48 Hours in Palermo, Hour by Hour

Palermo does not do subtle. Norman kings, Arab engineers and Spanish viceroys all built over each other here, and the result is a city where Byzantine gold shares a street with fried chickpea fritters. Two days gives you the essentials, if you move like a local: early starts, long lunches, slow evenings.

Key facts

• Region: Sicily, on the island's northwest coast
• Best months: April to June and September to October; high summer is fiercely hot
• Getting around: the historic center is walkable; buses or taxis for Monreale and Mondello
• Budget: one of the cheapest great cities in western Europe to eat well in

Day one

8:30 — Quattro Canti and Piazza Pretoria

Start at the Quattro Canti, the baroque crossroads at the heart of the old city, before traffic thickens. A few steps away, the extravagant fountain of Piazza Pretoria earns its nickname, the fountain of shame, with its crowd of marble nudes.

9:30 — Palazzo dei Normanni and the Cappella Palatina

Walk up to the Norman Palace, seat of Sicily's rulers for centuries, for the Cappella Palatina, the royal chapel whose every surface glitters with twelfth-century gold mosaics beneath a carved wooden ceiling. It is one of the supreme rooms of medieval Europe. Book ahead and go early.

12:00 — Ballarò market

Dive into Ballarò, the oldest and rowdiest of Palermo's street markets. Lunch is standing up: panelle, the chickpea fritters, crocchè of potato, and arancine. The brave order pani ca meusa, the city's beloved spleen sandwich.

15:00 — The cathedral and La Martorana

Palermo's cathedral is a striking mash of Norman, Gothic and Moorish-influenced styles; the royal tombs inside include Frederick II. Then head to La Martorana on Piazza Bellini, where Greek-rite mosaics rival the palace chapel.

19:30 — Evening around Teatro Massimo

Aperitivo in the lanes near the Teatro Massimo, Italy's largest opera house and one of Europe's grandest. Dinner late, as Palermo does.

Day two

9:00 — Monreale

Take a bus or taxi into the hills to Monreale Cathedral, whose vast golden mosaic cycle culminates in an enormous Christ Pantocrator; the Benedictine cloister beside it, with its hundreds of carved twin columns, is the finest in the Norman world. Allow the whole morning, and check current opening hours.

13:00 — Lunch in the Kalsa

Back in the city, eat in the Kalsa, the old harborside quarter, then wander its faded palazzos, the church of Santa Maria dello Spasimo roofless against the sky, and the Foro Italico promenade along the sea.

16:30 — Mondello or museums

In warm months, ride out to Mondello, the city's white-sand crescent beach beneath Monte Pellegrino, for a swim and a granita. Otherwise, the regional gallery in Palazzo Abatellis holds Sicily's greatest paintings.

20:30 — Last cannolo

End with a cannolo filled to order so the shell stays crisp, and a slow walk past the floodlit Quattro Canti.

Tip: Palermo's markets and chapels both peak before ten in the morning. Do gold mosaics and market chaos early, siesta through the mid-afternoon like everyone else, and let the city hand you its evenings.