4 Best Sights in Sicily, Italy

According to legend, it was at the huge natural lake of Pergusa that the Greek goddess Persephone was abducted by Hades and taken to live with him in hell. Ringed these days by a motor-racing track and overlooked by modern villas, a less evocative setting for the myth would be hard to imagine. Far more inspiring is the nearby hilltop known as Cozzo Matrice, riddled with caves that have niches carved into their walls for tombs, votive objects, and candles, with 360-degree views stretching as far as Mount Etna and the coast. One of the caves is known as the Grotta di Ade, or Cave of Hades, and would indeed be a far more resonant spot for his abduction of Persephone to the Underworld than the over-exploited lake.

Thought to be originally from the Byzantine period (although their exact history is still unknown), these caves carved out of stone can be found in and around town. They were originally used as burial sites, but then eventually became homes, although how or why is still a mystery. They were actually still inhabited up until the 1960s. Today the curious tiny houses are open to the public, and those closest to town have been turned into a museum by the local government. 

Located on Levanzo's rugged northwestern coast, Italy's most important example of cave art, the Grotta del Genovese, displays a stunning set of paintings and incised drawings dating from the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic eras. The guide explains in fascinating detail how the small red and black figures of animals, fish, and insect-like humans were created here between 10,000 and 15,000 years ago, and how they were discovered by a holidaymaker in 1949.

Transport to the grotto, which is privately owned, is included in the price of the ticket. Arriving by sea, a 20-minute ride, allows you to experience Levanzo's beautiful coast, but is not possible when the sea is at all rough as the boat must negotiate a narrow inlet in order to disembark passengers. The alternative is overland via Jeep, though this involves a downhill walk along a track for the last half mile. The whole excursion by boat or Jeep takes around 90 minutes. You can also make your own way here on foot along inland paths from Levanzo town, a walk of around one hour each way.

Visits to the site must be booked online, by email, or by phone at least 48 hours in advance, but ideally several days ahead during the busy summer months. Note that neither touching the engravings nor photographing them is allowed, and sturdy shoes are advised.

From Scauri, steep and narrow Contrada Zighidi climbs up to a small roadside parking lot (marked track 971 Grotta del Bagno Asciutto). Take a look first at the Byzantine tombs cut into the rock, then head downhill along a narrow track into broad, flat Valle di Monastero, planted with miniature olive trees and neat vineyards. The path then leads up through a charming crumbling and semi-abandoned village of dammusi before arriving at a car park with information boards, from where a clearly marked path leads to the Bagno Asciutto, a natural cave with hot steam emissions where you can lie and sweat before cooling off from a small courtyard surrounded by stone benches and fantastic views.