Cefalu is a wonderful town in Sicily that I encourage you to explore slowly if you have the time. But if you don’t, and you can squeeze in a day, here is what I’d do. I will add some bonus ideas to the end of this post.
Cefalu is a seaside town that has a giant rock “La Rocca” towering over it. It makes for such an incredibly special scene and the town itself is so lovely. It has to be one of the most dramatic and beautiful views in Sicily. There are bustling alleyways, amazing shops, beautiful churches, a lovely Duomo and square, a beach promenade, a beach walk, and so much more to discover. Cefalu is the true definition of a gem.
How to get to Cefalu
By Car
We arrived to Cefalu by car with no problems. We found this to be an easy way to get around Sicily in general. We liked the freedom a car provided. We had no trouble with parking because we always planned it in advance. I especially loved Cefalu because I was able to book and pay for the parking garage in advance online. We had a QR code ready to go so when we pulled up all we had to do was scan it. We parked at Dafne Parcheggio and it was easy enough to walk into town from the car. Another note: if you’re staying at a hotel in Cefalu, ask them for a discounted parking code, our hotel had one.
By Train
Cefalu has a train station and you can arrive by train from different areas of the island. However, train travel may take longer than driving in some cases. If you’re coming from Palermo it is a direct and simple train ride. The train station is about a 10 minute walk from the tourist center of Cefalu.
Where to stay in Cefalu
Palazzo Villelmi
This was a lovely stay right in the center of Cefalu. It is on the second floor of a historic building and is so beautiful inside. Our room was very large and comfortable and we loved the bed. The shower had great pressure and the staff was incredibly kind and helpful.
The best part of this hotel was the rooftop area. It has the most incredible views over Cefalu. The rooftop overlooks the Duomo square and also all the way out to the sea in the other direction. I don’t think a better view of Cefalu could be found anywhere (except maybe the top of La Rocca)!
If you’re interested in booking this hotel as well, you can click here —-> Palazzo Villelmi
Astro Suite Hotel
We didn’t get a chance to stay here, and I didn’t realize how lovely it was along the seafront. But this would be another great choice if you’d like to stay along the sea. It is a quick stroll into town and has such lovely views. This hotel looks so nice, has a pool, and has a great ranking on booking.com (I always trust a 9.0 and above ranking).
If you’re interested in booking this hotel, you can click here —-> Astro Suite Hotel
How to spend your day
At the beach
If you are visiting during beach season, the perfect thing to do would be to spend a good amount of time at the beach. There are a few spots here that look so lovely. You could also go to the main beach and then have lunch along the promenade. You could easily spend a whole day just doing this. We traveled here during the “off season” in April so we didn’t spend as much time at the beach. It was still lovely to stroll along and watch the waves.
Walk the rocky path along the water
There is a walk you can do around the perimeter of Cefalu along the rocks surrounding the village. There is a path sort of cut into the rocks that you can follow all the way around. It wouldn’t take that long for you to do entirely, maybe 20-30 minutes. You are walking right along the ocean and it is really peaceful and beautiful. We found it worth doing!
Climb La Rocca
Depending on the time of year that you visit you may want to do this early in the morning to escape the heat. I recommend right at opening. If you stay overnight you could even do it on the morning before you leave. It is important to note that it is a paid park and it has opening hours. Make sure to check the hours before you visit. We arrived right at 8am and powered up to the top. There is actually quite a lot to see up there. There are ruins of a castle, the temple of Diana, and some other old archeological sites.
The path up takes about 45 minutes and is uphill all the way but not incredibly challenging. If you’re not as fit, just take your time. The path is paved and has many stair cases at the start eventually giving way to a gravel/dirt path. It is not hard to navigate and there is signage pointing to things you’d want to see. At the top you have incredible views over the village of Cefalu and the surrounding area. It is really worth going up to see!
Aperitivo
You’re going to find this on almost any itinerary I every make for an Italian village. That is because it is the most lovely part of the day. Before dinner head to any bar, enoteca, etc, and grab a drink that comes with snacks. This is known as, aperitivo. My advice is to wander around a bit, check out the scene, eye up the snacks at a few different places before making your choice, and enjoy!
Shopping
Cefalu is a lovely spot for a little shopping! There are a number of delightful boutique stores that sell all kinds of art, clothing, ceramics, etc. As you probably know, Sicily is known for its beautiful ceramics. There is so much you could buy here you could fill a whole suitcase! If you are someone who likes to shop, I definitely recommend you give yourself some time to shop.
Dinner at La Brace
Make a reservation here as it was quite popular, even when we went in April. We saw a number of people being turned away. We had our hotel call and make the reservation for us leading up to the trip so we knew it was secure. This place is like walking right into your Grandmas house for some delicious and down home Sicilian cooking. It is so cozy, so classically decorated, and just felt like a quintessential Italian experience.
We shared everything here so that we could try more dishes, and honestly, we wished we’d ordered even more. We split a DELICIOUS and fresh arugula, tomato, and parmesan salad. Then we had the ragu, which we truly regret splitting. Next time we’d each get our own. Then for mains we split meatballs and meat roll ups and we couldn’t decide which we loved more they were both so good! I couldn’t recommend this spot more highly and I would 100% go back if we return to Cefalu!
Watch the sunset & sunrise
There are some incredible places to watch the sunset in Cefalu. I highly recommend the rooftop of Hotel Villelmi if you stay there. If not, another epic spot is down by the little beach/bay area overlooking the town and La Rocca. The view here is seriously incredible and you can pop back and fourth through the little door on the sea wall to see the sunset on the ocean as well as over the town. There are some benches you can relax on here and it’s just an absolutely perfect people and scene watching spot. It would be perfect to bring a little bottle of wine and some snacks and watch the sun go down.
Extra Things to Do
Boat day
If we had more time, and were visiting in the summer I would have LOVED to have seen Cefalu from a boat! Boat days are always the best days, and Italian boat days are even better!
If you’re looking for a boat tour for Cefalu you can click here —-> Cefalu Boat Tours
Other Sicilian Villages
If you’re interested in visiting Taormina, check out my post here —> 48 Hours in Taormina, Sicily
If you’re interested in visiting Ortigia, check out my post here —> 48 Hours in Ortigia, Sicily
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