Holiday apartment in Gibellina: discover art, festivals and the Belìce

Gibellina combines art, remembrance and events into a destination with an unusually wide range of cultural points of interest. In Gibellina Nuova, open-air art and festivals meet the history of the Belìce. The surrounding area also offers palaces, castles and a museum, beaches further afield in the region, as well as a stage of the Trasversale Sicula.

Orestiadi and open-air art

The Orestiadi di Gibellina festival combines theatre, dance and music. The first Orestiadi performance took place in 1982 with Emilio Isgrò’s “Gibella del martirio”. Gibellina Photoroad is also part of this range of events. This open-air, site-specific photography festival is the first festival of its kind in Italy. While the Orestiadi combines theatre, dance and music, Photoroad focuses specifically on photography. In Gibellina Nuova, around fifty architectural works and outdoor sculptures also shape the townscape; the town itself forms a large open-air museum. The Chiesa Madre is located on the highest part of a small hill overlooking the plain of Gibellina Nuova.

Belìce history in the museum

The Belìce/EpiCentro della Memoria Viva offers an impressive, exploratory exhibition tour about the Belìce landscape, popular movements and natural events. Collections by artists and photographers document the Belìce and its history there. The museum collects and organises paintings, sculptures, terracotta works, writings, tapestries, jewellery, panels and original garments. Reservations are required seven days in advance for guided museum tours. Anyone planning a guided tour must take this advance notice into account for the desired museum day.

Palaces, castles and museums in the surrounding area

Other historical destinations around Nuova Gibellina provide cultural context: Palazzo Crescenti Del Ponte Di Sciacca is a palace in the vicinity of Nuova Gibellina. Castello Grifeo Partanna is a castle there, as is Castello Eufemio. The Museo Etno-Antropologico is a museum in the vicinity of Nuova Gibellina. This makes it possible to complement an interest in contemporary art with historical and ethnographic topics.

Regional excursions and cycling route

Several beaches are located in the wider regional area around Nuova Gibellina. Playa di Castellammare is a beach there, as are Guidaloca, Playa Lido Zabbara and Spiaggia di Alcamo Marina. For active days, the Trasversale Sicula cycling route offers a stage from Calatafimi to Nuova Gibellina, the Bosco Baronia variant. The start in Calatafimi and the destination in Nuova Gibellina give the section a clear direction. For individual days, the exhibitions and outdoor artworks, events, Belìce history, cycling route or regional beach destinations can each provide the focus.

More destinations for your planning

If you would like to extend your travel plans beyond Gibellina, you can also find Marsala, Erice, Castelvetrano, Ciavolo, Scauri, Tre Croci, Porticalazzo and Santa Ninfa.

For the higher-level travel overview: Trapani.