Region

Sicily

A continent in miniature: Greek temples, Norman cathedrals, an active volcano.

Best time: April to June, September to October
Fly into: Palermo (PMO) or Catania (CTA)

The region

A Crossroads of Civilisations

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean and the most layered: Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Norman, Spanish, Bourbon. Each civilisation left an architectural and culinary signature. The result is an island unlike any other in Italy, where a Doric temple and an Arab-Norman cathedral can stand on the same square.

Our estates span the island's three coasts and Mount Etna's volcanic slopes: feudal palaces, baroque masserie and contemporary villas carved into lava terraces. The cuisine is intensely seasonal, the wines (Etna Rosso, Nero d'Avola) increasingly counted amongst Europe's finest.

Places worth knowing

Taormina
A clifftop town with a Greek theatre and unbroken views to a smoking Mount Etna.
Noto
Sicily's late-baroque capital, a UNESCO ensemble of golden-stone palazzi.
Mount Etna
The most active volcano in Europe, with its vineyards, lava caves and forested slopes.

The houses