Things To Do in Bagheria

This is the oldest of the villas, built by prince Giuseppe Branciforti in 1658, who decided to live here in self-imposed exile after suffering political disappointment in the capital. It was his palatial estate that set off the rush for other nobility to come here, a sort of "keeping…

In the proximity of the train station, it has seen more than its fair share of change of aristocratic ownership over the centuries; its most notable owners -- besides the princes of Aragona, who commissioned it as their summer residence in the early 1700s, and the Filangeri Cutò…

If Villa Valguarnera is the most spectacular manor home in town, this is certainly the creepiest. It's known around the world as the "Villa of Monsters;" when Goethe came here on his grand tour, he was extremely put off by its "bad taste and folly." It was built in 1715 by Tommaso…

Without doubt, this is the most sumptuous villa in Bagheria. Built in 1714, it is situated in an enormous park enclosed within gates and balustrades -- a rarity nowadays for villas. Its splendid rococo decor and sweeping views over the gulf were famed the world over; the villa hosted…