Sicily was a dream destination and our road trip ticked off many spots that I’ve always dreamed of visiting…the Caltagirone Stairs were one of those spots…if heaven had a stairway then this would be it!
A photographers dream…
…colourful tiles made in the 1950’s by local craftsmen covering each of the 142 steps…
…beautiful hand crafted ceramics made in the town and religious icons are dotted up the staircase…
…with honey coloured buildings on each side…
…it was paradise. I was having a bit of a off day and can say that I’d lost my sparkle (also I’m wearing my asos skirt that I purchased last year on my no spend year on clothes…that skirt taught me a lot about my emotional spending problem…I still wear the skirt to this day)…
…it happens when travelling…we’ve all had those kind of travel days right!?!
The Caltagirone Stairs are a Sicilian icon and an easy day trip from Catania…
…I have many regrets from my visit to this old town…a majority of them were materialistic obviously!
Thankfully I was travelling with hand luggage only otherwise my bag would have contained a ceramic sun and a few rather large ceramic pots…many of the ceramic shops offer free shipping to any country in Europe…I kick myself when I see the beautiful pots in these photos.
But make sure you turn around and look across at the view of historic Caltagirone…
…it’s super gorgeous…and how I would love to be there right now.
Even though it was autumn, the sun was still hot and bright and we took refuge inside the stunningly beautiful and very cool church at the top of the Staircase of Santa María del Monte.
^^It was the perfect spot for reflection.
Walking back down the steps we ventured into the historic centre…grabbing some cheap and cheerful street food that Sicily is renowned for…
…peering down little alleyways…
…admiring religious architecture…
…stopping for a shoefie…
…even Pappy got into the shoefie action…
…passing streets lined with citrus trees and all their glorious sweet smells and lush fruit.
There are numerous ceramic shops at the bottom of the staircase tempting everyone with beautiful wares…
…those tabletops….just beautiful…hmmm maybe I should become an importer of Italian ceramics and tiles into New Zealand.
^^I’ll take them all pretty please!
Did I love Caltagirone…it was totally swoon worthy especially if you love locally made craftsmanship, ceramics, tiles, bright colours and gorgeous prints…I left a little bit of my heart in this delightful Sicilian town.
I’ll be back one day Caltagirone…with bigger bags!
Travel Tips for Caltagirone, Sicily
- There is parking at the top of the town and it’s an easy walk down into the historic city centre. We avoided parking in historic city centres are things can be a bit tight, tight and did I say tight?!?
- The address for the Caltagirone Stairs is as follows: Scala Santa Maria del Monte, 11, 95041 Caltagirone CT, Italy (hopefully this will help you when inputting the location into your car sat nav)
- There are numerous ceramic shops dotted around the old town so check a few of them out and work out prices…many will ship worldwide at a cost.
- Caltagirone isn’t too touristy so it’s perfect to sit back and just watch the locals carry on with their daily lives.
- While there are a few stairs, you don’t need walking shoes or hiking gear…I just wore my summer sandals that I bought in Greece many years ago.
- Check out accomodation options here
- Check out all my Italy posts by clicking right here…grab a cuppa and enjoy!
xx
If you liked this post on The Caltagirone Stairs, Italy: If Heaven Had a Stairway then why not come and join me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest – I won’t bite!
