# Festival del Gelato Madonita in Castellana Sicula > Festival del Gelato Madonita in Castellana Sicula: in late July seven ice-cream shops create flavours with Madonie produce, from manna to porcini mushrooms. - Page: https://www.lemadonie.it/en/events/festival-del-gelato-madonita/ - Updated: 2026-10-19 - Other languages: [Italiano](https://www.lemadonie.it/eventi/festival-del-gelato-madonita.md) · [Español](https://www.lemadonie.it/es/eventos/festival-del-gelato-madonita.md) · [Français](https://www.lemadonie.it/fr/evenements/festival-del-gelato-madonita.md) · [Deutsch](https://www.lemadonie.it/de/veranstaltungen/festival-del-gelato-madonita.md) ## At a glance | | | |---|---| | 2026 edition | 24 July 2026 | | Where | Ice-cream shops in Castellana Sicula and its hamlets, from Calcarelli to Piazza San Francesco di Paola, [Castellana Sicula](https://www.lemadonie.it/en/villages/castellana-sicula/) | | Category | Food festival | | Recurrence | Every year, late July, with the special flavours on sale for a limited time | | Source | https://madoniedintorni.com/2026/07/21/festival-del-gelato-madonita-a-castellana-sicula/ (checked on 2026-10-19) | ## Programme Opening on Friday 24 July at 18:00 with a route through the ice-cream shops starting from Calcarelli; flavours created for the occasion on sale for a limited time. The Festival del Gelato Madonita is the artisan ice-cream festival of [Castellana Sicula](https://www.lemadonie.it/en/villages/castellana-sicula/). In late July the village's ice-cream makers create new flavours with Madonie produce, from manna to porcini mushrooms, and sell them for a limited time; on the opening evening a procession with music and dancing goes round all the shops. In 2026 the festival started on Friday 24 July at 18:00 from Calcarelli, with seven flavours created for the occasion. Madoniedintorni describes it as an event that started years ago as a food fair and became a workshop for new flavours. In 2026 it was co-funded by the Sicilian Region's department of productive activities, under the "Sicilia che Piace 2026" call. ## The seven flavours of 2026 Each shop invented a flavour with a local product. This was the 2026 route, in order of stops: | Stop | Name of the ice cream | Ingredients | |---|---|---| | Pasticceria Di Gangi Maurizio Paolo | Cuore di Manna (ice-cream cake) | Pollina and Castelbuono manna, orange peel, pistachio | | Villetta Falcone, Mancuso Vincenzo | Sottobosco Madonita | Madonie porcini mushroom | | Bazaar Fast Food | Nocciolando | Polizzi Generosa hazelnuts and Sicilian nougat | | Bar Atmosfera | Anima di Carciofo | artichoke, extra virgin olive oil, mint and aged Madonie cow's cheese | | Pasticceria Artigianale Ferruzza | Nettare delle Madonie | honey from the Sicilian black bee of the Madonie | | Pasticceria Orlando & D'Alberti | Gelsi Secolari | Madonie black mulberries from centuries-old trees | | Bar Gelateria San Francesco | Vigna e Mandorla | Madonie Nero d'Avola, Madonie almonds, Modica chocolate | ## The opening evening On 24 July 2026 TV presenter Salvo La Rosa, with pastry chef Giuseppe Amato, Professor Francesca Cerami and the songs and dances of the Cordella folk group, visited the seven shops starting from Calcarelli. At each stop the makers and the new flavour were presented; mayor Francesco Calderaro gave each shop a certificate. Students from the catering school talked about Madonie specialities. In Piazza San Francesco di Paola there were a VR experience about the Madonie and live music by Floriana Muratore. The CAI of Polizzi Generosa showed a scale model of how granita and ice cream used to be made with ice and salt, a tradition linked to the Festa della Neve and the natural snowfield of the Fossa della Principessa. A company made live a Sicilian hazelnut ice cream with Madonie milk, toasted bread and wild fennel, offered as a tasting. ## Ice-cream festivals in Castellana Over the years Castellana Sicula has had more than one ice-cream festival. In 2023, on 14 and 15 October, the same shops took part in the seventh edition of "Cuor di Gelato", with a free tasting tour in seven stops, cooking shows and a nature walk. The 2026 Festival del Gelato Madonita brought back the tour format with one flavour per stop. ## Practical tips Castellana Sicula is about 96 km from Palermo (1 hour 20, on the A19) and about 68 km from Cefalù (1 hour), according to our calculation on OpenStreetMap without traffic. The shops are between the centre and the hamlets: for the full round a car is best, or you can follow the procession on the first evening. The sources do not mention dedicated parking. The special flavours stay on sale only for a limited time after the opening, so it is best to go in the first few days. To stay the night see [where to stay in Castellana Sicula](https://www.lemadonie.it/en/villages/castellana-sicula/where-to-stay/). If you like the theme, read the story of [Castelbuono manna](https://www.lemadonie.it/en/magazine/castelbuono-manna-ash-tree-crystal/), one of the 2026 ingredients. In August the village celebrates again with [Da Coffa a Visazza](https://www.lemadonie.it/en/events/da-coffa-a-visazza/); other food festivals are in the calendar of [food festivals in the Madonie](https://www.lemadonie.it/en/events/food-festivals/). ## Frequently asked questions ### When is the Festival del Gelato Madonita? In 2026 the festival started on Friday 24 July at 18:00 with a tour of the ice-cream shops from Calcarelli; from that day, and for a limited time, the seven flavours created for the occasion were on sale at the participating shops. There are no dates for 2027 yet. ### Which flavours can you taste? In 2026 there were seven flavours, one per shop: Pollina and Castelbuono manna with orange and pistachio, Madonie porcini mushroom, Polizzi Generosa hazelnuts and nougat, artichoke with olive oil and Madonie cheese, Sicilian black bee honey, black mulberries from centuries-old trees, Nero d'Avola with almonds and Modica chocolate. ### How does the ice-cream shop tour work? On the opening evening a procession with presenter Salvo La Rosa, pastry chef Giuseppe Amato, Professor Francesca Cerami and the Cordella folk group visits the seven participating shops, starting from Calcarelli. At each stop the makers and the flavour created for the festival are presented. ### What else is there besides ice cream? In 2026 Piazza San Francesco di Paola had a VR experience about the Madonie and live music; the CAI of Polizzi Generosa showed a scale model of the old method of making granita and ice cream with ice and salt, linked to the Fossa della Principessa snowfield, and a company made hazelnut ice cream live and offered tastings. ### How do you get to Castellana Sicula? From Palermo it is about 96 km (1 hour 20) on the A19, from Cefalù about 68 km (1 hour), according to our calculation on OpenStreetMap without traffic. The ice-cream shops are spread between the centre and the hamlets, such as Calcarelli: you do the tour by car or by following the procession. ## Sources - [Madoniedintorni, Festival del Gelato Madonita (21 luglio 2026)](https://madoniedintorni.com/2026/07/21/festival-del-gelato-madonita-a-castellana-sicula/) - [Balarm, Festival del Gelato Madonita 2026](https://www.balarm.it/eventi/gusti-speciali-spettacolo-e-tradizioni-il-festival-del-gelato-madonita-a-castellana-sicula-147716) - [Balarm, Cuor di Gelato 2023](https://www.balarm.it/eventi/cuor-di-gelato-a-castellana-sicula-tour-di-degustazione-in-7-tappe-cooking-show-e-musica-127908) --- Markdown version of the page https://www.lemadonie.it/en/events/festival-del-gelato-madonita/, from Le Madonie (lemadonie.it), an independent guide to the Madonie. Facts with source and date of check.