Syracuse and Cinema - "The Sicily of Montalbano and of The Leopard" Offer
In Syracuse and with brief excursions in the surrounding area (all within a distance of between 30 and 70 kilometers, around 18 to 43 miles) you can follow Andrea Camilleri’s inspector Montalbano as well as Luchino Visconti’s grand film, The Leopard, and discover the more authentic Sicily, the baroque towns, the nature and sea, and the smells and tastes that characterize the area.
Andrea Camilleri set the investigations of inspector Montalbano in Sicilian locations with imaginary names like Vigata, Marinella, Montelusa, The Mannara, etc, which the television series then recreated in the splendid landscape of eastern Sicily between the provinces of Syracuse and Ragusa: Syracuse, Brucoli, Noto, Marzamemi, Modica, Donnafugata, Scicli, Ragusa Ibla.
The commissioner’s office of Vigata (the town hall) and the police headquarters of Montelusa (Palazzo Iacono) are found in Scicli, while its main square is that of the Duomo of Ragusa Ibla.
Donnafugata Castle is the home of mafia boss Sinagra and not far away one finds the "hamlets of Marinella" with the Commissioner's house (in reality Punta Secca) and the ancient, early Christian catacombs of the Grotta delle Trabacche ("The Terracotta Dog" episode).
Returning to Syracuse,
you can visit the infamous "La Mannara" beach with its atmospheric ruins
of industrial architecture of the Fornace Penna (at Punta Pisciotto), then
Noto and
Marzamemi, where the last series set several murders and investigations,
and finally Brucoli, with the castle and splendid beach, north of Syracuse
itself, which also hosted a few episodes.
Aside from Montalbano, you can also have
an encounter on the same routes with
the great cinema of Visconti's The Leopard (also set at the
Castle
and in the majestic Donnafugata park) and then Gabriele
Salvatores’ Sud in Marzamemi, a location in which others (Taviani,
Brandauer, Tornatore, Correale, Cogno) chose to shoot their films, leading
to the creation of the Border Film Festival (Festival
del Cinema di Frontiera), which is held every year in the last week
of July in Marzameni.
Additionally, Tornatore
set Malena, with Monica
Bellucci, entirely in Syracuse and Noto.
If this were not enough, during the Taormina Film Festival, the films of the festival are projected simultaneously at Syracuse in the medieval chamber of the Maniace Castle.
Additionally, the Film Museum of Syracuse, housed in the magnificent 18th-century Palazzo Corpaci, is worth a visit.
The last reference is for Manuel Giliberti’s film Lettere dalla Sicilia (2005) and Una lontana storia d’amore (2008), the latter set right inside Algilà Ortigia Charme Hotel.
The offer includes discounts on the room rate and/or complimentary dinner in our restaurant.
Click on the link below to view all of the offers and check availability.
Search all solutions
Back to TOURISM IN SYRACUSE, SICILY