Overview
Aci Trezza is a place that will forever be connected to the author Giovanni Verga. His book The House by the Medlar Tree immortalised this small fishing village overlooking the Ionian Sea in the province of Catania.
According to legend, Aci Trezza was created when the shepherd Aci was killed by the jealous Polyphemus for being the lover of the nymph Galatea, and was then transformed into a river. Greek mythology also inspired the name of the Cyclopean Isles, mighty basalt sea stacks emerging from the sea in its namesake marine protected area. You can admire them aboard small boats piloted by elderly local fishermen. At sunset, their silhouette against the fiery sky makes for a picture-perfect view. Or you can snorkel among the secrets of the seabed. Not forgetting the mysterious and unspoilt Lachea Island: you can canoe or swim the 400 metres separating it from the coast.
What was life like in Aci Trezza at the time of The House by the Medlar Tree? Find out at the Casa del Nespolo museum, inside a typical Sicilian house overlooking a vegetable garden. Don’t miss the Baroque-style Church of San Giovanni Battista and the Norman Castle, standing tall above the village. From there, you can watch the Le Vele dei Malavoglia regatta, organised every year. After climbing the steep steps to the castle, you can replenish your energy with a nivi cunzata, the typical Sicilian granita, or the fresh fish available at the fish market.
95021 Aci Trezza CT, Italia
