Catania Travel Guide

Catania is a city full of life, with the beautiful sandy beach of the Plaja on the water's edge and a view of Mount Etna volcano in the background. Catania is a city characterised by palazzi built from lava stone and traces of baroque architecture. By day as by night, the city enjoys a youthful and vibrant atmosphere, with regular music and theatre performances offset by varied restaurants and pubs.

10 Things to See and Do
Piazza Duomo
La pescheria, the fish market
Via Etnea, one of Catania's main streets
Catania's Greek amphitheatre
Museum of Vincenzo Bellini
Museum of Giovanni Verga
Ursino Castle
Bellini Opera Theatre
The baroque churches of Via dei Crociferi
The Church of Colleggiata

Events in Catania
February
The Festival of Saint Agatha takes place from the 3rd to the 5th of February and is the third biggest event of its kind in the world for the number of participants.
It begins with fireworks and a parade of the city's public figures aboard an open-air float, but it's Patron Saint Agatha who awakens the true festival spirit.
Saint Agatha's bust is taken from the church and carried in procession aboard a baroque carriage throughout the city streets. The carriage is preceded by 12 traditional baroque candles borne by Agatha's devotees and the festival ends only when Saint Agatha is returned to her resting place in Catania's main cathedral.

Local Food and Drink
Pasta alla norma
Catania's typical dish is the pasta alla norma, or Norma pasta, the name inspired by Catania's opera composer, Vincenzo Bellini, who wrote a famous work called Norma. This tasty dish is pure Sicilian home-cooking, using the typical short pasta of the area, with eggplants, a base of tomato sauce, salted ricotta and basil. Today, the same condiments are also used for local pizzas as well as Sicily's famous arancini.
Catania's lemon soda
A typical and refreshing drink of the city, found in characteristic roadside kiosks, is Catania's lemon soda - a simple combination of lemon juice, salt and soda water, ideal for hot summer days.

Spotlight onThe elephant liotru of Catania
The link between Catania and her beloved liotru elephant stems from deep historical roots. Legend goes that during the Arab conquest of Sicily, an elephant chased away wild beasts that terrorised Catania's inhabitants. In fact, it seems the original Arabic name for Catania meant precisely city of the elephant and ever since the 1700s, the lava stone elephant fountain in the middle of Piazza Duomo has been the unquestioned symbol of Catania city.

How to get there
Catania is Sicily's second largest city and is accessible by plane, ship or train.
By Plane: The airport of Catania-Fontanarossa is 10 minutes from the city centre.
By Car: Take the A1 Freeway from Rome, from Salerno and Messina the A18, from Palermo the A19.
By Boat: Ships depart regularly from Naples port to Catania.
Other: Catania has three railway stations, Catania Centrale, Catania Acquicella, Catania Bicocca and the Ferrovia Circumetnea which circles Mount Etna.