Visit Palermo in Three Days
A three-day holiday in the land of sunshine where citrus fruits bloom, a perfect itinerary for lovers of good food culture and nature. We are talking about Palermo, the Sicilian capital, the fifth largest city in Italy for number of inhabitants has always been a crossroads of Mediterranean and Eastern cultures that historically met to trade. A city that bears witness to its millenary history with its historic buildings, churches, palaces, squares and markets that are still the focus of daily life of Palermo.
But let’s see together what and how we can visit in three days of stay. As first thing we must look for our accommodation that should be in the city center, so you can easily move to the places that interest us, it is very important to choose an accommodation facility that is located in the historic center. In this case internet comes to our aid, it is now widespread the habit to inform and book via the web, just search on the search engine b & b Palermo or bed and breakfast Palermo, or we can search for a ‘hotel or a holiday home, of course, you choose according to the needs that everyone has, in any case the facilities that are located in the center are many and most are also well organized.
Once you have chosen our accommodation, you just have to start your holiday, which will be divided in part by the historical places and for the rest by the night places where the people of Palermo go to have fun.
We leave in the morning to Piazza Politeama where we will find the theater Politeama, built towards the end of ‘800, is one of the wonders of Palermo. We walk then via R. Settimo the shopping street that will take us to the Teatro Massimo also built in the late 800. If we turn behind the Teatro Massimo we will find ourselves at the market of “Capo”, one of many but worth seeing because here we also find two churches, that of St. Augustine and the Immaculate Conception. We continue through the narrow streets of the center and we will end up at the Cathedral of St. Virgin Mary of the Assumption, beautiful and immense, with Gothic and Norman style is one of the most visited monuments ever, dating back to 1200.
If we still have time before lunch I suggest you to go from Porta Nuova and the Norman Palace, inside we find the Palatine Chapel. After having had lunch in any restaurant or trattoria in the center and have tasted the Sicilian delicacies, we resume our journey this time to the Capuchin monastery, where there are about 8000 mummified bodies each with its own history that you can read in the captions, this is really a unique environment throughout Italy. We continue to “Ballarò” another popular market where you can find everything, from food to furniture through antiques, this is the market that perhaps has withstood the test of time, still, along with the “Vucciria” is one of the main centers of sale.
We continue to walk through the streets of the center and we head to the “4 Canti” square that is located at a crossroads with the demolished corners and where there are four buildings of Baroque style, adorned with statues. During the walks you will find beautiful buildings of all ages and periods alternating with dilapidated buildings, this aspect is also part of the city that always shows multiple sides of itself. Since it’s the first day of your holiday and you’ve been around a lot on foot, I suggest you spend the evening at the cathedral, the illuminated evening is a spectacle, relaxing and sipping an excellent granita.
The second day I suggest you move to Mondello, the nearest beach to Palermo, you can easily reach by public transport in about half an hour. So once you arrive, after spending the day before to walk a lot, the watchword is relax throw yourself in the beautiful beach and the crystal clear sea. For those who want to continue to have fun the beach offers many attractions, from sports to the market, and once lunch time comes choose one of the clubs on the promenade and enjoy fresh fish accompanied by a good local wine.
In the afternoon take a tour of the country and visit the tower of the Prickly Pear and the small cathedral, while returning to the city continues by taking a tour of Via Roma and Via Maqueda where you can make further purchases and enjoy the excellent aperitifs. Considering that today we have relaxed to the sea and we have walked less this evening we will be a little more energetic and we can go around for the nightclubs. We start from via dei Candelai and we arrive until the vucciria, by day popular market and the night turns into a place of entertainment for young university students and not, the nightlife takes place mainly outside the streets where concerts are every evening and for all musical tastes.
We are at the third and final day of vacation and at this point you decide to go back to Mondello or continue to visit Palermo. In case you choose to continue to visit the city, then move to the Kalsa, an old neighborhood in Arabic style, and at this point you can visit other historic buildings such as the church of St. Teresa, the Greeks’ Gate, St. Mary of the Spasm and the Church of the Magione. Another stop should be made at the Botanical Garden and Villa Giulia (which are practically attached to each other), we arrive at the oratory S. Lorenzo where inside you can admire the beautiful stuccoes of Serpotta.
Another obligatory stop, which will allow you to relax, is at Piazza Marina, where the green of the park borders the sea. Now that you have visited the main places of interest you just have to walk in the historic center between the narrow streets and explore, because I think this is the most beautiful part of a holiday, discover new glimpses that you do not find in any guide, let yourself be carried by your curiosity. As a last night I recommend you to spend it between Piazza Politeama and Piazza Magione, where it is easy to make new acquaintances and listen to great music.