Polizzi Generosa

Polizzi Generosa is a town of 2,745 people (ISTAT estimate at 1 January 2026) at 920 metres, on the western side of the Madonie, looking over the upper Imera valley. You come for the old town full of churches, for the Flemish triptych in the mother church, for sfoglio and badda beans, and because here, in the Vallone Madonna degli Angeli, the last Abies nebrodensis in the world grow.

From the Scillato exit of the A19 it is 18 km on the SS643: from Palermo you get here in an hour and 20 minutes.

Polizzi Generosa at a glance

The key facts, with sources listed at the bottom of the page.

Where	Western side of the Madonie, province of Palermo, inside the Madonie Park
Altitude	920 m
Population	2,745 (ISTAT estimate at 1 January 2026)
From Palermo	85 km, about 1 hour 20 minutes (A19 Scillato exit, SS643)
From Catania	141 km, about 1 hour 50 minutes
From Cefalù	58 km, about 1 hour (A20, A19, SS643)
Patron saint	San Gandolfo, feast on the third Sunday of September
Don’t miss	Mother church, Badia Vecchia, viewpoint, Abies nebrodensis trail

A short history

The hill of Polizzi has been inhabited since at least the 6th century BC. In the 4th century BC it stood on the border between Punic and Syracusan territory and had a fortress manned by mercenaries from Campania. A Hellenistic necropolis came to light in contrada San Pietro; the finds are in the town museum.

The name comes from the Greek polis, city: the Arab geographer al-Idrisi writes it Bulis, Norman documents Politium. The historian Michele Amari identified Polizzi with the City of the King, Basileopolis, founded in 880.

After the Normans, Polizzi became a royal town, directly dependent on the king, and a hub on the grain route to the ports of Termini and Licata. Almost every religious order arrived: until Italian unification the town had 32 churches and 19 convents and monasteries. The plague of 1575-76 marked the start of its decline.

The epithet “Generosa”, by tradition, came from Frederick II, struck by the welcome he received. It was made official in 1863. The writer Giuseppe Antonio Borgese was born in Polizzi, and a literary park is dedicated to him.

What to see in Polizzi Generosa

The old town keeps districts of different origins, from Arab to Norman, and more than twenty churches still standing. Many open only on special occasions: ask the Pro Loco or the parish.

From Piazza Matteotti to Piazza Umberto I

The classic route starts from Piazza Matteotti, the eastern entrance to town, with the church of the Carmine, which belonged to the Dominicans and then to the Carmelites until 1866. Along Via Giovanni Borgese the view opens over the valley, and you reach Piazza Umberto I.

On Via Cardinale Mariano Rampolla stands Palazzo Gagliardo, from the 16th century, with a sandstone portal and rusticated decoration.

The mother church of Santa Maria Assunta

It is the town’s most important church. It holds a Flemish triptych that the town’s tourism website attributes to Rogier van der Weyden, along with other works of art.

The Badia Vecchia and the Badia Nuova

The church of Santa Margherita, or Badia Vecchia, from the 15th century, was the church of the cloistered Benedictine convent: inside are gilded stuccoes and Neoclassical decoration.

The church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, or Badia Nuova, was built at the end of the 15th century for the Signorino family, with its Benedictine convent. Both are linked to sfoglio: tradition says the nuns invented it here.

San Nicolò de Franchis and the medieval churches

The church of San Nicolò de Franchis, from 1167, is one of the oldest in town and was the centre of the Latin community. Polizzi also has the ruins of the church of the Commenda, from 1177, the last seat of the Knights of the Order of Saint John, and the church of Sant’Antonio Abate, which tradition says was built on a mosque.

The museums

The Museo Civico Archeologico, in the former Jesuit college next to the town hall, displays finds from the Hellenistic necropolis of contrada San Pietro. The Museo Ambientalistico Madonita, opened in 1990, is about the nature of the park. We found no up-to-date official opening hours: ask the Pro Loco.

The castle and the viewpoint

Of the castle, Byzantine in origin and fortified by the Normans, ruins remain in the upper town, together with those of a 15th-century palace chapel. From the town, clinging to its rock, you look over the upper Imera valley.

The Giuseppe Antonio Borgese literary park

The writer and critic Giuseppe Antonio Borgese was born in Polizzi Generosa and wrote about it often, calling it the town “clinging to a high rock”. The literary park dedicated to him links places in town and in the surrounding landscape with quotations from his works: a different way to explore the centre, with a book in your pocket.

The Madonie fir, the reason to go up

The Abies nebrodensis is a fir that grows wild only here. At the end of the 18th century it was still widespread in the Sicilian mountains, then logging almost wiped it out. According to the Park authority, in 1958 the botanist Messeri recognised a large specimen in a private garden in Polizzi; on the slopes of Monte Scalone, in the Vallone Madonna degli Angeli, another 25 were later found, numbered and fenced one by one.

In 1984 the Sicilian Region created a reserve to protect them. Today about 30 adult trees remain, plus young plants that grew naturally or were planted. The trail that reaches them is in zone A of the park, the strictest protection: nothing may be picked, not even a cone. History, protection and how to recognise it are in the guide to Abies nebrodensis.

Things to do in and around Polizzi Generosa

• See the Abies nebrodensis. The Abies trail in the Vallone Madonna degli Angeli starts at km 8.3 of the SP119 and takes half a day. About 30 adult trees remain, the last wild ones.
• Climb Monte Quacella. Below the cliffs that the botanist Lojacono Pojero called the “Sicilian Alps”: the Monte Quacella page has all the details.
• Monte San Salvatore from Portella Colla. 12 km from town: Monte San Salvatore.
• Piano Battaglia. About 17 km on the SP119 and SP54 when the road is open; while it stays closed by the landslide, about 35 km via Petralia Sottana. For the snow, read our guide to Piano Battaglia in winter.
• The Petralias. Petralia Sottana is 17 km away, Petralia Soprana 20 km.

More ideas on things to do in Polizzi Generosa.

What to eat in Polizzi Generosa

• Sfoglio. A pastry tart filled with tuma, sugar, chocolate and cinnamon. Born in the Benedictine convents of the Badia Vecchia and Badia Nuova, it is now recognised as a traditional food product.
• Badda beans. Small and round, ivory with pink or dark purple spots. Grown in the gardens of Polizzi for two centuries and a Slow Food Presidium: read the guide to beans and ancient grains of the Madonie.
• Hazelnuts. For centuries one of the town’s crops; in August there is the festival.
• Pipiddu. The small cone-shaped Polizzi pepper, green turning red, roasted and dressed with oil, basil and vinegar. It was what hazelnut pickers ate with their bread.
• Polizzi-style rabbit and Polizzi cheeses.

To pick a table, see where to eat in Polizzi Generosa. Other produce is in food of the Madonie.

Festivals and events in Polizzi Generosa

The periods below are the usual ones. Dates and programmes for the year are on each event page.

Period	Event
Late July	Politium Circus
Third Sunday of August	Sagra delle Nocciole
Third Sunday of September	Fera di San Gandolfo

In 2026 the Sagra delle Nocciole reached its 69th edition, with concerts in Piazza Trinità and a parade of Sicilian carts on the Sunday. The full calendar is on events in Polizzi Generosa.

When to go to Polizzi Generosa

• Spring (May-June): orchids and endemic plants along the Abies trail, green countryside.
• Summer: the best season for high-altitude trails, with the Sagra delle Nocciole in August.
• Autumn: San Gandolfo in September; in October the badda beans are harvested and the woods change colour.
• Winter: cold and possible snow. Roads to the high trails may be closed: the Park advises against high-altitude hikes in this season.

Before you leave, check the Polizzi Generosa weather.

How to get to Polizzi Generosa

You need a car. We calculated the distances with OSRM on OpenStreetMap data, without traffic.

From	Distance	Time	Road
Palermo	85 km	1 h 20 min	A19 Scillato exit, SS643
Catania	141 km	1 h 52 min	A19, SS120, SS643
Cefalù	58 km	56 min	A20, A19 Scillato exit, SS643
Petralia Sottana	17 km	19 min	SS643, SS120
Piano Battaglia (via Petralia Sottana, SP119 closed)	35 km	43 min	SS643, SS120, SP54

In winter the ANAS 2025/2026 order required snow chains on board or winter tyres on the SS643 from km 0 to km 15 from 1 December to 31 March, and on the A19 between Scillato and Mulinello from 15 November to 15 March. In February 2026 the SP119 was closed by a landslide near Portella Colla: check the alerts in our guide to driving in the Madonie.

Where to stay and where to eat

You can stay in the old town or at an agriturismo in the countryside. The updated lists, with a source for each listing, are on where to stay in Polizzi Generosa and where to eat in Polizzi Generosa. The municipality’s trails are on trails near Polizzi Generosa.