High mountains, beech woods and stone villages between Palermo and Cefalù
Just behind the coast of Cefalù, the Madonie rise to almost 2,000 metres with Pizzo Carbonara, the highest peak in Sicily after Etna. The regional park, a UNESCO Global Geopark, protects a landscape of limestone mountains, plateaus, beech and oak woods and the last specimens of the Nebrodi fir, a tree that survives only here.
The villages are the soul of the park: Petralia Sottana and Petralia Soprana, perched on rocks with views to Etna, Polizzi Generosa, Castelbuono with its castle and its famous panettone made with manna, Collesano and Gangi. In winter the Piano Battaglia area offers skiing, in summer walking and cool air.
Tip: try the manna, a sweet resin harvested from ash trees around Castelbuono and Pollina, and the mushrooms and cheeses of the mountains; the park's visitor centre is in Petralia Sottana.
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