La Via dei Presepi in Cefalù

La Via dei Presepi is Cefalù’s Christmas trail: nativity scenes and exhibitions set up in churches, courtyards, museums and shop windows of the old town, to visit on foot from 8 December to 6 January. It’s promoted by the Diocese of Cefalù and the Pro Loco, and the heart of the trail is the Diocesan Nativity Exhibition in the church of the SS. Trinità, in the San Domenico complex. The latest edition, 2025-2026, was opened by Bishop Giuseppe Marciante.

When to visit

From the Immaculate Conception to Epiphany. The opening is on the evening of 8 December, and the trail stays open until 6 January. The dates of the 2026-2027 edition haven’t come out yet: in 2025 the programme was published by Balarm and by the town council in the Magico Natale calendar.

The stops on the trail

In the 2025-2026 edition these were the stops (Balarm):

Stop	Where	Hours 2025-2026
Diocesan Nativity Exhibition	Church of the SS. Trinità, San Domenico complex, via Costa 63	Every day 4:30-7:30 pm
“In principio era creta”, the nativity in the ceramics of Santo Stefano di Camastra	Osterio Magno, via Amendola 9	From 9 December, every day 3:30-6:30 pm (closed on the 25th)
Nativity exhibition “Ci è stato dato un figlio”	Ottagono di Santa Caterina, corso Ruggero 137/A	Every day 10 am-1 pm and 5-8 pm
“Il Presepe della Speranza”	Cathedral steps	Always open
Nativity scene in the Cathedral	Piazza Duomo	8 am-12:45 pm and 3:30-6 pm
Nativity scenes at the Museo Mandralisca and the Porta Pescara	Via Mandralisca 13 and via Vittorio Emanuele 105	Always open

The trail also took in the Bishop’s Palace, the Town Hall, the Badiola, the Collegio di Maria, the church and cloister of San Pasquale, the church of the Annunziata and the parishes of Sant’Agata, Spirito Santo, San Francesco and SS. Salvatore, each with its own hours. On top of these come the “Presepi in vetrina” in the old town’s shops and the work of the pupils of the Istituto Comprensivo Nicola Botta.

The 2025-2026 calendar

Date	Time	What
Monday 8 December	7:30 pm	Blessing of the nativity scene on the Cathedral steps and walk among the window nativities
Monday 8 December	8 pm	Opening of the exhibition “In principio era creta” at the Osterio Magno
Monday 8 December	8:30 pm	Opening of the Via dei Presepi and the Diocesan Exhibition at San Domenico
Tuesday 23 December	7 pm	Noa in concert for peace, Cathedral
Wednesday 24 December	after the Vigil	“Ninnaredda” on the Cathedral steps
Sunday 28 December	6 pm	Mass closing the Jubilee Year in the Cathedral
Tuesday 6 January	6 pm	Pontifical Mass, blessing of children and arrival of the Three Kings

Practical tips

• When to go. The Diocesan Exhibition opens in the afternoon, from 4:30 pm, and many other stops have afternoon hours: that’s the best time for the full round.
• Getting there. From Palermo it’s about 72 km and just over an hour by car, on the A19 and the A20; by train there’s the station on the Palermo-Messina line. The old town is a limited traffic zone: leave the car outside (all on the Cefalù page and in getting to the Madonie by car).
• Sleeping and eating. See where to stay in Cefalù and where to eat in Cefalù.
• Weather. You walk outdoors between stops, and some nativity scenes are in the street: check the Cefalù weather.

Past editions

For editions before 2025 we haven’t found verifiable programmes. The full 2025-2026 programme is the one above.

On the same days Cefalù has the whole Magico Natale a Cefalù calendar, with concerts and events in town. For living nativity scenes in the Madonie see the Presepe vivente di Gangi and the other events in the Madonie religious festivals.