I’ll start with a sentence that surprises many of my guests: there are no beaches in Palermo. Yes, it’s a city by the sea with direct access to the coast, but it’s also a port city, and we don’t have a city beach. Most travel guides send visitors to Mondello, but unfortunately, it’s not my choice. The sea is beautiful, but for me it’s too crowded and there are too many bars around. It’s simply not my kind of atmosphere. You can reach Mondello by city bus.
In the same direction, but by train, you can also visit Isola delle Femmine and Sferracavallo. The nice thing is that both beaches are just a short walk from the train station, making them easy and convenient options.
A place that’s closer to my taste, and also very popular, is Cefalù. This is much more in line with my interests. Cefalù is a lovely town, so you can easily combine a beach day with exploring somewhere new. Trains run regularly until late in the evening, which makes it an easy day trip. Maybe I was just unlucky, but I found the sea to be extremely shallow. More precisely, you have to walk a very long way before reaching a depth where you can actually swim and dive comfortably.
From the city center, it takes me about an hour to reach any of these beaches. Since I usually spend only a couple of hours at the beach, I started looking for places that are closer to the city.
About 20 minutes by train from Palermo is Santa Flavia-Porticello station. From there, you can walk along several local beaches and simply choose the one you like best. The first is Sant’Elia. It’s a sandy beach with an easy entrance into the sea and a few simple beach bars. Locals seem to love it. I don’t like sand, so I walked a little farther and settled on Kafara Beach. Now that’s much more my style. Small pebbles, clear water, and a comfortable depth for swimming. No bracelet sellers or massage vendors. Just a couple of peaceful hours of swimming and relaxing. There aren’t any beach bars there either, so it’s best to bring your own water and food. I enjoyed lying right by the water in the sun, but if you prefer some shade, you can walk a few meters inland and relax under the trees.
Yes, if you think about it logically, the total travel time was almost the same — 20 minutes by train and another 30 minutes on foot. But I’d much rather spend that half hour walking through a small seaside town and its fishing harbors than sitting on a bus. So, for now, this is the beach that suits me best. By the way, if you’re traveling by car or motorcycle, it’s even more convenient. There are large parking areas next to every beach.
Of course, there are some incredibly beautiful places near Palermo. But most of them require a car, and often a hike through the hills before you reach the sea. I’ll write about those once I’ve visited them myself and formed my own opinion.