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The Sicilian town of Marsala is probably best known to outsiders for the drink of the same name, a delicious fortified wine similar to sherry and port, and originally created by expatriate Englishman John Woodhouse. This most westerly point of Sicily has more going on besides though, with the ancient city popping up throughout history as the Carthaginian fortress of Lilybaeum in 396BC, as the Arab port of Marsa Allah, and then in May 1160 as the first toehold on Italian soil of Garibaldi's liberating '1000' as Italy fought its way toward unification. You'll find museums and there is a collection of archaeological excavations (Roman and earlier). Little remains of ancient Lilybaeum, bar some foundations, old pieces of the city wall, and the Sibyl spring. East of the town centre a large fosse (ditch) is a remnant of the old defences. In town, there are some good restaurants around the centre, and the main shopping street (Cassaro) is rather beautifully constructed of huge slabs of local stone. A trip around the cantinas of the two main producers of Marsala wine (Florio and Pellegrino, with the bibulous Woodhouse having been bought out early by the competition) is a must. This is definitely the place for quiet vacations, being one part of Sicily where tourism hasn't really got a foothold. There is a good sandy beach towards Lido Signorina.
To the left you'll find a selection of hotels, to get you in the mood
- see also our full listings of Marsala hotels.
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