Nature
Abies nebrodensis, the Sicilian fir: where to see it
Abies nebrodensis: about 30 adult trees in the wild, all near Polizzi Generosa. What it looks like, why it may vanish, how it is protected, where to see it.
Petralia Sottana · 1,039 m a.s.l.
Things to do in Petralia Sottana
In Petralia Sottana the town and the mountains are close together. In the centre, walk along Corso Paolo Agliata, go into the mother church overlooking the valley, the Badia for the Gagini marble altarpiece and the Museo Civico Antonio Collisani, where rocks and fossils tell how the Madonie were formed.
Then go up: 24 minutes on the SP54 bring you to Piano Battaglia, a hamlet of the municipality, with trails to Pizzo Carbonara in summer and snow in winter. Petralia Soprana is 3 km away. Below you will find the guides, trails and experiences linked to the town.
For Petralia Sottana we have 32 guides, 10 trails and 3 itineraries.
What to see in town
- Corso Paolo Agliata
- Chiesa Madre di Maria Santissima Assunta and its treasury
- Chiesa della Santissima Trinità (Badia) with the Giandomenico Gagini altarpiece
- Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi
- Chiesa di Santa Maria alla Fontana
- Museo Civico Antonio Collisani (geology and archaeology)
- Casa du Currivu, the one-metre-wide house
- Santuario della Madonna dell'Alto on Monte Alto
Guides
Things to do
Caving in the Madonie: deep caves, Park rules and safety
Caving in the Madonie: the Abisso del Vento in Isnello and the Abisso del Gatto in Cefalù, the Park rules, CAI courses and who to call in an emergency.
Culture
Churches of the Madonie: Cefalù Cathedral and the Gagini
Churches to see in the Madonie: Cefalù's Norman cathedral, mother churches with Gagini marbles, the Last Judgement of Gangi, the Polizzi triptych, Gibilmanna.
Things to do
Climbing in the Madonie: Passo Scuro and other crags
Climbing in the Madonie: the Passo Scuro crag at Castelbuono, the CAI routes at Petralia Sottana, Collesano and Caltavuturo, courses, rules and safety.
Info
Getting around the Madonie: distances, roads and buses
Getting around the Madonie: driving distances and times between the 16 towns, the roads to know, the buses from Cefalù and how to manage without a car.
Nature
Gole di Tiberio, caves and waterfalls of the Madonie
Gole di Tiberio, Grotta Grattara, Abisso del Vento, Abisso del Gatto and Scopalacqua falls: where they are, how to visit and what is banned in the Madonie.
Things to do
Hiking in the Madonie: areas, seasons, CAI grades and guides
Hiking in the Madonie Park: where to walk, the right season, the CAI difficulty scale, the Sentiero Italia, hiking guides, the CAI and the Park rules.
Culture
History of the Madonie: from prehistoric caves to today
The history of the Madonie: prehistoric caves, Greeks and Romans, Arabs, Normans, the Ventimiglia county, the early modern age, the Park and depopulation.
Info
How to get to the Madonie: plane, train, bus and car
How to reach the Madonie from Palermo, Catania and the airports: trains to Cefalù, buses to Castelbuono and Gangi, motorways, with checked timetables.
Nature
Madonie beech woods: ancient trees and autumn colours
Madonie woods: beech forests up to 1,900 m, holm oaks, cork oaks, giant hollies and trees 800 years old. Where they are, how to tell them apart and when to go.
Culture
Madonie crafts: ceramics, basketry, embroidery and stone
Madonie crafts: the majolica of Collesano, baskets woven from cane and dwarf palm, the embroidery of Isnello, puppets, the stone of Petralia and salt sculpture.
Culture
Madonie festivals and traditions: calendar and rituals
Madonie traditions month by month: Holy Week, the Miracula of Gangi, Sant'Anna, the Ballo della Cordella, the Giostra dei Ventimiglia and nativity scenes.
Nature
Madonie flora: endemic plants, orchids and when they flower
Madonie flora: about 1,500 species and 170 endemics, over half of Sicily's plants. Endemic plants, orchids, peonies, where to see them and when they flower.
Food
Madonie food festival calendar, season by season
Madonie food festival (sagre) calendar by season: usual periods, villages and what you eat, from Scillato oranges to Polizzi hazelnuts and mushrooms.
Food
Madonie mushrooms and truffles: seasons, rules and dishes
Mushrooms in the Madonie: when to find them, the rare basilisk mushroom, Park and Region rules on permits and limits, truffles and where to eat them in autumn.
Info
Madonie Park rules: zones, bans and what you can do
The rules of the Madonie Park: zones A, B, C and D, official bans, camping, fires, mushrooms, dogs, drones and cars, with sources from the Ente Parco.
Nature
Madonie Park: towns, protection zones, rules and what to see
Madonie Park (Parco delle Madonie): 39,679 hectares and 15 towns between Cefalù and the Petralias, founded in 1989. Zones, rules, sights and how to get there.
Nature
Madonie peaks: heights and summits over 1,800 metres
The peaks of the Madonie: Pizzo Carbonara 1,979 m, Pizzo Antenna Grande, Monte San Salvatore, Quacella and Mufara. Table of heights, trails and practical tips.
Nature
Madonie plateaus: Piano Battaglia, Piano Zucchi and more
The plateaus of the Madonie: Piano Battaglia at 1,572 m, Piano Zucchi, Piano Sempria, Piano Cervi, Piano Pomo and Piano Catarineci. Heights, access, what to do.
Nature
Madonie UNESCO Global Geopark: geosites, fossils and trails
Madonie UNESCO Global Geopark: a geopark since 2001, UNESCO since 2015, 70 geosites and 220 million years of history. What to see, geological trails, museums.
Nature
Madonie viewpoints: views of Etna and the Aeolian Islands
The best viewpoints in the Madonie: Pizzo Carbonara, Madonna dell'Alto, Monte San Salvatore, Pollina and the SP54 lookouts. Where to see Etna and the Aeolians.
Nature
Madonie wildlife: golden eagles, vultures and fallow deer
Madonie wildlife: golden eagles, griffon vultures back after 70 years, Egyptian vultures, fallow deer, porcupines and the Parnassius apollo siciliae butterfly.
Info
Maps, GPX tracks and apps for the Madonie
Finding your way in the Madonie: CAI waymarks, the Ente Parco trail map, OpenStreetMap, offline apps, GPX tracks and what to do when there is no signal.
Things to do
Mountain biking in the Madonie: forest roads and touring
MTB and e-bikes in the Madonie: where to ride around Piano Battaglia and Piano Zucchi, the CAI scale, the Ciclovia dei Parchi, bike hire and Park rules.
Culture
Museums of the Madonie: what to see town by town
Museums of the Madonie: the Mandralisca in Cefalù, the Museo Civico in Castelbuono castle, Minà Palumbo, the Targa Florio, salt sculptures and rural life.
Things to do
Photographing the Madonie: light, seasons, places, rules
Photography in the Madonie: autumn colours, snow, flowers, sunrise and sunset at Piano Battaglia, the Milky Way over Isnello, hill villages, wildlife, drones.
Info
Safety in the Madonie: emergency numbers, rescue and risks
Safety in the Madonie: 112 and mountain rescue, 1515 for fires, hospitals, warnings to check, typical risks and what to carry on a hike in the Park.
Things to do
Stargazing in the Madonie: GAL Hassin park in Isnello
GAL Hassin astronomy park in Isnello: planetarium, telescopes, 2026 opening hours and tickets, summer stargazing nights and the Starlight sky of the Madonie.
Culture
Targa Florio: history of the race and the Madonie circuit
The Targa Florio was born in 1906 on the roads of the Madonie: history of the race, its three circuits, Floriopoli, the Collesano museum and today's events.
Things to do
The Madonie with kids: adventure parks, stars and snow
What to do in the Madonie with children: Parco Avventura Madonie, Pollina Adventure, GAL Hassin, picnic areas, easy trails and sledging, with 2026 prices.
Food
What to eat in the Madonie: typical dishes and produce
What to eat in the Madonie and in which town: cheese, badda beans, mushrooms, manna and desserts, a seasonal food calendar and which type of place to choose.
Info
When to go to the Madonie: season by season, month by month
When to visit the Madonie: spring and autumn for hiking, cool summers full of festivals, winter for snow. What to do in the Madonie month by month.
Trails from Petralia Sottana
Hiking trail Piano Noce, SP119 · Out and back
Monte San Salvatore, the second peak of the Madonie
Hiking trail Piano Battaglia · Loop
Pizzo Carbonara from Piano Battaglia
- Distance
- about 7 km
- Time
- about 2 h 30
For experienced hikers Contrada Gisa · Point to point
Sentiero della Pace to the Madonna dell'Alto sanctuary
- Distance
- about 9 km
- Time
- about 3 h 30
Hiking trail Piano Battaglia · Point to point
Sentiero Italia CAI, Piano Battaglia to Petralia Sottana
- Distance
- about 14 km
- Time
- about 4 h 30
Hiking trail Piano Sempria · Point to point
Trail 552 from Piano Sempria to Piano Battaglia
- Distance
- about 8 km
- Time
- about 3 h 30
For experienced hikers Piano Battaglia · Point to point
Trail 555, the west flank of Pizzo Carbonara
- Distance
- about 7 km
- Time
- about 2 h 30
Itineraries through here
3 days
A Madonie road trip: 16 villages by car in 3 days
Madonie road trip: a 262 km loop from Cefalù in 3 days, 16 villages from the sea to the Petralias. Roads, distances, driving times, stops, where to stay.
3 days
The Madonie in winter: snow, nativity scenes and villages
A long snow weekend in Sicily: 3 days in the Madonie based in Petralia Sottana, with Piano Battaglia, nativity scenes and villages. Roads, chains, times.
7 days
A week in the Madonie: a 7-day itinerary
The Madonie in 7 days with 2 bases, Castelbuono and Petralia Sottana: 10 towns, Pizzo Carbonara, the Abies and the Gole di Tiberio. Stops, km, driving times.
In nearby villages
Villages within 15 km of Petralia Sottana as the crow flies, nearest first:
- Things to do in Petralia Soprana 22 entries · 2 km
- Things to do in Castellana Sicula 19 entries · 5.3 km
- Things to do in Geraci Siculo 25 entries · 7.7 km
- Things to do in Polizzi Generosa 39 entries · 7.9 km
Frequently asked questions
- What is there to see in Petralia Sottana?
- What to see in the village: Corso Paolo Agliata, Chiesa Madre di Maria Santissima Assunta and its treasury, Chiesa della Santissima Trinità (Badia) with the Giandomenico Gagini altarpiece, Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi and Chiesa di Santa Maria alla Fontana. For Petralia Sottana we have 32 guides, 10 trails and 3 itineraries.
- What is there to do near Petralia Sottana?
- Within 15 km as the crow flies: Petralia Soprana (22 entries, 2 km), Castellana Sicula (19 entries, 5.3 km), Geraci Siculo (25 entries, 7.7 km) and Polizzi Generosa (39 entries, 7.9 km).