Palermo by bike: the historic center full of UNESCO world heritage (city guide)

Together with Palermo Cathedral , la Cappella Palatina , the Palazzo Reale , la 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 Cathedral of Cefalù which are located just outside Palermo in Sicily.

The city walk with a visit to the historic center including the buildings that belong to the UNESCO World Heritage Site is spread over 2 days and describes 180 sights of interest.

The aim of this cycle tour is to visit only the most important sights , via a cycle loop that takes into account the accessibility and direction of travel for cyclists ( Palermo has many one-way streets ). At certain points it is necessary to dismount from the bicycle in areas that are only accessible to pedestrians or to cross a road to a nearby path.

 

Start at the station. Bicycle rental is possible in the nearby area.

We drive past the Porta di Vicari, one of the oldest gates in Palermo and on to the Torre di San Nicolò di Bari. This is one of the highest in the city and can be climbed. Continuing past the beautiful Chiesa di San Francesco Saverio we come to the Chiesa di San Giovanni degli Eremiti and the adjacent Convento Benedettino , both of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites .

We continue past the Parco d'Orleans, an interesting ornithological park and the Piazza Independenza with its obelisk. We now drive around the Palazzo Reale o dei Normanni (Royal Palace) within which lies the Cappella Palatina , both UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

We cycle through the Porta Nuova, one of the most representative examples of triumphal architecture and around the city park of Villa Bonanno. It contains a monumental group of sculptures : the Marble Theater.

We arrive at the Cathedral Square (pedestrian zone) with the Statua di Santa Rosalia and a view of the facades of the Archbishop's Palace and the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary. We walk around the cathedral and from the Piazza Sette Angeli see the apse facade of the enormous presbytery, a beautiful example of lava inlay decoration.

It takes a bit of a detour to get to the Palazzo della Zisa via the regular road , a UNESCO world heritage site and a beautiful example of Arab-Norman art. We drive in a wide arc around the City Palace and 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.

We respect the one-way traffic and eventually arrive at the impressive Piazza Politeama where the powerful Florio family had the Palchetto della musica built because no other houses would be built, 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 the Oratorio del SS. Rosario in San Domenico,  considered one of the richest and most elegant oratorios in the city.

A little further away is 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. Along Via Roma and Via Bari we arrive at Via Maqueda, a pedestrian zone.

We continue to the next highlight: with the Quattro Canti, the Chiesa di San Giuseppe dei Padri Teatini with its impressive interior and the Fontana Pretoria , there are many impressive buildings close together on the Piazza Pretoria . Continue to Piazza Bellini where the Chiesa Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio (Martorana), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the adjacent Chiesa di San Cataldo are located.

We drive further to the Garibaldi city park with its many exotic plants, of which the ficus Magnoloides is certainly the main attraction. It is 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.

The 14th century Porta dei Greci was one of the entrances to the city center. We arrive at Villa Giulia with its beautiful garden which was the first public garden in Italy , and houses one of the eight fountains of genius of the city. Next to it is the botanical garden , of exceptional importance at European level.

We take a detour to the last structure on the UNESCO World Heritage list: the Admiral's Bridge or Ponte dell'Ammiraglio , the first masonry bridge to be built in all of Europe .

From here it goes back to the nearby station.

 

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 sights 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