La Notarella

• Nearest airport Catania Fontanarossa 100km – 1 hour and 15 min drive
• Nearest town with restaurants, supermarket Noto 6km - 15 min drive
• Nearest sandy beach Eloro beach 7km - 20 min, Calamosche 10km - 25 min drive
• Villa romana del Tellaro 5 km – 15 min drive
Noto 6km – 15 min drive
• Vendicari Natural reserve 10km – 30 min drive
• Cavagrande nature reserve (exceptional site with difficult access, not recommended for young children or people with reduced mobility, swimming is possible) 25km – 40 min drive
• Ispica 30km – 40 min drive
• Siracusa 40 km – 40 min drive
• Scicli 50km – 1 hour drive
• Modica 50km – 1 hour drive
• Ragusa 50 km – 1 hour and 30 min drive
• Donnafugata castle 70km – 1 hour and 30 min drive
• Piazza Armerina 180km – 2 hours and 15 min drive
• Etna, the volcano tour, possibility of hiring a guide 130km – 2 hours drive
• Agrigento 240km – 3 hours drive

Located in the south east of the Island, the so-called baroque Sicily, Cinecittà makes a particularly attractive holiday location, combining the seaside with fascinating sightseeing.
There are an endless number of baroque towns, all grandeur and grace. These towns were once an architectural chaos of medieval, middle eastern and Punic style. They were shaken into a formal beauty by a devastating earthquake in 1693. New stones were cut, streets redesigned, avenues lengthened and straightened, staircases and grand churches all conceived with baroque grace.
• Noto is perhaps the most complete baroque town in the area. The stone used in it’s grand baroque style buildings, a soft tufa stone, has a unique pink colour giving it a special glow under the sun. The decorative details on the facades and balconies that line the streets behind Corso Vittorio Emanuele exemplify Sicilian baroque architecture at its best. Curved balconies, complete with wrought iron decoration and held up by grinning masks, lion heads or putti. Once a year, the Infiorata di Noto ensures the street is covered in flowers but at any other time, take a walk up this street to see some of the beautiful features that exemplify baroque architecture. Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata with its grotesque balconies is a prefect example. Be sure not to miss the recently restored Palazzo Castelluccio
• The Vendicari Reserve extends from south of Noto till Pachino and Marzamemi. Sandy strips alternate with rocky areas, and salty marshes, where birds stop during their migrations. There are beautiful beaches with fine and clear sand. The first one, coming from north, is Eloro beach; overgoing the river mouth of Tellaro, you can see an untouched beach, Marianelli, a stretch of beach that rises from the Mediterranean vegetation. The most famous beach is Calamosche, towards south, and it is set between two rocky hills and Mediterranean vegetation.
• Ispica sits on a hill in the rugged landscape about 7 kilometers from the sea, with rocky canyons and wild countryside while in the town await elegant treasures to explore.The Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore is a must, with its pretty portico that encloses the piazza in front of the church, and its interior full of decorative flourishes. The church of the Annunziata is adorned with carved stuccoes on the barrel ceiling and dome. The castle-like Liberty style villa called Palazzo Belmonte now houses the town hall, its square tower still a lovely landmark that highlights the building. There are plenty of cafes and restaurants to sample the area's specialties.
• Syracuse is nearly 3,000 years old and during Ancient Greek times was one of the centres of the Mediterranean. The city was all but destroyed in 1693 by an earthquake that shook the bones of the whole island, but was rebuilt soon afterwards in glorious baroque style that remains mostly untouched. This is particularly the case on Ortigia, Syracuse’s old town set on a teardrop-shaped island connected to the mainland by a couple of road bridges. In the summer the place must sweat and heave: its tiny cobbled streets and perfect square are the kind that make postcard-sellers plan a new kitchen.
The Necropolis of Pantalica, near Syracuse, contains no less than 5,000 tombs dating from the 13th to the 7th centuries BC
• Nothing can prepare you to your first view of the enchanted, languorous, little town of Scicli. Take a walk in its central pedestrian street, via Mormino Penna, paved with pale, shiny stones that have the same colour as the palazzos left and right.
• Modica. The main street runs along the bottom of a ravine on which the town has been built. This divides the town into two parts. On the older part of the city, lanes and alleyways lead to the high part of the town. The town’s two baroque churches stand out amidst these beautiful buildings . The Duomo San Giorgio is the home of one of Modica’s patron saints, celebrated each year on April 23 with a joyful parade around the streets of Modica culminating with fireworks, whilst further along the main road, a set of magnificent stairs leads you to another, the Duomo di San Pietro. In the evening, join the locals for a « passeggiata » along the main street, Corso Umberto, and stop at the chocolate shops for which Modica is famous. When chocolate was discovered in the new world it was first brought back to Modica, where it was made cold so that the sugar did not melt. Northern Europeans later added heat and milk to the process but the old technique is still used here. Once you get over the initial graininess the chocolate has a rich, lingering flavour. Try the bars of the Antica Dolceria Bonajuto
• Ragusa. With few cars, stone streets and views over the hillside, the town looks like a film set and often serves as one – many scenes from the Inspector Montalbano series. Ragusa is another city built over two hills. Ancient Ibla dates back to medieval times whilst the new Baroque Ragusa was built after 1693. The San Giorgio Duomo, the Circolo de Conversazione and the San Giuseppe Duomo are just a few of these beautiful baroque buildings that you will see as you walk from the Duomo to the magnificent Giardino Ibleo with its stunning views over the valley.
• The Castle of Donnafugata. Visiting the Castle is like partaking in the setting atmosphere of legendary movies such as “The Leopard.” The castle has 122 rooms of which 22 are accessible to the public and display original period furniture. Walking through the rooms is really like jumping into the world of eighteenth century Sicilian aristocracy.
• Piazza Armerina is a charming town known for its Norman Palio, an annual summer pageant of medieval events, but the major attraction is its ancient Roman villa. Located a few kilometers outside town, the Villa Romana del Casale was built in the 4th century AC and is home to the richest, largest and most complex collection of Roman mosaics in the world. Depicting scenes from daily life, such as hunting, the mosaics are as remarkable for their sociological value as for their artistry.
• Of course, the absolute must for any nature lover is a foray into the Etna Regional Park, one of the largest and most bewitching in Italy. The undisputed landmark of the island and one of the most active volcanoes in the world, Mount Etna has been since the Antiquity an object of awe and veneration, as well as the subject of countless myths and observations by Greeks, Celts and Romans. A guided tour of this majestic and legendary mountain – now a UNESCO World Heritage site – is undoubtedly one of the most exciting experiences you can have during your Sicilian holiday
• And for visitors interested in Hellenic art and architecture, Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples are a definite must-see