The ultimate city guide to Mazara del Vallo, Italy
“It gathers in itself how many beauties it cannot give to another city,” wrote the Arab geographer Erisi in 1154 about Mazara del Vallo. This wonderful city is located on the Sicilian Sea at the mouth of the Mazaro River between Capo San Marco and Capo Boeo. This land enjoys an excellent position and a unique panoramic quality in Sicily.
The layout of the city, which is full of history and landmarks that have made it successful over time, still gives tourists a lot to look at today.
History
In the past, a Phoenician port, fortress, and market in nearby Selinunte brought goods to Mazara del Vallo. Despite being conquered by the Carthaginians and Romans, it enjoys a period of great prosperity under the control of the Saracens. It is the site of Sicily’s first parliament of these warriors, which was later ruled by the Normans.
Only briefly was it a state-owned city and fief under the counts of Modica, the dukes of Calabria, and the counts of Cardona.
The city has made its rulers into its splendor: the different cultures that have conquered it over time have given it lush gardens, magnificent buildings and remarkable commercial prosperity.
What to see in Mazara del Vallo
These possibilities have been brought to light and have become the theme of important places to visit, like the Casbah, a historical center set up like an Islamic city.
The Kasbah (Casbah) represents the heart of Mazara del Vallo, and it is from this historic center that the heart of tourism comes to life. The allusion to the Islamic medinas that wind through the typical streets, creating a pleasant maze, makes it significant and the main attraction pole. This starting point makes the territory diverse and, above all, extremely recognizable.
Another place to see in Mazara del Vallo is certainly the Piazza della Repubblica. large, rectangular, and a city landmark: from here, one can see the Seminary of the Clerics (built with arcades and an eighteenth-century loggia), the Town Hall buildings, the Basilica, which evokes the typical Baroque style despite being built in the Norman period, and the Cathedral, whose interior contains several Roman sarcophagi.
Among the numerous deserving locations, Piazza Mokarta is significant from a cultural and historical standpoint. It keeps an arch that is all that is left of the castle that Count Ruggero Normanno built in 1072.
Then there is the Jesuit College on the same strand of building/testimony of an era. It is currently a school building built in the 17th century. It has a rich Baroque portal and an elegant courtyard with portico and loggia.
The port-channel is typical of the maritime area; it is the closest of Pantelleria’s islands. It hosts the largest Italian fishing fleet, even if only two percent of the catch is contracted here due to the small fish market. This richness recalls a huge space, and it is also a particularly multi-ethnic place, so much so that the popular saying was born from this vision: “Mazara is Arab again after a thousand years.”
Among the ecclesiastical buildings of considerable interest is the cathedral. Dedicated to San Salvatore, it was built in 1073 but completely rebuilt at the end of the seventeenth century. Inside, in the Sala del Tesoro, you can admire the cross vault, which is what remains of the ancient building with a fresco depicting the Pantocrator.
The Civic Museum and the Dancing Satyr have worthy art. Among the numerous archaeological finds that it contains concerning the Roman civilization of Mazara, including coins, weapons, amphorae, and Greek and Latin inscriptions, in this pole there is also the famous bronze of the “Dancing Satyr,” which precisely gives its name to museum reality. It is a bronze found in the waters of Mazara del Vallo in 1997 and symbolizes the typical Hellenic bronze statuary.
Sea and beach
There is no shortage of beautiful sandy beaches in Mazara del Vallo. In addition to the city beaches that develop approximately from the Kasbah to the Church of San Vito a Mare, there are also wilder beaches, such as in the area of Punta Granitola (10 km to the south-east) or to the west with the beautiful beach della Tonnarella or Capo Feto, also known as one of the wildest beaches in Sicily.
Traditions and events
Mazara del Vallo is not lacking in traditions and folklore. Among the most famous events is the Sagra di San Vito, so named for the city’s patron saint. It usually takes place on the last Sunday of August. A historical procession with costumed characters is the highlight of the celebrations. A very large number of locals and a lot of tourists take part in it.
In local gastronomy, fish, of course, is prevalent, but so is wine (Marsala) and desserts. Mazara was after all a capital of Arab domination, which, in addition to having transformed Sicily into the land of oranges and lemons, introduced the eggplant, one of the queens of island cuisine, and above all, invented the most characteristic desserts such as cassata, cannoli and the famous marzipan fruits.
A curious phenomenon is the so-called “marrobbio.” It is when the sea level goes up and down because the pressure in the air keeps changing. The phenomenon, which reaches up to one meter in height, can be seen from the port. The layers of different and unstable densities in the atmosphere cause a decidedly unprecedented natural spectacle.
Mazara del Vallo in 2010 obtained the designation of “municipality with a predominantly tourist economy and city of art” from the Regional Council. The numbers confirm that every year it welcomes many tourists from all over the world. After all, given its multi-ethnic beauty so different and at the same time identifying, it couldn’t be different.
How to get to Mazara del Vallo
The nearest airport is Trapani Birgi, which is about 40 km away. Alternatively, the Punta Raisi airport in Palermo is about 130 km away, considering a travel time of about half an hour from Trapani and about an hour from Palermo airport. Mazara del Vallo has a railway station on the Alcamo Diramazione–Trapani line (via Castelvetrano).