Sicily itinerary
Trapani

Saline in Trapani - Photo © Luciana Coletti -*Elle*

Trapani To See...

• The magnificent Basilica-Sanctuary of Maria Santissima Annunziata (also called Madonna di Trapani) originally built in 1315-1332 and rebuilt in 1760. It houses a marble statue of the Madonna of Trapani, which might be the work of Nino Pisano
• The Baroque Palazzo della Giudecca 'or Casa Ciambra
• The Fontana del Tritone (Triton's Fountain)
• The Baroque Palazzo della Giudecca or Casa Ciambra
• The Cathedral (1635)
• The fine buildings on the main Corso Vittorio Emanuele
• Enjoy the bustle of the port. See the Italians shouting and gesticulating as they load the large ferries to Tunis
  

Trapani folklore

I Misteri Procession - Photo © zeitspuren

The city is renowned for its Easter procession, I Misteri, when the town's guilds parade a groups of sculpted 17th century and 18th century religious statues through the streets in a procession lasting for 16 hours on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.

For almost 24 hours, groups of baroque statues are carried through the streets of Trapani on the western tip of Sicily.

This Good Friday Procession is the biggest one in Italy.

Carrying the heavy statues is a real sacrifice. 

Getting out

• Erice is well worth a visit. Regular buses go to this nearby precipitous hilltop town, but the best way to get there is by the new cable-car. Wander around and soak in the atmosphere.
• The Egadi islands (Favignana, Levanzo e Marettimo) are very close and well worth a visit, with their wonderful beaches and bays.
• San Vito Lo Capo is a wonderful beach at 40Km from Trapani, witch white sand and crystal blue sea.
• Visit the Greek temple, theatre and ruins at Segesta on a day trip, or en-route to Palermo.
• Visit the saline, where using the heat of the sun, the salt is extracted from the sea water.
• Don't miss the Riserva dello Zingaro natural preserve park.

Getting in: By Train

Frequent trains run from Palermo, with a few stopping at Segesta.

Local trains also run to Marsala, Mazara del Vallo and Castelvetrano (for the ruins of Selinunte).

Photo © Luciana Coletti -*Elle*

Getting in: By Bus

Frequent buses run from Palermo.

Less frequently they go to Marsala, Mazara del Vallo, Castelvetrano (for the ruins of Selinunte), Sciacca, Agrigento and Segesta.

Getting in: By Plane

Trapani has a small airport (TPS), with internal flights to Rome, Milan and Pantelleria. Since September 2006, Ryanair is operating low-cost flights to Pisa, Milan and several other European cities.

Getting in: By Boat

Trapani is the port for frequent boats and hydrofoils to the Egadi Islands. Nightly boats (and hydrofoils in summer) also run to Pantelleria, with weekly (or so) ones to Tunis. See SIREMAR and Ustica Lines

Getting around

Trapani is small enough to walk around. Buses pass the ferry port and the adjacent bus station and railway station are on the edge of the city center.

Text based in part on work by Angelo Romano and Colin Jensen, Wikitravel user(s) Episteme and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel.

• Text content is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0.

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