Erik Gustavson

Sicily is Italy´s tiara and the city of Cefalu´ a shining gem, if not the crown jewel, itself.

We landed in Sicily for the first time a November afternoon, five years ago. The following day we had already bought a house in the hills overlooking the sea and the sparkling lights from Palermo, some fifty km away. We seek to return to our home abroad, as often as we can.

The northern coast of the biggest island in the Mediterranean, is staggeringly dramatic and brutally magnificent.

An hour´s train ride to the east of Palermo, the Barcelona of Italy, soon to be discovered by the hip and cool millennials from abroad,- you will find Cefalu´. At the bottom of the hills of the Le Madonie regional park, a magical slope from 2000 meters high and down to the turquoise surf of the many beautiful beaches and bays. Cefalu´ is a unique town with ancient history and well-deserved pride, where the sea waves practically wash the streets of the lower parts of town in the autumn storms. But most of the year, the everlasting sun and the clean salty breeze.

Charming streets and houses. Excellent small restaurants and café´s and probably the island´s most beautiful sunsets. The beaches are open for business from Easter time and through all of October. On a good year you can go swimming until Christmas.

No place is really too far in Sicily. You can pretty much reach any destination by car in less than three hours. Cefalu´ is a great spot to hang out and a great point of departure to explore this cradle of European culture. Masters on the visual arts arena, the theater, the opera, iconic writers and composers as well as some of the best cuisine and wine come from here. From Sicily.

With the new website www.cefalu.it the city, its people, its flavors and its magical moods are being made available to a whole new audience.

Sicily will surely become one of the absolute most significant travel destinations of Europe in the future.

Erik Gustavson