Cefalù (8 km far from the residence):
The town Cefalù is located 70km east of Palermo and is really worth a visit! Cefalù is a picturesque fishing village that enjoys a splendid position between the sea and a rocky promontory. The town’s current name derives from the Greek word Kephaloidion, meaning head or chief, and the town saw its heyday under the Norman king Roger II, who decided to initiate the work on the cathedral in 1131. The town is divided in two parts; an old part that is mainly for pedestrians and has many nice little boutiques, and a new modern part with supermarkets, gas stations and car rentals. Corso Ruggero is the main street in the old town center, and it has many different shops and in cross-streets you will find many good restaurants. The old town center is dominated by the cathedral and the Rock rising in the background. The town’s history is chequered; many different kinds of people have governed it, for example the Arabs, the Greeks and the Normans.
Park of the Madonie:
The Parco delle Madonie can be easily reached by taking the highway Palermo - Catania, through the junctions Tre Monzelli, Scillato, and Bonfornello, or by taking the highway Palermo - Messina through the junctions of Cefalù (a well-known sea resort) and Castelbuono. It is possible to visit even the most hidden and charming places of the Park thanks to the several paths, forest trails, and country roads crossing it far and wide. The SS, SP, and SC roads are equipped with good signals favoring the tourists. The occasional tourist can find in the local private guides a useful instrument to discover the whole territory
Events and feasts:
Vespa World Days 2008 24-27 Aprile 2008 ( if request we will send the program )
4-6 august
the patron's feast in Cefalù
2-5 september patron's feast in Campofelice di Roccella
Ski:
Piano Battaglia (35 km far from the residence)
In the heart of the Park, among Polizzi Generosa, Petralia Sottana, and Isnello, at an altitude of 1600 mts above sea level there is the only skiing resort with skilifts and ski slopes of western Sicily. Piano Battaglia, if the snow conditions allow it, welcomes every year most part of the skiers coming from every part of the island. It is the departure point of the great ski touring and ski hiking traverses interesting Pizzo Carbonara, Monte Ferro, Monte Spina Puci, and Monte Mufara. Moreover, it is possible to practice cross-country skiing and ski touring. The Battaglietta trail is the most famous one. In summer it becomes the ideal destination for hiking-lovers, and refreshment point in the hottest days for the tourists of the nearby Cefalù.
Golf:
LE MADONIE GOLF CLUB (18 holes) (4 km from the house)
The complex
Situated between the Madonie Park Mountains and the Gulf of Cefalù, on a plain embellished with an extraordinary
patrimony of Saracen olive , orange, lemon, almond and carob trees, lies “Le Madonie Golf Club”. Inside, in close and
conjoining symbiosis with the surrounding environment, live together the golf course with the club house and hirty-one villas encompassing the border of the course.
Also available to the golfing public are the homemade biological products from the agricultural farm.
Le Madonie Golf Club – Contrada Bartuccelli – 90016 Collesano (Pa)
Other Activities:
wellness centre, aquapark.