Caltanissetta Urban Itinerary

Caltanissetta Urban Itinerary

Experience: Churches, Folklore, Villas and Palaces

Route: outdoor, loop

Km: 5

Duration: 1 h

Difficulty: easy

Terrain: asphalt

Route suitable: on foot

Ascent / Elevation gain: 162

Descent / Elevation loss: 153

2 Minutes of reading

From the Manzoni parking area, take the stairs to Via Cavour and cross the splendid Villa Cordova park.

Exiting onto Viale Testasecca, turn right and walk along Corso Vittorio Emanuele, from which you can admire Palazzo Benintende, Palazzo Testasecca, and the Regina Margherita Theatre. Along the way, you can also make use of the InfoPoint. Upon reaching the Church of Santa Croce, turn left behind you onto Via Paolo Emiliani Giudici, where on the right you’ll find the Church of Santa Maria SS. della Grazia del Consiglio di Maria. Take the first right to reach Piazza Garibaldi and turn left to visit the Cathedral of Santa Maria la Nova. Continue along Corso Umberto I and head into Viale Regina Margherita, where on your left you will discover: the Provincial Palace, Villa Amedeo, and the Church of the Madonna Assunta, up to the War Memorial.

Shortly afterward you can also visit the Church of the Madonna della Catena. At this point, go back up the entire Viale Regina Margherita where, after about 500 m, you’ll find the Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art—a gem in the city. Go back up Corso Umberto I, cross Piazza Garibaldi, and turn right onto Via Giacomo Matteotti; here, in Largo Paolo Barile, you’ll find the Pro Loco of Caltanissetta and Palazzo Moncada, which houses the Civic Art Gallery. Continue up Corso Umberto I toward the north, via Via Palazzo Paternò and Via Aristuto, and visit the Church of Sant’Angelo al Collegio, the Library of the former Jesuit College, and the Stolpersteine, up to the Church of Santa Lucia. From here, to reach the historic Strata ‘a Foglia market, from Via Villalba turn right onto Via Terranova and then take the first left to descend to Viale Conte Testasecca. At the junction of Via Calasberna and Via Consultore Benintendi you’ll find the market. This entire last street is a real jewel; it is recommended to walk it all the way down until you return to Corso Vittorio Emanuele. At this point, turn right to go back to the starting point.

The stages of the itinerary

 
Cathedral of Santa Maria La Nova
Cathedral of Santa Maria La Nova
In the heart of Piazza Garibaldi, the hub of city life, the Cathedral of Santa Maria La Nova rises with a façade of two bell towers in golden calcarenite, which at sunset glows with reflections like a theatrical backdrop.
Moncada Palace - Civic Art Gallery
Moncada Palace - Civic Art Gallery
Overlooking Largo Barile, Palazzo Moncada is Caltanissetta’s monumental “unfinished palace”: a baroque quadrilateral.
Fountain of the Triton
Fountain of the Triton
In the heart of Piazza Garibaldi, the urban and symbolic center of Caltanissetta, the Fountain of the Triton rises like a small mythological stage.
Palazzo Testasecca
Palazzo Testasecca
In the dense 19th-century fabric of Corso Vittorio Emanuele, Palazzo Testasecca stands out as an elegant manifesto of the bourgeois season of Caltanissetta.
Church of Saint Agatha at the College
Church of Saint Agatha at the College
The Church of Saint Agatha at the College overlooks Corso Umberto I with its elegant façade in white sandstone from Sabucina, contributing to the Baroque charm of the city.
Palazzo Benintende
Palazzo Benintende
Palazzo Benintende was commissioned by Baron Filippo Benintende in the first half of the 19th century and entrusted to the creativity of architect Giuseppe Di Bartolo.
Palazzo del Carmine – Town Hall
Palazzo del Carmine – Town Hall
Built around 1371 as the Convent of the Discalced Carmelites next to the Church of Maria Santissima Annunziata, the complex today houses the Town Hall of Caltanissetta.
Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art
Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art
The Diocesan Museum of Caltanissetta, founded in 1983 by Monsignor Giovanni Speciale – to whom it is now dedicated – was inaugurated in 1986 with the first rooms set up on the ground floor of the Episcopal Seminary.
Villa Amedeo, formerly Selva dei Cappuccini
Villa Amedeo, formerly Selva dei Cappuccini
Originally the “Selva dei Cappuccini” until the early decades of the 19th century, the area was transformed into a public garden starting in 1821.
Teatro Regina Margherita
Teatro Regina Margherita
Inaugurated on March 16, 1875 with the staging of Verdi’s Macbeth, the Teatro Regina Margherita of Caltanissetta is one of the first municipal theatres in Italy.
Historic Market “Strata a Foglia”
Historic Market “Strata a Foglia”
This ancient market is still held daily today, with a lively backdrop of voices, colors, and scents that recall the city’s Arab origins.
War Memorial
War Memorial
In 1922, on the initiative of a citizens’ committee chaired by Dr. Luigi Sagona, a monument was erected in Caltanissetta in memory of the 289 soldiers and officers from the city who fell during the First World War.
Villa Cordova
Villa Cordova
This was a public garden located near the railway station.
Church of Santa Croce
Church of Santa Croce
The Church of Santa Croce, together with the adjoining Benedictine monastery, is one of the most historically rich places in the old town of Caltanissetta, nestled in the district commonly known as the “Badia.”
 

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