SICILY ON WEB

Dear traveller, if you think about an Easter tour to a beautiful island, I suggest that you visit Sicily. This island is very famous for the beaches, mountains, sea, hills, woods, rocky cliffs overhanging the sea, events and shows as I explained in my previous posts. With this post,  I want to offer you a fabulous itinerary for Easter in one of the most picturesque provinces of Sicily. This province is Enna. The chief town of the namesake district.  In my view, Enna is a silent and small province where people can really enjoy the charm and the spiritual meaning of Easter in Sicily. Through this itinerary, indeed, I’ll lead you to a lush countryside, Easter processions and the places where it has been kept the most important archaeological heritage of the world. Hence, listen to me carefully, fasten your seatbelt and stay ready to visit this beautiful itinerary for your Easter in Sicily.

Duration tour: 3 days

Starting from the Holy Friday up to the Easter Sunday

Easter in Enna

First day: Enna – Holy Friday
You must reach Enna from Catania airport. This town is an hour of walk from Catania. From here, you must take a bus, a taxi or a car to reach the town and a B & B called Domus Enna. I checked and this accommodation also hosts English and foreign tourists, especially from the United Kingdom and The United States, hence you can stay sure the owners speak English. In Enna, the prices for accommodations are very low, they go from 30 to 60 euros a night, they depend on the time you visit the city. From this location you can reach the nearby Cathedral ( see the first image), and go to Piazza Armerina, to visit the famous Villa Romana del Casale. In this accommodation you can also eat a gluten free breakfast. To taste delicious and typical Sicilian dishes, I suggest that you choose the restaurant called “Trattoria La Rustica”, where you can taste a fabulous cream of ricotta. In Enna, one the most evocative times is just the one of the Holy Week. Above all,  on the Holy Friday, you’ll attend a solemn procession of the Dead Christ accompanied by the local brotherhood composed by hooded and cloaked men ( see the image). This procession just starts from the Cathedral, near a B&B that you can book easily, namely Domus Enna.

The parade is opened by the Companions of the Passion in which the confreres carry the 25 symbols of the passion of Christ on some trays, among them, the cross, the bag, 30 coins, a lantern, the rooster, the nails, and the tools to scourging. The procession walks slowly along the streets up to arrive in the capuchin convent, near the cemetery, where every faithful is blessed with a cross containing an important reliquary: a thorn taken away from the real thorn crown of Christ.

Easter in Piazza Armerina

Second day: Piazza Armerina – Saturday

Piazza Armerina: to reach Piazza Armerina, where you’ll visit la Villa Romana del Casale, which is 30 kms from Enna, you must take a bus at the bus stop in Enna or use the car you rented. I suggest that you rent a car, because I didn’t find buses to take you to Piazza Armerina. The unique bus company which can help you reach Piazza Armerina from Enna is Sais Autolinee, but this company has information only in the Italian language. As soon as you have arrived in Piazza Armerina, you can admire another world heritage of Sicily, Villa Romana del Casale. That is an ancient edifice dating back to the late ancient age. In reality, what we know as a villa, is a noble palace in which the ruins lie about 4 kms from Piazza Armerina. The Villa Romana del Casale was declared world heritage by Unesco in 1997. The complex is just a noble Roman palace, in which stunning mosaics are depicted ( see the image). They describe the daily life of the noble ancient Romans, men and women, along with clear representations of their sexual customs and habits. The ticket to visit the Villa Romana del Casale has a cost of 10 euros, but for foreign visitors can be applied a discount of five euros. The ticket is free on the first Sunday of the month. The Villa is open every day, including holidays. At the weekend the Villa is open from 9.00 a.m. To the 23.00 p.m.

Easter in Regalbuto

Third day: Regalbuto – Easter Sunday
For the third day of your Easter tour in Sicily in the district of Enna, I chose the little town of Regalbuto. Here, you can visit and admire an unknown, but, likewise, beautiful lake: the lake of Pozzillo (see the image). The town of Regalbuto is on a silent hill, about 525 meters above the sea level. It is in the heart of the East of Sicily and the lake is one among the most relaxing tourist attractions. It is at a distance of 57 kms from Enna. Unfortunately, the bus from Enna to Regalbuto is not available and hence you must use the car you rented or use a taxi service. For this service, please send me a message, I’ll help you reach Regalbuto. Remember to tell the driver to take you to the lake of Pozzillo. In reality, the lake is an artificial basin nestled in the Erean Mountains. Here, you can practice fishing or spinning. That is a very quiet and relaxing place where you can enjoy the true scent of the Sicilian countryside amid woods and evocative mountains. Over the years, some facilities are arisen around the lake. The most interesting is the Pozzillo Park, where you can do sport, such as climbing on a grid bridge, go up a vertical wall, a staircase, and much more. The Park will be opened just on the day of Easter. The Park is located in a plane called Timpone, in the town of Regalbuto. If you don’t want to leave the lake, you must carry food and drinks with you.

I hope you enjoyed this Sicilian tour for Easter time. However, you can reach these places in other seasons, also.

Photocredit Pozzillo Lake: Simone Di Dio

Rosalba Mancuso

Rosalba Mancuso is a freelance journalist born in Sicily. Passionate about her loved island and with extensive writing experience, Rosalba worked as a contributor to the main Sicily’s newspapers and as a bilingual Italian – English writer. Thanks to her skills, she also founded four websites in English. On Sicilyonweb, Rosalba tells every corner of her beloved Sicily. Furthermore, she writes this blog thanks to your help. Rosalba, in fact, earns a small commission, with no cost for you, when you book your travel or buy products through the affiliate widgets or links you find in her posts.