Dolcemente Castelbuono, the Christmas sweets village

Dolcemente Castelbuono is the Christmas sweets village of Castelbuono. It takes place in December, starting from the Immaculate Conception long weekend: in the huts and stalls of the centre the village’s pastry makers offer free tastings, there is a giant buccellato and, for children, Father Christmas’s house. In 2025 it ran from 6 to 8 December, with free entry.

It is organised by the Baz’Art Sicilia association with the town council. The 2026 dates have not been released yet; in recent editions the announcement came between late November and early December.

What you can taste

The stars are the sweets of Castelbuono and the Madonie. In 2025, according to Madonie Press, the huts hosted the village’s historic pastry shops, including Fiasconaro, Bergi and the Antica Pasticceria del Corso, with free tastings.

Two sweets are never missing:

• the giant buccellato, present at every edition;
• the testa di turco, Castelbuono’s spoon dessert: fried pastry sheets alternating with lemon milk custard, with cinnamon on top. Tradition says it was first made to celebrate the Normans’ victory over the Arabs.

Alongside these you find cannoli, biscuits, panettoni, Modica chocolate, plus street food, Madonie cured meats and cheeses, craft beers and mulled wine. In 2025 Associbo offered a full menu with Madonie black pork ragù, a glass of wine from the Abbazia Santa Anastasia and a handmade biscuit. If you want to take something from Castelbuono home, read our story on Castelbuono manna too.

For children and for gift hunters

The children’s trail changes every year, but it is always there. In 2025 there were Father Christmas’s house, the play area in Piazza Castello and circus and street shows. In 2024 there were also face painting, creative workshops, the Grinch and Father Christmas’s post office, from which to send letters.

In 2024 Via Sant’Anna hosted the Christmas market, with crafts, Madonie truffles, spreads, aromatic plants and herbal teas. In the church of the Santissimo Crocifisso the confectioners talked about their work and received awards for their products.

Editions of recent years

The dates vary: sometimes a single long weekend, sometimes two weekends.

Year	Dates	Notes
2025	6-8 December	tastings from the historic pastry shops, giant buccellato, free entry
2024	6-8 and 14-15 December, plus 31 December	New Year’s Eve in Piazza Castello from 21:00 with a concert
2023	weekends from 8 to 17 December	with the council and Baz’Art Sicilia
2022	8-11 December	fourth edition, with some dates of the Festival Jazz Winter

The idea came from the council’s tourism councillor Dario Guarcello. In 2022 Balarm presented it as the fourth edition, with a sweets trail along the street leading to the castle and visits to the Abbazia Santa Anastasia winery.

Getting there and where to stay

Castelbuono is about 23 km from Cefalù (25 minutes) and about 90 km from Palermo (1 hour 20), according to our calculation on OpenStreetMap without traffic. Before you set off, check the Castelbuono weather and the guide to driving in the Madonie. The sources do not mention dedicated parking.

To stay the night there is the list of where to stay in Castelbuono. Other Christmas markets, nativity scenes and holiday concerts are on the Christmas in the Madonie page and among the markets in the Madonie.