Messina, Tindari e Montalbano, Sicily, 11th – 13th April 2025

A relaxing long weekend in Sicily where we hike and also walk back in time (in history) .. a bit of nature, seaside/salt lakes, greenery, history, archeology, sanctuaries, typical food and wine .. while enjoying each others’ company.

Interested? Please complete this registration form and settle a non-refundable deposit of Eur195 (twin sharing) or Eur 260 (single supplement).

Itinerary & Accommodation

• 11th April: Arrival, transfer Messina where we visit (not necessarily in this order) the areas of Capo Peloro, Ganzirri, Torre Faro, Pilone and a Fisherman village as well as Messina city centre and historic bell and clock tower (12.00 noon sound and movement of statue). We’ll check-in a comfortable city hotel and then have a free evening. Messina has its typical streetfood (facaccia and arancini pidoni etc.)
• 12th April: After breakfast, we’ll travel to Tindari to visit the archeological sites and the sanctuary and descend, hiking the fox trail trek to the Marinello lakes.
• 13th April (Palm Sunday): We check out aftet breakfast, visit Montalbano Elicone with its historic castle, followed by a trek in area of the vulcanetto do Monte Mojo.

The 2 nights accommodation will be in a city hotel on a bed inclusive of buffet breakfast basis.

Information

Messina was a metropolis dating back to the Magna Graecia of 8BC and a very important harbour for the Greeks, then known as Zancle. Similaro to other strategic port cities, Messina over the ages saw several rulers including Romans, Goths, Normans, Anguvenes and the Kingdom of Naples, Aragonese Spanish, French, and the Bourbons until Italian unification in the 19th century. Regrettably much of the old city was destroyed by successive earthquakes over the years but there are still some historical gems – like the Norman Cathedral with its bell tower – that captures the attention of tourists at noon with the sound and movement in tandem with the bell chimes. Outside the city, there are muscle farms, fishermen villages and other natural areas to explore.

Tindari dates back to Greek and Roman settlements (Tyndaris or Tyndarion) that existed there long before the Sanctuary of the Black Madonna, for which Tindari is now famous. In fact, the earliest civilizations noted there dated back to around 400BC; the Bronze age similar to other civilizations in Naxos. Eventually it fell under Roman dominion but was later destroyed during the Arab rule in Sicily. Archaeological remains evidence an agora, a theatre and an ancient basilica.

The Roman Catholic Sanctuary Basilica in Tindari has many legends. The church was first built in the 8^th century and dedicated to Maria Santissima del Tindari. ” The statue of the Black Madonna, of byzantine origins, in the Basilica deemed miraculous by many believers. It was smuggled from Constantinople during the iconoclasm initiated by Emperor Leo III in the 8th and 9th centuries. A storm forced the ship carrying the Black Madonna made of cedar wood to dock at the port of Tindari, where the crew safely stored their cargo in the local abbey. Today, it is behind the altar with the inscription “nigro sum sed formosa” (I am black, but beautiful). The Sanctuary Basilica of Our Lady of Tindari attracts several pilgrims every year.

Although in the minds of many, Montalbano is synonymous with the books or television series of Inspector Montalbano, it is actually a town in the province of Messina  in a southwest direction of Nebrodi and Peloritani mountain range. Known as one of the Borghi più belli d’Italia, it dates mainly back to King Frederick II but also has much older megaliths of Argimusco, and the natural wood of Malabotta.

Mojo Alcantara, within the province of Messina, located between Palermo (150km) and Messina (50km). In the 17^th century, the verdant town of Mojo Alcantara grew on the dormant lava stream that 3,000 years earlier traversed Alcantara, reaching the coast at Capo Schiso’. We will be giking in the Vulcanetto area there.

Earmarked Flights

• Friday 11th April 2025 KM640 from 06:00 to 06:40
• Sunday 13th April 2025 KM643 from 23:50 to 00:35

Contribution and deposit

The contribution per person is of Eur495 and covers

1. 3 full days of trekking;
2. 2 nights of hotel accommodation including buffet breakfast (accommodation on twin-sharing basis);
3. snacks of salami, cheese, bread, wine and fruit during the treks;
4. minibus and driver that are with us for the entire trip from arrival in to departure from Catania airport;
5. 2 local, licensed guides;
6. 1 lunch.

For single supplement the price increases to Eur 575 per person.

The price excludes flights and dinners

Interested? Please complete this registration form and settle a non-refundable deposit of Eur195 (twin sharing) or Eur 260 (single supplement).