North Loop Historic Center of Palermo - UNESCO Heritage (City Guide)

With Palermo Cathedral , the Cappella Palatina , the Royal Palace , the Chiesa di S. Giovanni degli Eremiti , the Chiesa Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio (Martorana) and the adjacent Chiesa di San Cataldo , the Palazzo della Zisa and the Ponte dell' Ammiraglio is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site in Palermo, next to the Cathedral of Monreale and the Cathedral of Cefalù , just outside Palermo in Sicily.

The intention is to visit the historic center including the buildings that belong to the UNESCO World Heritage in 2 days . This is the first part describing the northern loop. The second part with the southern loop can be found here.

The two loops , which you can see as a figure 8, meet in the beautiful Piazza Pretoria with its impressive fountain.

Parking is available in the Orlando Parking Lot , a spacious, centrally located underground parking garage. You can also start from the station and walk from there to Piazza Pretoria , about a kilometer mainly along Via Maqueda, to join the loop from there.

The first building to be declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site , it is located just outside the historic center of Palermo. It is a short walk from the Palazzo della Zisa, a fine example of Arab-Norman art. A little further on we see some modern buildings, of which Villino Florio is the most important because it is considered at European level one of the masterpieces of the Art Nouveau style .

A little further on we come to the 16th century neoclassical villa "Giuseppe Whitaker" with its rare Venetian mirror from the 17th and 18th centuries , and located in a gigantic garden.

After the church of San Francesco di Paola we arrive at the impressive Piazza Politeama the powerful Florio family had the Palchetto della musica built because there were no houses, making it a beautiful square . The Teatro Politeama is impressive with the Quadriga (Roman chariot) on the roof.

We now arrive at the sea with the marina and the archaeological park of Castellammare where the remains of Castello a Mare are the last witnesses of a once prestigious defensive structure. We pass numerous churches and monasteries, including the Oratorio del SS. Rosario to San Domenico  considered one of the richest and most elegant oratorios in the city.

In the Garibaldi city park with its many exotic plants, the ficus Magnoloides is certainly the main attraction, one of the oldest and largest in Italy, with a height of 30 meters and a trunk circumference of over 21 meters.

We are now in La Cala , the original gateway to Palermo by sea. From Porta Felice begins the Mura delle Cattive, a promenade with sea views, located on the city walls. The promenade overlooks the private terraces of the Benso Palace and those of the Butera, Piraino and Lampedusa palaces and the old Trinacria hotel.

We pass – how could it be otherwise – countless churches, monasteries and municipal palaces. The Oratory of San Lorenzo is worth seeing with its stucco work by Giacomo Serpotta of considerable value . We arrive at Palazzo Valguarnera, a mecca of Italian rococo.

We continue walking to what might be the highlight of the day: Piazza Bellini and Piazza Pretoria . We first visit the Chiesa Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio (Martorana), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the adjacent Chiesa di San Cataldo. With the Fontana Pretoria, the Quattro Canti and the Chiesa di San Giuseppe dei Padri Teatini with its impressive interior, there are many impressive buildings close together.

We go to the next interesting square: Piazza San Domenico with the beautiful church of the same name and the column from which the Virgin looks into the church. A little further away is the Regional Archaeological Museum "A. Salinas" , which has one of the richest archaeological collections in Italy.

Located on Piazza Giuseppe Verdi the Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele, one of the largest in Europe and an architectural complex of grandiose proportions, dominated by an immense semicircular dome.

A little further on is a little-known building with its own history: Tempio Munito Fortezza Mistica - Casa del Mutilato. We return to the starting point through one of Palermo's oldest gates, Porta Carini .

This city walk is part of a series of city walks and tours that depart from Balestrate and Sambucco di Sicilia and are described in “Discover all the tourist attractions of Western Sicily through day trips”

Be sure to consult the information about the sights once you are there . They explain what you will see!

06/2023