Literary beaches of Sicily: reading the island through its authors’ places
There is a perfect moment for reading: when the mind opens like a window onto the world, and the reality around you blends with the voice of the writer. In Sicily, this magic often happens, especially in summer, amid the sound of the waves and the salty scent of the sea. So why not imagine a journey where reading is not just a travel companion, but also a compass? Sicilian Secrets takes you on a discovery of five literary beaches of Sicily, for a tour where you can lose yourself in the pages of a book.
A land of deep and unforgettable storytellers, Trinacria holds a literary map that intertwines with the landscape. Its beaches, from east to west, are much more than postcard-perfect scenes: they are living places, steeped in words, stories, emotions. By following in the footsteps (and pages) of Sciascia, Verga, Camilleri, Bufalino, and other great Sicilian authors, we can create an itinerary made of sand, sun, and stories among the literary beaches of Sicily.
Marinella di Selinunte: Sciascia’s Sicily and the sense of mystery
Picture yourself on a golden beach, just steps from the imposing ruins of the Selinunte archaeological park. Here, surrounded by the scent of pine trees and the sea breeze, you can read Leonardo Sciascia, perhaps ‘The Day of the Owl’ or ‘To Each His Own’. While his stories are often set in the Sicilian hinterland, it’s impossible not to feel, even on the coast, that same sense of civil unease, that deep reflection on justice and truth. Marinella is the ideal place to question, as Sciascia did, the chiaroscuro of reality.
Punta Secca: the most beloved detective in the Mediterranean
The rhythmic sound of waves, a house on the beach, and a man lost in thought as he gazes at the sea. Are we in Vigàta? Not exactly. We’re in Punta Secca, in the Ragusa area, where you’ll find the seaside house of Inspector Montalbano, the literary alter ego of Andrea Camilleri. Sitting on the sand of this small fishing village and reading a novel from the series feels like stepping directly into that world: full of dialect, irony, delicious food, and mysteries to solve. It’s one of the most cherished destinations for those who discovered Sicily through Camilleri’s words and now want to experience it firsthand. Among the literary beaches of Sicily, it’s undoubtedly one of the most internationally famous.
Aci Trezza: i Malavoglia and the epic of seafaring folk
One of the most evocative beaches on the eastern coast is Aci Trezza, with its dark sea stacks rising from the water like ancient giants. This is where Giovanni Verga set ‘I Malavoglia’, a symbol of Italian Verismo, in which daily hardship, family, and the sea take center stage. Reading Verga in Aci Trezza means listening to the deep breath of an archaic Sicily, where the waves carry both the hopes and the tragedies of a proud, silent people. It’s an almost sacred experience that conveys the full weight and power of words.
Sampieri and Bufalino’s melancholic beauty
In the province of Ragusa, the beach of Sampieri is a small gem that enchants with its wild, romantic feel. Not far from here was born Gesualdo Bufalino, a cultured and refined author capable of describing Sicily with a gaze that is both poetic and disenchanted. Works like ‘Diceria dell’untore’ or ‘Argo il cieco’ deserve to be read slowly, perhaps under a beach umbrella on one of the literary beaches of Sicily, while being lulled by the music of language and the dazzling light of the South. Sampieri is the perfect place for this kind of contemplative reading.
San Vito Lo Capo: telling the light of literary beaches of Sicily
On this stunning beach in the Trapani area, famous for its white sand and crystal-clear waters, your book might be something more contemporary: the short stories of Simonetta Agnello Hornby or the novels of Stefania Auci, who, with ‘The Florios of Sicily’, has given new voice to 19th-century Sicily. Reading here means immersing yourself in powerful stories while everything around you shines: nature, the sun, the colors. It’s a celebration of light and life, even when the plot turns dramatic or nostalgic. Because in Sicily, every page is soaked in beauty.
