Saporita , Corso Vittorio Emanuele 504. opposite the cathedral., tel: +390916527506. Good selection of wine, oil, marmelade, sauces, etc.The "Pizzo free" shops are a group of shopkeepeers that refuse to pay the racket to the Mafia. The palermitan consumers sustain them by going shopping in their stores. You can find the list here:
See
the Cathedral - honey-coloured and Catalan influencedthe Quattro Canti - the symbolic crossroads at the old centre of the city and the nearby small, but pretty La Martorana church with byzantine mosaics inside.the Museo Archeologicothe Catacombe dei Cappuccini, open daily 9am-12 noon and 3pm-5pm, donation on entry - the catacombs of the Capuchin convent located on the Piazza Cappuccini, just west of the city centre, contain over 8000 mummified ex-residents from Palermo and its surrounding villages, some merely clothed skeletons, other remarkably well-preserved and lifelike. Well worth a visit, interesting, if slightly morbid.the Palazzo dei Normanni. Inside, don't miss the mosaics in the Cappella Palatina and the old Royal Apartmentsthe 'street markets', especially near the Piazza del Carmine and Vucciria.Monreale - a village/suburb 8 km west of Palermo, sitting on the hill with a great view back towards the city and the sea. Be sure to visit the Duomo (Cathedral) and it's cloisters too.the Piazza Pretoria, including the Fontana PretoriaThe Gesu Church is one of the most architecturally important highly decorated in Palermo. Constructed between 1564–1633, it's late date of completion resulted in an abundant use of polychrome marbles on both floors and walls. This form of decoration, which gradually evolved in Sicily from the beginning of the 17th century, was to mark the beginning of the Sicilian Baroque period, which was to give Sicily almost an architectural...
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Hotels in Palermo
| | Baglio Conca d'Oro  |
Score 8.075 from 14 reviews | | Via Aquino, 19 C/D |  |
| Le Absidi restaurant is open daily.
A rich, continental buffet breakfast is served from 07:00 to 10:00.
Lunch is available on request from 12:30 to 14:00.
An a la carte dinner menu is served from 20:00 to 21:45.
La Saia bar is open every day from 10:00 to 23:00. ... more | | |
| | Hotel Europa  |
Score 6.175 from 3 reviews | | Via Agrigento, 3 | |
| Hotel Europa arranges an American Bar and a small restaurant which serves simple cuisine for only hotel guests. ... more | | |
 | Park Hotel Carrubella |
Score 7.65 from 53 reviews | | Corso Umberto I, 233 - Monreale | |
| Most rooms have a balcony or a terrace with panoramic views of the surrounding area.
... more | | |
| | Holiday Inn Palermo |
Score 7 from 32 reviews | | Viale Regione Siciliana 2620 | |
| Guide dogs are welcome and are admitted free of charge. ... more | | |
 | Grande Albergo Sole |
Score 7.375 from 56 reviews | | Corso Vittorio Emanuele 291 | |
| Hotel facilities include a 24-hour front desk, a bar and an elegant restaurant. ... more | | |
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| | | More hotels in Palermo |
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24 Hours |
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With a Hop on Hop off tour of Palermo, you will enjoy an exciting visit to the city. Starting from the terminal outside the Politeama Theatre, overlooking the square of the same name, you will drive in front of the Massimo Theatre one of the most capacious and famous opera house in Italy, was built at the end of the 19th century by the architecs Gian Battista and Ernesto Basile. It is a building of neo-classical inspiration, continuing towards Piazza Quattro Canti and the nearby Vucciria Market. The tour continues towards the botanical gardens, passing near Palazzo Steri. After a quick glance of the central station, you will find yourselves in the vicinity of the Royal Palace was built by the Arab emirs around the IXth century, but they abandoned it soon. It was then restored and transformed by the Normans into a sumptuous palace.Frederick II of Hohenstaufen created here the 1st Poetic School, but after his death the palace began to decline and this went on for about three centuries. Things changed when the Spanish chose it as their residence, but they modified it according to their taste. Since 1947 the Palace is the seat of the Regional Sicilian Assembly., the Flea Market and the Cathedral, before stopping at the port and then returning to the terminal.
Click here for more information and Booking Details
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Capucin Catacombs
Over 8000 dead bodies staring back at you, that's what this unexpected
destination has to offer. From the beginning of the 16th century
Capucin monks started mummifying bodies of the local gentry and put
them in the cave under the monastery. All the dead still wear their
daily life clothes, uniforms etc which makes the place even spookier
than other catacombs.
Divided into different sections according to the rank the person
held in life, one of the most curious being the section of girls who
died as virgin, and who for this region go to heaven straight away. The
4 year old girl who died in the beginning of the 19th century is
another highlight. She looks almost alive.
It does happen that visitors hear strange sounds when you are
down in the caves, probably young monks trying to scare tourists, or is
it something else...
| type: | Hotspots |
| address: | Via Cappuccini |
| tel: | 212117 |
| Full Day Private Tour - Erice and Segesta |
8 hours |
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In the morning you go on tracks of the ancient Elymian people as far as the ancient town of Calatafimi of Arab origin. Just a few kilometers from here, you arrive in Segesta where you can easily imagine what it was like to live in Sicily in ancient times. Segesta's history is intertwined with its arch-rival Selinunte. It offers the visit, on the cliff, to the 5th Century Doric Temple held up by 36 columns and the Hellenistic Theatre ? carved in the rock ? overlooks the splendid view from the top of Mount Barbaro at an elevation of 400 meters above sea level.
Taking into consideration all the Greek sites and temples existing in Sicily, we encourage you to see Segesta during your stay in Sicily, not only for the structures themselves, but for the beautiful and natural setting. Then you reach Erice, ancient Punic and Greek town (about 751 meters above sea level) on the mountain that has the same name. Surrounded by ancient walls, it is a labyrinth of clattered old stone streets and medieval churches adorned by beautiful buildings. In the historical center you will visit the Matrice with its marvelous bell tower and the Balio. There are some ancient Elimi and Phoenician walls around the north eastern side of the city, and two castles: Pepoli Castle - with foundations dating from Saracen times - and Venus Castle, dating from the Norman era but built on ruins of the ancient Temple of Venus.
Click here for more information and Booking Details
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Museo Etnografico Pitre
Situated on the edge of Palermo’s great park “La Favorita”, this museum exhibits the largest collection of Sicilian folklore and culture objects.
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