Week end a Palermo? Ecco quello che potete vedere.

We have previously seen what you would be able to do and see in a single day in the city, but with a few more hours or a weekend available, the works that can be admired increase and we suggest you invest your time as follows.

Saturday morning

We always recommend starting your visit from Piazza Bellini with the Martorana Church and San Cataldo without missing a tour of the fountains in Piazza Pretoria.

 

In the same square you cannot fail to notice the Church of Santa Caterina, one of the richest and most decorated in the city.

Inside, you can admire the opulence of the stuccoes, marbles and frescoes which, in perfect Baroque style, decorate every square centimeter of walls, floors, columns, vaulting and domes.

It will also be possible to climb the roofs of the church from where you can admire the interiors and from the terraces enjoy the wonderful view of Piazza Pretoria.

At the exit of the church you will find a space where you can buy typical sweets made with the secret recipes of the nuns who lived in the monastery.

 

 

Returning to via Vittorio Emanuele, after a few minutes’ walk, the

Returning to via Vittorio Emanuele, after a few minutes’ walk, the Cathedral of Palermo will appear on your right in all its splendor.

This work also comes with a variety of forms and techniques including Roman, Norman, Greek, Arab, with the addition of Sicilian Baroque.

Inside there are the tombs of the kings, the chapel of Santa Rosalia and the treasure room. For the more trained it is possible to climb on the majolica roofs and enjoy the visit that dominates the whole of Palermo.

Not far from the Cathedral, going towards the Royal Palace, you can visit the church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti (via dei Benedettini 20), one of the most interesting examples of Sicilian-Norman art, considered one of the symbolic monuments of Palermo. Entrance to the church is subject to a fee (free on the first Sunday of the month) and can be visited in a few minutes.

will appear on your right in all its splendor.

This work also comes with a variety of forms and techniques including Roman, Norman, Greek, Arab, with the addition of Sicilian Baroque.

Inside there are the tombs of the kings, the chapel of Santa Rosalia and the treasure room. For the more trained it is possible to climb on the majolica roofs and enjoy the visit that dominates the whole of Palermo.

Not far from the Cathedral, going towards the Royal Palace, you can visit the church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti (via dei Benedettini 20), one of the most interesting examples of Sicilian-Norman art, considered one of the symbolic monuments of Palermo. Entrance to the church is subject to a fee (free on the first Sunday of the month) and can be visited in a few minutes.

 

Saturday afternoon

After a nice lunch, we recommend a visit to our nearby Palazzo Branciforte, a historic building in the heart of Palermo, built towards the end of the 16th century and recently renovated thanks to the intervention of Gae Aulenti.

Inside there are exhibition spaces for the important collections of the Foundation: from the archaeological one to those of majolica and sculptures, from the numismatic one to the philatelic one, a historical library and a renowned restaurant.

(via Bara All’olivella 2. From 1 March to 31 October: Tuesday – Sunday 9.30 – 19.30 – From 1 November to 28 February: Tuesday – Sunday 9.30 – 14.30
The ticket office closes one hour before Monday closed Tickets Full € 7.00 Reduced € 5.00 9.30-19.30 compulsory guided tour every hour)

Or, continue past the cathedral and take the opportunity to enter the Royal Palace to visit the Palatine Chapel, the exhibition and the royal apartments.
Monday / Saturday from 8.15 am to 5.40 pm (last ticket 4.40 pm) Sunday and holidays from 8.15 am to 1.00 pm (last ticket 12.00 pm)

 

Sunday morning

We continue your weekend with a visit to Palazzo Abatellis, reaching it via a pleasant walk along the alleys and streets (Via Merlo and Via Alloro) admiring the renovated noble palaces flanked by others waiting to be restored to their former glory. Shining example of Gothic-Catalan architecture, it hosts numerous works of art, among others those of Pietro Novelli, Antoon Van Dyck, Domenico and Antonello Gagini and Antonello da Messina with his « Annunciata »

Via Alloro 4, Tuesday to Friday 9 am-6pm | Saturday and Sunday 9 am-1pm | Monday closed . Full ticket € 8, reduced € 4

It could be fun to reach the nearby Piazza Marina, where you can browse among the stalls of the vintage market, admire the gigantic ficus in the Garibaldi garden and visit Palazzo Steri which houses the Inquisition museum and where the famous painting the Vucciria di Renato Guttuso.

(From Tuesday to Sunday: 10.00 – 19.00 last admission 18.00 ticket cost: Full: € 8.00)

 

Sunday afternoon

At this point you have two options, to reach Monreale by bus or taxi (30 minutes from Palermo) or continue the walk in the city reaching the Botanical Garden, the richest in Italy and among the first in Europe.

Inside, in addition to an excellent scientific collection, made up of more than 12,000 plants, there are plant species that, thanks to their monumentality, are able to capture the attention of even the « uninitiated ».

These are plants that, thanks to the favorable climate, have reached dimensions that have nothing to envy to the plants of the places of origin, such as the gigantic specimen of Ficus magnolioides, with large branches that extend for meters and meters horizontally, supported in the weight by aerial roots that descend and stick into the ground, turning into trunks.

(Via Lincoln, 2) open every day from 9.00 to 18 or until 20 in summer, ticket € 6
http://www.ortobotanico.unipa.it

For more information on how to reach the places indicated, or for changes to the itinerary, our Team is at your disposal!