3 best best rooftops you must visit in Catania

Last Updated on July 28, 2023 by

Catania. The queen of Baroque architecture. The city that boast some of the best views in Sicily. On the one side, the Ionian sea. On the other the Mount Etna. The place where I was born and grew up. Catania has many hidden gems that even who has lived there great part of his life has still to discover! In this blog you can find the best rooftops in Catania where to see the city from a totally different perspective. Here, you can find all the information useful to add these places on your upcoming Catania itinerary.

My Catania

After all these years living abroad and travelling, I feel privileged to have grown up surrounded by so much beauty. Returning in Catania for only a short length of time every year, allowed me to see my home town with different eyes. Indeed, I start exploring places that I wouldn’t probably visit if I was still living there. This because, you know, when you live in a place stably, you think you have all the time in the world to do certain things. Then, you move to another country and all the things you wanted to do “one day” suddenly end up on a bucket list to use every time you return. So, I promised myself to explore a bit of the Catania I still don’t know every time I will be there. During these years, I kept my promise and collected hundreds of photos of places in Catania I never dreamed to visit during the times I lived there. I think it’s time to use them for a good purpose!

Planning a trip to Sicily? Read more about it some unique places to visit here.

3 Best rooftops to visit in Catania

In this blog, I decided to show you three of the best rooftops in Catania. With best rooftops, I don’t mean rooftops bars in Catania or private hotel terraces that have a view. Indeed, I mean places that are open to everyone and possibly not well known to tourists (and even residents!). Read below to discover more!

1. The rooftop of the Cammino di Gronda (Gutter Walk) on the Church of San Nicolò l’Arena

The Cammino di Gronda (translated literally as Gutter Walk) is located inside the Church of San Nicolò l’Arena near the ancient Benedictine Monastery that now hosts the University of Catania. It is known that this is the highest rooftop in Catania and on a clear day you can see even the coast of Syracuse from the terrace. The Church of San Nicolò l’Arena is well recognisable in Piazza Dante as it looks more like a fortress than a church with its 105 mt high walls.

The current church dates back to the start of 1700 (partially left unfinished because of the Great Earthquake of 1693) but this was built over the medieval fortification of the city and former church. The access to the San Nicolò L’Arena is free but you have to pay a €3 ticket to visit the Cammino di Gronda and show your Green Pass. Then you have to climb the 141 narrow steps leading up one of the towers to reach the rooftop.

Until some years ago the rooftop was accessible only with a guided tour on specific occasions, but now you can visit on your own when the church is open.

Information about your visit

• Location: Piazza Dante Alighieri, 12, 95124 Catania CT, Italy
• Price: € 3 – Visit to the church is free
• Opening times: Mon-Sat 9.00-19.00 / Sun 9.00-13.00
• Covid Restrictions: Green Pass is mandatory to access
• Best time to visit: Late afternoon or early morning

2. The Rooftop on the Badia di Sant’Agata Church

Opened to the great public only in 2015, the rooftop at the Badia di Sant’Agata Church (Abbey of St. Agatha) offers one of the most impressive views of Catania. The rooftop includes a series of beautiful terraces that, until 2015, were accessible only to the cloistered nuns of the nearby monastery. The abbey (that belongs to the monastery) dates back to 1620.

To access the rooftop you have to pay a €5 ticket but the access to the abbey is free. The rooftop is located at the highest point of the building and offers a 360° view of Catania at a 40 mt height. Furthermore, this is the only “public” terrace from where you can see the colourful stained glass window of the Collegiata Church (that is not visible from the ground). As this is not enough, from here you can have also a different view of Catania’s Cathedral.

Information about your visit

• Location: Via Vittorio Emanuele II, 182, 95131 Catania CT, Italy
• Price: € 5 – Visit to the abbey is free
• Opening times: Mon CLOSED/ Tue 9.30-12.30 / Wed – Sat 9.30-12.30 and 16.00-19.00 / Sun 9.30-12.30 and 18.00-20
• Covid Restrictions: Green Pass is mandatory to access
• Best time to visit: Late afternoon or early morning

3. The rooftop on the Museo Diocesano

The rooftop at the top of the Museo Diocesano, known also with the name Porta Uzeda Terrace (because of the proximity with the historic gateway) is one of the best hidden gems in Catania. Indeed, not many tourists knows about it because if you don’t visit the museum you would never know this exists and is accessible to tourists!

The peculiarity of this rooftop is that you are walking in part of the Cathedral roof and also of the historic Porta Uzeda. From here, you can have a bird eye view of Via Etnea and take stunning pictures with the Mount Etna when visible on a clear day. The only downside is that, if you are not very passionate of the Christian religion, the museum might not be very interesting for you. Nevertheless, I think it’s worth a visit in any case because of the unique pieces of art that are displayed.

Moreover, the all-inclusive museum ticket gives you access also to the Roman Terme Achilliane beneath the cathedral.

I visited the terrace many years ago while I was doing a course about tourism (our guide brought our group there) and I loved it. I wasn’t able to visit since then. Ergo, I don’t have updated pictures. I had to visit during my last trip this October, but the day I had to go there was a massive thunderstorm! Anyway, keep an eye on this page as I will update it with brand new pictures once I go back to Catania next summer!

Information about your visit

• Location: Via Vittorio Emanuele II, 182, 95131 Catania CT, Italy
• Price: € 3 for the rooftom – € 10 museum + terme achilliane
• Opening times: Mon – Sat 9.00-13.00 and Tue and Thur 15.00-18.00
• Covid Restrictions: Green Pass is mandatory to access
• Best time to visit: Morning
• Website: Museo Diocesano

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