Catania buying snow

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Catania buying snow

Affiliate disclosure: some of the links in this article are affiliate links. All of our info is free to read and free of ads, so we appreciate it! Despite it being frequently bypassed in favor of Palermo, Taormina, and Syracuse, Catania is a city teeming with life. It brims with history, culture, architecture, and a vibrant nightlife scene allowing you to see what real Sicilian life is. It more than merits a spot on your Sicily itinerary. Sicily is probably the most conquered island in Europe as everyone has passed through here: Greeks founded it in the 8th century BC and then came the Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, French, Aragonese, and Spaniards. The mishmash is particularly evident in Catania, which bears the traces of all the peoples who have settled here; home to crumbling Roman ruins adjacent to magnificent late Baroque architecture. The worst eruption occurred in when the lava flow reached the city wiping out part of it and completely changing the landscape. Compounding the destruction, a major earthquake occurred a few years later in , shattering the city and requiring its almost entire reconstruction. From these disasters emerged the historic city that you see today, rebuilt in stunning Baroque style with lava stone. You could spend weeks reading blogs and itineraries and still never come up with the ideal plan for your visit. So if you could use some help putting together your Sicily trip, schedule a Sicily travel consultation with Dania, our Palermo-based Local Expert! Catania is located on the Ionian coast, in Eastern Sicily. It sits in the Val di Noto or Vallo di Noto , an area that encompasses the southeastern third of Sicily. During Muslim rule on Sicily, the island was divided into three regions: the Val di Noto in the southeast, the Val Demone in the northeast, and the Val di Mazara in the west. Catania is one of them as are the cities of Syracuse , Ragusa , and Noto , among others. The city is located between the sea and the volcano, which the locals consider female, a benevolent mother who makes the fields fertile with her ashes but occasionally On clear days you can see it or her! While other Sicilian Baroque cities were built using yellow-ish stone, Catania exploited its proximity to the volcano to obtain supplies of basalt stone, with its characteristic black color. The city looks like no other in Sicily. Over the centuries, Catania has always found a way to recover from its misfortunes and its people show the same spirit of resilience and desire to enjoy life. Living under a volcano makes you understand that life must be enjoyed now; a teaching that the Catanians like to put into practice, inviting visitors to do the same! Many daily flights, taking less than 1. The ride takes 2. From Taormina you have the option of bus or train, with the train being a fair bit quicker. Trains are operated by Trenitalia , and the Regionale Veloce lines make the journey from Taormina-Giardini station to Catania Centrale station in 40 minutes. The bus has more frequent departures than the train. I always recommend booking direct with service providers, especially for the train. When buying train tickets in Italy, there is no reason to ever use a 3rd party service. Websites are typically only in Italian and often quite poorly designed. It can actually be rather confusing to navigate. It shows routes from different companies along with pricing. You can then buy the tickets through the site for a slight markup or go direct to whatever companies they show available for the journey. By car, Catania is about 2. The roads leading to Catania are in good condition and easy to navigate. To check prices and book, I recommend using DiscoverCars. You can often find great deals. Check car rental prices on DiscoverCars! Late Spring to early Summer is the best time to visit Catania as the city enjoys good weather and warm days without the heat of summer. That said, as the climate in Catania is rather fair, you really can enjoy the city all year. Summer can last for many months and we often swim in the sea even in November! And rainfall is fairly low throughout the year, with rainy periods only particularly likely to come in January and February. Traveling between Easter and May enables you to avoid the bulk of tourists. Mild temperatures allow you to enjoy long walks under a perfect blue sky. You can also dip into the sea as the water is typically already warm enough for swimming. During Summer Sicily is full of tourists, but Catania is unlikely to be as packed as places like Taormina or Syracuse. Even in summer there are almost never lines to access the attractions! However, the summer heat can be intense making long days of sightseeing or outdoor excursions potentially unpleasant. Cooler temperatures make October and November a great time to visit Catania without the heat or crowds of summer. The students returning to the city after the summer break, bringing with them a youthful energy and buzz. Also, temperatures usually remain warm enough for mid-day visits to the beach. Although the winter months tend to be greyer and midday temperatures hover around 15 degrees celcius, Catania is often kissed by the sun even in winter. The city center is easily walkable and everything you should visit can be discovered on foot. You shouldn't miss a climb on Mount Etna, preferably early in the morning to avoid the heat, and maybe an afternoon dip on one of the lovely beaches of the Riviera dei Ciclopi: from the mountain to the sea in just one day! You can also use Catania as a convenient base to explore Eastern Sicily. On your first day, you could spend the morning visiting Baroque churches and noble palaces while in the afternoon you could complete your Baroque tour by discovering the Benedictine monastery. Enjoy an aperitif on a rooftop while the sun sets over Mount Etna, then have dinner in a typical trattoria. On your next day, grab a cannolo for breakfast and enjoy it relaxing in Villa Bellini before going underground to discover a hidden city and its legends. The city center is your best choice to stay in Catania as the main attractions will never be more than a minute walk. The area between Piazza Duomo and Piazza Teatro Massimo is busier at night and more lit up, while the backstreets around Castello Ursino are quieter. Housed in an 18th-century palace, it offers design rooms with murals celebrating Sicilian myths. Palace Catania is a recently renovated larger hotel in a historic palazzo right on Via Etnea. Liberty Hotel is delightfully old world with a very Art Nouveau style. Plush furniture, chandeliers, colorful bedding, and all that. Habitat Boutique Hotel sits just a few steps from Bellini Theatre, in a restored 19th-century factory. It has a very contemporary feeling as it mixes marble, brick, and original floors with resin and industrial vibes. Rooms are fully equipped and uniquely furnished. Connect with Dania in Palermo for help perfecting your itinerary, answers to all your travel questions, and fabulous local tips! Begin your tour from Piazza Duomo, the heart of the city. The Liotru fountain, as locals call it, stands at the center of the square. A few steps ahead there is the Basilica della Collegiata, a fine example of Sicilian Baroque. Along Via dei Crociferi be stunned by a sequence of imposing Baroque churches San Francesco Borgia, San Benedetto, San Giuliano , mysterious monasteries, and grand villas surrounded by secret gardens, such as Villa Cerami, now housing the law school. He offers a city center walking tour and a Catania by night tour. Take a walking tour of Catania with local guide Mirco! Another great way to catch a good view is to enjoy a sunset aperitif on the rooftop of the Ostello degli Elefanti, a hostel offering a bar with a view. Discover underground Catania. Exploring Catania underground will be a fascinating journey worth a couple of hours of your trip. You can trace the river right under the Cathedral by visiting the Achillian Baths , a bath complex dating back to the Roman era. Its vaulted rooms, embellished with stuccoes depicting human figures, vines, and animals, were reproduced in 18th-century drawings by Grand Tour travelers. It represents the river as a young man holding a cornucopia. The water pours into the underground river two meters below the square level. It is actually a restaurant but you can book a table underground and dine while the Amenano river murmurs a few steps ahead. Still want more underground sites to discover? The church of Saint Gaetano alle Grotte was once used as a well, then as a catacomb, and finally as a chapel. The Gammazita Well is linked to the legend of a young Catanian who threw herself in the well to escape a French soldier fell in love with her, preferring death instead of marrying an invader. Founded in as a benedictine monastery, and modified by the lava eruption in and again by the earthquake in , the complex is now UNESCO-listed and part of the University of Catania. You should not leave the city without visiting it as it is a great example of the Sicilian Baroque architecture but holds a bunch of treasures worth discovering. Join an hourly guided tour to discover its hidden parts not accessible otherwise as the kitchen tiled with majolica and the Roman domus in the basement the ancient Acropolis of Catania was on this hill! It houses a sundial on the floor and a historical organ. Come early in the morning to soak up its authentic, raw atmosphere. Immerse yourself in the hullabaloo of the market while the vendors cry out selling their fresh catch. Among its alleys, you can also taste freshly caught fish. Castello Ursino - A Swabian Castle surrounded by lava. When it was built in the 13th century by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, the imposing fortress stood on a rocky promontory surrounded by the sea. Then a massive lava spill in pushed the sea back, extended the coastline, and landlocked the building. It lost its defensive purpose but retained its stunning aspect. Explore Catania's hidden gems on tour with Mirco! Despite the dramatic series of natural disasters and the many dominations that occurred over the centuries, Catania still retains traces of its origins. After rain, the stage is partially submerged by water reflecting the city: amazing! A smaller theatre, the Odeon, is right next to it. A short distance away are the Terme della Rotonda, Roman bath ruins on which a frescoed church was built in the Byzantine era. On Piazza Stesicoro you can see the Roman Amphitheatre. It lies just below the street level as it was almost completely submerged by lava. Originally it was the largest amphitheater in Sicily, built in the 1st century AD and holding upward of 15, spectators. Over the centuries, the city has grown around and over it. Take the Bellini Trail, following in the footsteps of the composer Vincenzo Bellini. Catania pays homage to its most famous son whose name is attached to institutions, streets, buildings, and monuments. Start from his childhood home housing the Museo Belliniano. Then head to the Teatro Massimo Bellini on the homonymous square. You can join a minute guided tour inside or book a ticket to attend a performance November to May. The signature dish of Catania is also linked to the composer. The story goes that he frequently asked for pasta with tomato sauce, aubergines, and ricotta salata while composing the Norma. As a tribute, the dish was renamed Pasta Alla Norma. On Piazza Stesicoro you can see a monument dedicated to the Swan of Catania sitting at the top of it. Around him, four statues represent his works Norma , I puritani , La sonnambula , Il pirata. Further north along Via Etnea, you can visit the Villa Bellini, the oldest and largest green park in Catania adorned with busts of local musicians, writers, artists, and politicians. Locals love to have a rest here tasting an arancino or a gelato! Take a day trip to the Riviera dei Ciclopi. Take the bus D to reach the long sandy beach called Playa, south of the city, or relax on the black sand shore at San Giovanni Li Cuti, just north of the city. This is a rocky stretch of 12 km of coast extending to the north of Catania. The coast includes a number of pretty towns built on volcanic rock along with many good swimming spots for a dip: Acicastello, Acitrezza, Capomulini, and Santa Tecla. There are no real beaches but in summer wooden platforms are set up to sunbathe on the lava cliff and dive among the black rocks bathed in sapphire blue water. The Riviera towns of Acicastello and Acitrezza 30 minutes from Catania driving or by bus , whose names link them to the legend of the young shepherd Aci who fell in love with the water nymph Galatea, are lovely places to visit for a day. The Norman castle in Acicastello was built on a lava outcrop over a Roman fortification. Hop on a boat departing from there to admire La Timpa, a dramatic volcanic cliff over a marine-protected area. The fishing village Acitrezza sits on a coast whose waters are broken by enormous faraglioni rocks rising out of the sea created by underwater eruptions. According to another legend, the Cyclops Polyphemus threw these great stones into the water in an attempt to stop Odysseus from escaping. Here you can take an unforgettable dip into mythical waters or enjoy a boat trip to Lachea Island right in front of the town. Riviera dei Ciclopi by boat - Departing from Catania, sailing the coast is a seriously gorgeous way to see the towns of Acicastello and Acitrezza. Tour Palazzo Biscari, a noble palace. Goethe itself admired his collections during his Grand Tour. The noble family still lives inside the palace and if you are lucky enough the heir in person may guide you, telling family anecdotes during a tour of the magnificent Rococo ballroom with mythological frescoes, halls covered with paintings, and bedrooms with rosewood boiserie and 1st-century floor. Between the 3rd and 5th of February, the sumptuous feast of Saint Agata takes place bringing over a million persons among the city streets. Agata was a young girl during the Roman era who refused the love of Roman consul Quinziano and consecrated her life to Christ. The devotees dressed in a typical white vestment, yelling Semu tutti devoti tutti! There an olive tree grew up to protect her and feed her with its fruits. No trip to Sicily would be complete without spending a morning, evening, or entire day hiking on the slopes of wonderful Mount Etna. You can hike, walk, or mountain bike among its woods, explore its caves, or even ski during winter. Scaling and walking the crater is however only permitted accompanied by a licensed guided tour. Just remember to bring a jacket and closed shoes because it can get cold even in summer. While you can visit Etna on your own to an extent , it really is best visited with a guide. Dozens of tour operators offer dozens of different tours, many with slight variations. So, choosing the right option can be slightly confusing. Your main options are to drive yourself to the volcano, park, and then hire a walking guide or a 4x4 off-road tour , or to book a day trip from Catania, which can be done as either a half-day or full-day tour. Half day tours will visit just the volcano whereas full-day ones will usually pair a hike on Etna with a visit to one of Taormina, Alcantara Gorge, or a winery. Full-day Mount Etna day trip with Taormina private. Etna and Taormina full-day tour small group. Etna half-day hike private. Etna 3-hour summit hike small group. Dania has answers! Make your life a whole lot easier and connect with Dania for the best local info and help planning a better trip to Sicily! Pasta ca muddica alla catanese : I already mentioned the delicious Pasta alla Norma inspired by native composer Vincenzo Bellini but you should also give a chance to this pasta topped with anchovies, toasted breadcrumbs, and wild fennel. Freshly fried seafood : Fond of street food? While wandering the fishmarket enjoy a stop to taste delicious seafood served in paper cones. The most popular spot is Scirocco. Arancino : The world-famous Sicilian fried rice ball is traditionally stuffed with ragu, but you can also find some creative stuffings such as aubergines or pistachio. Cipollina: A puff pastry filled with onions, tomato sauce, ham, and mozzarella. Don't ask for it in the rest of Sicily because you won't find it, it's super local. Best address? Cannoli , cassata , and frutta martorana : Every bar serves these Sicilian delights. Head to I dolci di Nonna Vincenza to taste the best cannoli in town as well as traditional biscuits. Brioche filled with gelato : Do as locals do. Have a brioche filled with gelato and enjoy it strolling around Villa Bellini. Bar Spinella, just across the street, has a wide variety of flavors to choose from. Horse meat : If you are a meat lover, stop by the butchers along Plebiscito Road and choose a meat dish having it grilled on the spot. Eating horse meat is an authentic Catanian tradition. Try also the cipollata , spring onions wrapped in bacon and grilled. Seltz limone e sale : Since the 19th century, stopping at the chiosco cioscu or ciospu in dialect for a drink has been a local enduring tradition. Catanians love to sip a refreshing drink during the day as well as at the end of a night out, and this thirst-quenching drink is made from freshly squeezed lemons, seltzer water, and a pinch of salt. It is a must-try, loved by locals and tourists as well. Vuciata offers typical Sicilian dishes with a modern twist. Do not miss their sarde a beccafico , sardines stuffed with breadcrumbs, pine nuts, raisins, and herbs. The perfect choice for veggies and vegans. Chef Salvo focuses on seasonal ingredients and local suppliers. This is a little yet lovely fish restaurant located near the fish market, on a street framed with colored umbrellas. Stop by Vermut on Via Gemmellaro for a large variety of wines and beers accompanied by charcuterie and good vibes. Next to Castello Ursino, this bar was created by the local community to regenerate the area. Not far from the Bellini Theatre, this is actually a neighborhood quartiere means neighborhood and it is a similar project supported by the neighborhood community. Here you can find street art and tons of hipster-ish bars for a drink. The stairs in front of it are often filled with young people chatting and drinking beer. The place to spend the night having a drink and listening to live music. If you could use some one-on-one help planning your Sicily itinerary, schedule a Sicily travel consultation with one of our Local Experts! Private guided tours in Sicily. Sicily travel guide. Best restaurants in Catania. Guide to Taormina. Mount Etna Travel guide. Guide to Siracusa. Guide to Noto. Guide to Ragusa. Palermo city guide. At Go Ask A Local we connect independent travelers with in-destination Local Experts for personalized travel planning that goes way beyond the highlights. Italy Sicily. Catania planning cheatsheet Plan your itinerary with expert advice Book a Sicily travel consultation with a local expert. My favorite hotels in Catania Asmundo di Gisira - luxurious 18th century palace in the center. Guided tours and activities Catania walking tour by night Street food tour Taormina and Mt. Etna day trip private Small-group Taormina and Mt. Etna tour Mt. Etna off-road 4x4 excursion. Plan your itinerary with local help. Plan with Dania. Where is Catania? Why visit Catania. By car By car, Catania is about 2. I use it myself and have always had good experiences. Discover authentic Sicily with local advice! Connect with Dania, our Palermo-based Local Expert, for a minute travel consultation! Best time to visit. Visiting in Spring Traveling between Easter and May enables you to avoid the bulk of tourists. Visiting in Summer During Summer Sicily is full of tourists, but Catania is unlikely to be as packed as places like Taormina or Syracuse. Visiting in Fall Cooler temperatures make October and November a great time to visit Catania without the heat or crowds of summer. Visiting in Winter Although the winter months tend to be greyer and midday temperatures hover around 15 degrees celcius, Catania is often kissed by the sun even in winter. How long to spend in Catania 2 days should be enough for a first-time visitor to explore Catania and get acquainted with its atmosphere. Day 1 On your first day, you could spend the morning visiting Baroque churches and noble palaces while in the afternoon you could complete your Baroque tour by discovering the Benedictine monastery. Day 2 On your next day, grab a cannolo for breakfast and enjoy it relaxing in Villa Bellini before going underground to discover a hidden city and its legends. Where to stay. Ditch the tourist traps and discover hidden gems and local secrets! What to see and do. Overwhelmed with your trip planning? Then stop reading this blog and hop on a call with Dania in Palermo! Learn more. Castello Ursino - A Swabian Castle surrounded by lava When it was built in the 13th century by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, the imposing fortress stood on a rocky promontory surrounded by the sea. Take the Bellini Trail, following in the footsteps of the composer Vincenzo Bellini Catania pays homage to its most famous son whose name is attached to institutions, streets, buildings, and monuments. Here are a couple boat excursions: Riviera dei Ciclopi by boat - Departing from Catania, sailing the coast is a seriously gorgeous way to see the towns of Acicastello and Acitrezza. Go hiking on Mount Etna No trip to Sicily would be complete without spending a morning, evening, or entire day hiking on the slopes of wonderful Mount Etna. Here are some good tour options : Full-day Mount Etna day trip with Taormina private Etna and Taormina full-day tour small group Etna half-day hike private Etna 3-hour summit hike small group 4x4 off-road Etna excursion. Got Sicily travel questions? Plan with a local. Foods to try in Catania. Great restaurants. Vuciata Vuciata offers typical Sicilian dishes with a modern twist. La Cucina dei Colori The perfect choice for veggies and vegans. Vermut Stop by Vermut on Via Gemmellaro for a large variety of wines and beers accompanied by charcuterie and good vibes. Gammazita Next to Castello Ursino, this bar was created by the local community to regenerate the area. Quartiere San Berillo Not far from the Bellini Theatre, this is actually a neighborhood quartiere means neighborhood and it is a similar project supported by the neighborhood community. Mercati Generali The place to spend the night having a drink and listening to live music. More Sicily travel info If you could use some one-on-one help planning your Sicily itinerary, schedule a Sicily travel consultation with one of our Local Experts! Perfect your Sicily itinerary with our favorite local! Connect with Dania in Palermo for a minute travel consultation! Plan Your Itinerary With Dania. Catania Urban Trek. Mount Etna Hiking Tour. Catania By Night. Plan your Sicily itinerary with Dania! Chat with a Local Expert. Tailor-made to you. Plan your itinerary with a local! Connect with Dania.

What to do in Catania Italy: the perfect guide for visiting eastern Sicily

Catania buying snow

The island of Sicily, and more specifically, Catania, is usually a forgotten land when it comes to planning trips to Italy because of everything else that Italy has to offer think Rome, Florence, Venice, etc. There are also many things to do and deciding what to do in Catania can be hard. Read on below to find out more on what to do in Catania, Sicily, a destination on your next Italian getaway. Psst: Looking for more Italy info? We have a few guides! Browse them all here or see the most popular below:. If you choose to purchase items through these links, we will earn a small commission at NO extra cost to you. You can select the check marks to show or hide certain layers. If you select the icons on the map, you will get more information about the point of interest. This charming, old-world city was founded by the Greeks way back in the s BC and has been an important economic and cultural hub of Sicily and Italy through present-day. However, Catania is more than just where you come to see a magnificent, and still active, volcano in action. The city of about 1. OK, no more boot jokes! One of the great things about Catania is its warm coastal climate, making it a year-round destination option. Catania is also pretty dry throughout the year, especially in the spring and summer, so your trip agenda is likely safe from any complete rainouts. Snow is not as common in the main part of Catania either because of Mt. The tourist season in Catania is busiest during the normal summer months June through August when the temperatures are at their hottest. Visiting during the shoulder seasons either April and May or September and October will expose you to fewer tourists and milder temperatures. It was really great, comfortable walking-around weather and the only time we started to get some colder temperatures was when we were climbing on Mt. Etna at a higher elevation. This main street is heavily trafficked by pedestrians until late in the evening and can make for a noisy sleeping environment. Plus, you can snag a better deal by not being right on the main drag! In our experience, they consistently found the cheapest rooms. We also like their easy to use interface and no money down policy. When we book our travel stays, we personally use booking. All of these are located near the city center close to the main streets:. Like most of Europe, the public transportation system is cheap and can get you where you need to go. It runs every 25 minutes from 5 AM to midnight. Catania is a very easy-to-navigate town and we walked the majority of our time here. The upside to walking is window shopping and we were able to browse many different boutiques because of it. Also, more exercise means more wine and cheese! Etna has literally been shaping the city of Catania and its surrounding towns for hundreds of thousands of years. But she the Italians have dubbed Mt. Etna a female also yields incredibly fertile soil, perfect for vines, resulting in more wine tasting in Catania for you and us. Naturally, we flock to hike, ski, and climb it! Plus, with our current scientific capabilities, we can tell before she will erupt and have plenty of time to evacuate the hillside. To get here, you might have to forgo that morning cappuccino in order to catch the only public bus that leaves Catania for Mt. Etna at AM each day. Once you have your ticket in hand, head to the bus loading area at least 30 minutes early. Italian public transportation is notorious for schedule changes and just general chaos, so better to be safe than miss your only chance of the day. Depending on how tight your budget is, there are several options for experiencing this majestic volcano. This will be the highest elevation to which you can climb without splurging for a guide. Have a little more cash to burn? Once you get to the cable car area, there are restrooms, a small cafe, and even a jacket rental for your unprepared friends. If you are limited on time or cash or missed the only bus to get to Mount Etna, you can enjoy the mountain from several rooftops in the city. We suggest the Etnea Rooftop Bar since the view is unobstructed and the prices are mid-range. A new set of terraces opened in allowing for degree views of Catania, including Mt. We suggest going before sunset to experience the striking colors over the city skyline. Afterwards, stroll around the square below and bask in the Italian outdoor culture. Castello Ursino was built way back in the mids as a sign of royal power and to defend the capital of Sicily at the time, Catania. Once considered impregnable, the castle served in its military role until it was re-purposed as a prison when the capital was moved away from Catania and powder weapons became more commonplace. The symmetrical castle used to have an oceanfront view out of some of its corner towers, but you can blame Mt. Etna for filling in the moat with lava and ash and today being over a half-mile inland. In the s, the castle was acquired by the city of Catania and restored into a museum, which is still open today. The museum has artifacts and artwork from throughout its history and from the surrounding areas. For an epic view of Mount Etna, climb up to the top rooftop to see a great view of Catania and the roaring volcano. Plan on spending an hour weaving in between the packed stalls and listen to the customers bargaining in Italian for lower prices. You can find just about anything you are looking for here from souvenirs to gently-used designer jeans to locally-grown produce or freshly-caught fish. Whether you are looking for something to buy or just wanting to browse, this market will be sure to entertain you. The Italians take happy hour seriously, and for anyone on a budget, this is great news! As defined, an aperitivo is an alcoholic drink meant to stimulate your appetite before a meal. Most Italian aperitivo involve a reduced-price drink that comes with a small cheese plate or other finger foods. From gourmet burgers to classic Italian pizza, you can walk down this pedestrian-only street to find the best cheap eats or bounce around during happy hour for budget-friendly drinks and small plate options. The first night at Curtigghiu for some delicious pizza and the second night at FUD for burgers. We saw the burgers being ordered while we were sitting outside on night one which is what made us come back again. We were NOT disappointed! In addition to the fertile volcanic soil from Mt. While wine tours in the region can be expensive, every restaurant and wine bar in town will have all of your favorite Sicilian wines at great prices! Like most of Europe, the parks are free to explore and Catania is no exception. Located off the main strip is La Villa Bellini, the Villa Bellini is a city park and garden that is a great place for a picnic or just to stroll around. There are drink and food stalls located at the entrance and scattered throughout the park. Directly across the street from the park is Pasticceria Savia , one of the most famous bakeries in Catania. Opened in , this bakery has great prices and a large variety of confectionery treats! The line will be long, but it will move quickly. We suggest popping in for a treat, like a cannoli or cassatelle cookie, to take in the park with you. Located within Piazza Stesicoro, which is just off of the main drag of Via Etnea, the Roman Amphitheatre is a true Italian marvel lying beneath the streets of the bustling downtown. With no entrance fees, you can descend down into the amphitheatre to explore the maze of hallways and try to imagine what this place looked like back in the 2nd century! This complex in downtown Catania is just north of the amphitheatre and takes you back in time to experience the magnificent architecture of Catania. The ruins, including the large rotunda building that was once a bath house, but later transformed into a church and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, date back to the 1st and 2nd centuries. Etna eruptions. From the majestic Mt. Etna to the charming and bustling streets of the old downtown, Catania is sure to delight those travelers looking for a little bit more authentic and rugged Italian experience! Ready to visit to Catania? Read hotel reviews on TripAdvisor then book your room here! But where do we personally recommend? Love this guide? Have questions? Get in touch with us on Facebook Twitter Instagram Pinterest. Samantha and Chris fell in love with traveling together back in They met, married, and lived together in Richmond, VA for 7 years before becoming full-time travelers in Along the way, they've traveled to over 40 U. Join them as they share travel resources, stories, and guides based on their personal experiences drinking locally when traveling globally. Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Skip to content The island of Sicily, and more specifically, Catania, is usually a forgotten land when it comes to planning trips to Italy because of everything else that Italy has to offer think Rome, Florence, Venice, etc. Browse them all here or see the most popular below: How to do Florence in 2 days The best 3 days in Rome itinerary guide Table of Contents. Similar Posts. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Home Blog About Toggle child menu Expand.

Catania buying snow