Sicily Alcamo

"Rosa fresca e aulentissima". With this verse the famous Sicilian poet, Ciullo d'Alcamo, paid homage to his birth town. Situated on the coast of Trapani, in Sicily, Alcamo was founded by the Arabs in the 11th century. The town rests at the feet of Mount Bonifato, at the center of the Gulf of Castellammare.

The Arabs were not the only ones to leave signs of their dominion, the Normans also left numerous traces of their time here, including the four towered Conti di Modica Castle, erected sometime around 1350. The town boasts a great number of sacred monuments, including Alcamo's Chiesa Madre or Mother Church. Not to be missed, the Church built in honour of Saints Paolo and Bartolomeo, the Franciscan Convent and the 18th century Church of Sant'Oliva.

The nearby Alcamo Marina boasts a wonderful beach which stretches for kilometers along the coast. Just a little further a field lies the Bosco d'Alcamo Nature Reserve, one of the smallest protected areas in Sicily.