Cefalù: Your Perfect Sicilian Getaway – From Ancient Ruins to Sun-Kissed Beaches
Cefalù is the seat of the bishop in the province of Palermo. It is a beautiful old town on the northern coast of Sicily, at the base of a big rock, and is known for its cathedral.
In addition to being known as a great place to fish, it is also a well-known place to spend a holiday by the sea in Sicily. The site is easy to find because of the rock in the shape of a head that stands out against the blue-green sea.
History
It was built in the 5th century BC on a site that had been inhabited since prehistoric times. Signs of this can be seen in the caves on the eastern side of what the Greeks called the Kefaloidon cliff.
Even though the remains of its megalithic walls tell us about its history, there are no clear signs of its urban life. In 1064, the Normans took it from the Arabs. They destroyed the eastern part and rebuilt the whole thing.
Cefalù will become a symbol of the return of Christianity to the western part of the island and, more than anything else, of the power and determination of the Normans.
The design of the city center was finished between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. In the 19th century, when feudalism came to an end, Cefalù and all of southern Italy went through a very bad economic time.
The result for the city is that families in decline leave the buildings they live in or pay for. Over time, it has gotten better, and now the way it looks shows how successful it is.
Its huge size and pyramid-shaped towers, which you can see from every angle of the city even before you enter it, are like magnets that draw your attention and interest right away. Ruggero’s plan was for everything to revolve around the great building of the Cathedral. In fact, every tourist who wants to learn about Cefalù has to start their journey at this complex.
The Cefalù Cathedral
The Cathedral: According to a legend, Roger II asked for the basilica to be built as a thank-you for the help he got when he landed in Cefalù to escape a storm.
Work on the basilica began in 1131.
The building is “out of scale” with the rest of the city. It has a provincial tone instead of an imperial one, which suggests that this was the first step in building a new city with the same dignity as Palermo or Messina.
It looks both interesting and scary because of the two towers.
The optical illusion makes them look like they come together at the top, which takes away from the main facade’s squared and compact shape.
When you look at the outside, you can see the battlements, whose age is uncertain, and the side apses, which have decorative motifs with intertwined arches.
The central apse, on the other hand, has Gothic pilasters with flat arches.
Vincenzo Consolo said that the inside “glows of old Byzantine gold.” In fact, the brilliant mosaics make me think of the light of a Sicilian sun.
These are people who represent God and have features that are uniquely Sicilian. They have blonde hair like the Normans but a thick, black beard and eyebrows like the Arabs and a straight, thin nose like the Greeks.
These have been around since the 12th century and haven’t been changed in all that time. The Piazza del Duomo is dominated by the cathedral, which ends at the first mountain spurs.
Cefalù Attractions
The main street of the city winds from Piazza del Duomo to Corso Ruggero.
This divides the center of Cefalù into two parts: a lower, more regular area and a higher, steeper area with narrow alleys that lean against the cliff.
Here, the original architecture is mixed with newer parts, which makes it hard to read from the street.
But it’s interesting to note that all balcony corbels, whether they’re on a building from the Middle Ages or from the present day, are made of iron or cast iron.
Bastione di Marchifava, which is on Via Carlo Ortolano di Bordonaro and is a statue of a nobleman from Cefalù from the 1600s, is also close to the heart of Piazza del Duomo. Along the coast, the road is lined with low-rise buildings and has a beautiful view.
From the pier of the small port, you can see the unique seafront of the walled city, with the fishermen’s houses and the pointed arches that protect the boats.
From Piazza Garibaldi, a small road leads up to La Rocca, the town’s most prominent rock formation. On this buttress, there are the remains of old fortifications and a temple to the goddess Diana.
The temple is a huge megalithic polygonal building from the time of the ancient Greeks. Even though this climb is hard, especially in August, you have to do it.
Cefalù looks like a relief that was carved out of the rock using a tunnel. The red roofs and yellow stones of the cathedral, along with the intense blue of the sea of rocks, make for striking contrasts. On the edge of the cliff, you can still see the ruins of the fortification, which was probably built during the Byzantine era.
Art historians who really care about art will love the Mandralisca Museum, which has a lot of interesting pieces, including “Portrait of an Unknown” by Antonio Messina.
This pole is now a public place, but it was started because Enrico Piraino, baron of Mandralisca, loved art and science. He grew up in Cefalù in the years before the unification of Italy.
Mandralisca was a man with many interests. For his own intellectual pleasure, he collected old marbles, coins, and paintings, as well as shells, which were the main focus of his studies, or malacology. Also interesting is the famous crater with the tuna seller and the coin, which was made in Greece.
The Osterio Magno, where Ruggero lived, is another place to see. All that’s left of it now is a tower with a trifora and two mullioned windows. The famous washhouse is another important Arab building that has been left behind.
In the area around Cefalù, the Sanctuary of Gibilmanna, which dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries and is set in a beautiful spot on the wooded slopes of Pizzo S. Angelelo, is one of the most popular day trips. Pilgrims come from all over Sicily to visit this place of worship.
Lastly, there is evidence from archaeology that these places were inhabited in the Bronze Age. This is because the sites were in a good place for defense.
At the moment, Cefalù is just a place for tourists. It has clear water, a coast with fine sand and steep cliffs, and the nearby Madonie Mountains, which offer a place to cool off from the summer heat while taking in beautiful views.
Cefalù’s beaches
Even though this area doesn’t have any of the most beautiful beaches in Sicily, the coves and beaches here are still very interesting.
The main beach is called Lido di Cefalù. It is a long city beach that is mostly west of the seaside village. There are lidos with facilities as well as long stretches of free beach.
In Mazzaforno and Capo Playa, which are further west, there are some interesting coves. From there, the long Salinelle beach starts and goes all the way to the shores of the Termini Imerese area.
To the east of Cefalù is the beach of Sant’Ambrogio, which is perfect for people who like to relax.
Getting to Cefalù
Cefalù is on the north coast of Sicily, close to Palermo and about 180 km from Catania. It takes about 2 hours to get there from Catania. The airport closest to Cefalù is in Palermo Punta Raisi, which is about 98 km away.