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The Mountains of SicilyDescend from the Madonie peaks to the sea
Nights: 7
Starting point: Albergo Paese Il Castello (3*), Petralia Sottana. This is a small guesthouse with just six rooms that has been converted from an attractive stone house owned by the Calderaro family for a couple of generations. Silvana di Maria is an attentive host, while rooms are spacious and pretty, with tiled floors, exposed stonework and rustic-style furniture crafted by the family firm. We include dinner at the hotel on your first night, leaving you free to take your pick of the town's other restaurants on your second night (pay locally). Day 1: on your first day, you may like to simply spend your time exploring historic Petralia Sottana and its sister town of Petralia Soprana, the second highest town in Sicily. Both have a labyrinth of narrow streets with tiny shops, and a wealth of small churches. You can visit both towns as part of a walk that also explores the lower slopes of the Madonie Park, following scenic lanes and grassy trails. (10km, 3.5hrs) Accommodation: Albergo Paese Il Castello, as above. Day 2: a mix of countryside paths and woodland tracks ascend gently north from Petralia Sottana, before swinging west across a remote and peaceful valley. You rise to the top of a ridge, finishing with a descent to your destination, Pomieri, in the heart of the Madonie Park. (10km, 4hrs) Accommodation: Hotel Pomieri (2*), Pomieri. The Pomieri enjoys a wonderfully secluded location in the heart of the mountains. Larger than the other hotels on the holiday and built in chalet-style, the hotel has a wood-panelled interior and comfortable sitting areas. The typical Madonie cuisine is hearty, incorporating local produce such as game, mushrooms and asparagus according to season. Day 3: today's route crosses a wide limestone valley, surrounded by some of the highest peaks of the Madonie. The paths are exceptionally tranquil as you head towards the green pastures and woods of Pomo Plain where there are 300-year-old holly trees which tower some 14 metres above the ground. (14km, 4.5hrs) Accommodation: Agriturismo Rocca di Gonato (agriturismo), Rocca di Gonato. Like the Hotel Pomieri, this comfortable agriturismo is wonderfully secluded, surrounded by land on which the owners' goats, sheep and cows graze. The terrace is the perfect place to sip a cold beer while enjoying the sweeping views. There is also an outdoor pool. Day 4: following pleasant forest tracks gently downhill beneath enormous chestnuts and oaks, you reach the Azienda Agrituristica Bergi after just a couple of hours. However, it is well worth continuing past the Bergi to the bustling town of Castelbuono, renowned for its cake shops and dominated by an imposing fortress. Take some time to explore before retracing your steps to the Bergi. (11km, 3.5hrs) Accommodation: Azienda Agrituristica Bergi (agriturismo), Bergi. Situated in a peaceful valley, the stone-built Bergi is surrounded by orange and lemon groves, cacti, olive and palm trees. Owners Pasquale and Anna also produce their own organic vegetables, many of which are used in the home-cooked dinners served in the rustic dining room with its beamed ceiling. Bedrooms are simple but comfortable, and in addition to a swimming pool there are several terraces outside where you can sit and admire the views. Day 5: a short and easy walk to your final hotel allowing you time in the afternoon to relax in the splendid setting of the Relais Santa Anastasia. (8km, 3hrs). Accommodation: Relais Santa Anastasia (5* agriturismo), Santa Anastasia. Converted from a 12th-century abbey, this is a luxurious and very special place at which to end your walk, decorated and furnished with great attention to detail. You will be treated to some refined Mediterranean cuisine in the elegant restaurant (which you can accompany with one of the estate's own award-winning wines) and will have no shortage of space in which to relax - in addition to the high-ceilinged lounge and cosy reading room indoors, there are attractive gardens and a panoramic terrace and pool which look across the vineyards towards the Aeolian Islands. Day 6: it is tempting to spend your last day relaxing at the Santa Anastasia, However, it is well worth taking a walk down through woodland to the coast and along to the sea at Cefalù. Take time to visit this historic town's two landmarks - the Norman cathedral with its early mosaics, and La Rocca, the northernmost spur of the Madonie Mountains. You can climb to the ruined 13th-century castle which tops La Rocca and affords marvellous views in clear weather to the Aeolian Islands before heading into the centre of Cefalù. To reach your last hotel, take a taxi or bus (pay locally) into the hills behind the coast. (14.5km, 4.5hrs) Accommodation: Relais Santa Anastasia, as above. Walking chart: the chart gives the distance and an approximation of the ascents and descents involved each day. If comparing holidays, please note the scale of each chart as this can differ.
Extensions: If you are flying via Palermo or Catania why not stay over at Palermo's 4* Hotel Principe di Villafranca or Catania's 4* Il Principe Other information: if you would like to see the brochure page, you can download this (and the pages for any other holidays you are interested in) by using our brochure creation system. Similar holidays: Alps to the Mediterranean (grade 2), Pyrenees to the Sea (grade 2), Secret Algarve (grade 2), The Mountains of Alicante (grade 2) Prices & travel 2008:
Recommended destination airports: Catania &
Palermo Extra night prices
> Notes on prices > Any queries? Let us call you back  |
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Rugged
and peaceful, the little-visited Madonie Mountains in northern Sicily are home
to golden and royal eagles and are criss-crossed with tranquil, relatively easy trails which invite
the walker on a journey through the mountains to the sparkling waters of the Tirrenian Sea. On clear days you can admire splendid views of the Aeolian Islands, but it is not these that make the holiday so special – there is also a real sense of getting away from it all that is enhanced by the attractive hotels and agriturismi (working farms), including the luxurious Relais Santa Anastasia. Autumn, when the
reds and golds of the turning leaves light up the
wooded slopes, is always beautiful, but another special time is mid-April to mid-May, when masses of
endemic flowers provide extraordinary displays of
colour, particularly around Pomieri. 
Petralia Sottana 
Recommendations for extra nights: Il Castello (Petralia Sottana) and
Santa Anastasia are popular choices for extra nights. Alternatively, you could combine the walk with our fly-drive journey,